Flacourtia territorialis
Airy-Shaw
iNaturalist· cc-by
(c) Roland Muench, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Roland Muench
Description
A climbing shrub. It grows 3-5 m high and spreads 1-3 m wide. It is prickly. The branches are supported by hooks. Plants loose their leaves during the dry season. The leaves are 1.5-3 cm long by 1-2 cm wide. They are oval and thin textured. The tip can be blunt or notched. The flowers are of one sex. They are about 4 mm across. Male flowers have about 30 stamens and female flowers are fleshy. The fruit is fleshy with a hard stone inside. It is 1.2 cm across. It is rounded and ribbed.
Edible Uses
The ripe fruit are eaten.
Traditional Uses
The ripe fruit are eaten.
This uses section is brief — help expand it
Distribution
A tropical plant. It grows in tropical monsoonal rainforests. They will grow on most soil types.
Where It Grows
Australia*,
Cultivation
Plants can be grwon from fresh seed.
Notes
A food plant of the Leopard butterfly. There are about 17 Flacourtia species. Also put in the Flacourtiaceae family.
References (5)
- Elliot, W.R., & Jones, D.L., 1992, Encyclopedia of Australian Plants suitable for cultivation. Vol 4. Lothian. p 299
- Flora of Australia, Volume 8, Lecythidales to Batales, Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra (1982) p 73
- Jones D, L, 1986, Ornamental Rainforest Plants in Australia, Reed Books, p 340
- Smith, N. M., 1991, Ethnobotanical Field Notes from the Northern Territory, Australia, J. Adelaide Bot. Gard. 14(1): 1-65
- Townsend, K., 1994, Across the Top. Gardening with Australian Plants in the tropics. Society for Growing Australian Plants, Townsville Branch Inc. p 216
