ID - interesting fruit tree

peter1968

21 years ago

Pictures (warning 56K users!)

Whorl of leaves

Tree, about 10-15 m in height, spreading aspect, dark greyish brown bark.

Small red fruits about 3-4cm long, thin yellow aril surrounding a large seed. Tastes a bit like a plum, though I'm positive this tree is no member of the Prunus genus.

Leaves pinnate and grow in whorls, rather striking looking.

Thought they may have been one of the rare diospyros members we get here in Australia (red-fruited ebony, etc) but it isn't.

Love to know what it is!

Thanks in advance!

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Comments (3)

User
21 years ago
Hi Peter, the first one looks like Bauhinia monandra one of the butterfly trees.
Sorry I dont know that second Pic, but someone else will, Cheers...MM
plantsplus
21 years ago
Peter, The plant with the fruit is a kaffir plum (Harpephyllum caffrum) from South Africa. It needs male and female trees to produce fruit. The fruit are ripe when they turn from red to purplish and are quite tart but make terrific jams. It can be propagated from cuttings. I have one growing in Brisbane - It is quite fast growing but can be somewhat brittle so protect from strong winds. They can be pruned back and will regrow well if damaged. Robyn
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Not a volunteer, it was definitely planted by the previous owners. They had an interest in rare and odd things. I think I've narrowed it down to a Stenocarpus sinuatus (Firewheel Tree), an Australian native, with the help from one of the California Gardening Forum members. So far, that seems to be closest to what I am seeing. I've sent photos to my local tree nursery (Brigg's Tree Nursery in Vista, Calif), who are always ID'ing things for customers. They kind have a little competition between themselves to see who can most frequently ID unusual specimens, so it's "game on" over at Brigg's :-) Patty S.
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The tree ID guides did tend to steer me toward buckeye because of the very unique palmate leaves. I looked up photos for Asian Pear and Buckeye and neither seems to be a match. I pulled a fruit off the branch and sliced it up to show one of the two seeds inside. You can also see the seeds in the previous photo of the fruit rotting on the pavement. The seeds are much too hard to cut through with a knife, and the meat of the fruit is about the hardness of an apple. I had to clean the one visible seed off with my fingernails after using the knife to remove larger chunks around it. Here is a link that might be useful: Imgur gallery of the fruit
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Reviving an old thread..... I have tasted Phalsa berries and they are tasty... I would like to grow it in Raleigh NC and was wondering its cold tolerance.... Gardengrl... if you still active on the forum, I would like to know the answer to this.. 1. I am interested in knowing if this plant is in still producing berries. 2. That it is indeed Phalsa. Thanks !!
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You might be right Peter - however, I wanted to ID a wattle that grows widely in the Melbourne area and I looked on the ANBG website. After making a number of enquiries, I found out it was Acacia iteaphylla. The ANBG shows this species having a range north of Adelaide in SA. What the site failed to mention is that it has become a weed species in Victoria. So I can't be sure your tree is E cinerea, but try to get confirmation from a local expert. Cheers - GW Here is a link that might be useful: ANBG
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peter1968
Original Author
21 years ago
Thank you very much! There are some interesting trees in the vicinity of this one too, including a sausage tree.

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ID - interesting fruit tree

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plantsplus

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peter1968
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ID - interesting fruit tree

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plantsplus

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peter1968Original Author

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peter1968
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