Rubus ellipticus var. obcordatus

(Franch.) Focke

Rosaceae Edible: Fruit 1,589 iNaturalist observations

Has a deadly poisonous lookalike — see comparison below

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Summary

Rubus ellipticus, commonly known as ainselu, golden evergreen raspberry, golden Himalayan raspberry, or yellow Himalayan raspberry, is an Asian species of thorny fruiting shrub in the rose family. Its native range stretches from the Indian subcontinent (Nepal, India, Sri Lanka and Pakistan) to southern China and Indochina and the Philippines.

Description

A shrub in the rose family found in Yunnan and Sichuan provinces of China at 300-1,000 m elevation. It has oval leaflets that are shallowly heart-shaped at the tip.

Edible Uses

The fruit is eaten raw.

Traditional Uses

The fruit are eaten raw.

This uses section is brief — help expand it

Medicinal Uses

Nepali farmers have had limited success in harvesting and fermenting the aiselu fruit to produce a fruit wine. In Sikkim, its roots are used to treat stomach pain and headaches, and its fruits are used to treat indigestion. The bark from this plant is used for medical reasons in Tibetan villages, mainly as a renal tonic and an antidiuretic. Its juices can be used to treat coughs, fevers, colic and sore throat. The plant can be used to make a bluish-purple dye. The fruits of golden Himalayan raspberry was recorded as rich source of phenolics, Beta carotenes, ascorbic acid (vitamin C), many other important metabolites and antioxidants. The leaves contain various helpful properties as well. The fruit extracts of R. ellipticus contain antimicrobial properties (Ding et al. 2008).

Distribution

It grows between 300-1,000 m above sea level. It grows in Yunnan in China. In Sichuan.

Where It Grows

Asia, China, India, Indochina, Laos, Myanmar, SE Asia, Thailand, Tibet, Vietnam,

Dangerous Lookalikes

This plant can be confused with the following toxic species. Always verify identification carefully before consuming any wild plant.

DEADLY

Red Baneberry

Actaea rubra

Walter Siegmund (talk)

Safe

Rubus ellipticus var. obcordatus

Red Baneberry: Short herbaceous plant (no thorns), berries on thick red stems, each berry has a single seed, compound sharply-toothed leaves.

Rubus ellipticus var. obcordatus: Thorny woody canes (brambles), aggregate berry made of many drupelets, berries pull easily from receptacle.

Also Known As

Huo wo, Nga-u-war

References (5)

Aryal, K., Moe, A.T., Hein, P.P., Bay, Y.H.S., Htay, T., Aung, H.W., Shakya, B., Xuefei, Y., Shaoliang, Y. , 2020, Wild and non- cultivated edible plants and their contribution to local livelihoods in Putao, Myanmar. ICIMOD.
Ghorbani, A., et al, 2012, A comparison of the wild food plant use knowledge of ethnic minorities in Naban River Watershed Nature Reserve, Yunnan, SW China. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine; 8:17
Luo, B., et al, 2019, Wild edible plants collected by Hani from terraced rice paddy agroecosystem in Honghe Prefecture, Yunnan, China. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine 15:56
Wang, J. et al, 2013, A Study on the Utilization of Wild Plants for Food in Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture. Plant Diversity and Resources. 35(4): 416-471
Wang, J., et al, 2020, An ethnobotanical survey of wild edible plants used by the Yi people of Liangshan Prefecture, Sichuan Province, China. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine 16:10 p 9