Pseudopanax lessonii is a New Zealand native coastal five finger with leathery foliage. It is a shrub or tree up to 6 m tall, with stout branches. The fleshy hand-shaped leaves are alternate and are crowded towards the tips of branchlets, and are 3- to 5- foliolate. Juvenile plants have larger leaves than adults. The petioles are 5-15 cm long.

It is endemic to New Zealand and its natural range is coastal forest and scrub on the Three Kings Islands and the North Island as far south as Poverty Bay (38°4′S) and northern Taranaki. Houpara is popular in New Zealand gardens and it has become naturalised and is becoming a weed in some areas. Green flowers develop Dec.–Feb. A number of cultivars have been developed including “Gold Splash” which has a green leaf with splashes of yellow