Rhaphiolepis indica

(L.) Lindl. ex Ker Gawl.

Indian hawthorn, East Indian Hawthorn

Rosaceae Edible: Fruit 18,399 iNaturalist observations

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Summary

Rhaphiolepis indica, the Indian hawthorn, India hawthorn or Hong Kong hawthorn is an evergreen shrub in the family Rosaceae.

Description

An evergreen shrub. It grows 2 m tall. The leaves are leathery, simple and oval. They have teeth along the edge. The leaves are 5 cm long. They are dark green. The tips are pointed. The flowers are small and rose like. They are pink or white and occur in branched clusters. The fruit is a small purple or black fleshy fruit.

Edible Uses

The fruit is edible, measuring around 8mm in diameter. No further details are given.

Traditional Uses

The fruit are eaten.

This uses section is brief — help expand it

Medicinal Uses

None known

Distribution

It is a temperate to subtropical plant. It needs regular moisture but less when cool. It needs a moderately fertile, well-drained soil. It needs full sun. In China it grows between 700-1,600 m above sea level. It suits hardiness zones 8-11. Mt Cootha Botanical Gardens. Arboretum Tasmania.

Where It Grows

Asia, Australia, Britain, Cambodia, China, Europe, Hawaii, India, Indochina, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Pacific, SE Asia, Singapore, Taiwan, Tasmania, Thailand, USA, Vietnam,

Cultivation

Plants can be grown from seed. It can also be grown from cuttings.

Propagation

Seed is best sown as soon as it is ripe in a shady position in a warm greenhouse. Stored seed should be sown in February or March in a warm greenhouse. Germination is variable. Prick seedlings into individual pots when large enough to handle and grow on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant out into permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, 5cm with a heel, can be taken in September or October in a frame, with a fair success rate. Layering is also an option.

Other Uses

The plant can be used for informal hedging in frost-free or nearly frost-free areas. Dark blue, turquoise, and purple dyes are obtained from the fruit.

Notes

There are about 9-15 Rhaphiolepis species. It can be invasive.

Also Known As

Chelunmei, Kembang mei india, Wheel mei

References (16)

Altschul, S.V.R., 1973, Drugs and Foods from Little-known Plants. Notes in Harvard University Herbaria. Harvard Univ. Press. Massachusetts. no. 1407 (As Raphiolepis indica)
Bot. Reg. 6: t. 468. 1820 "Raphiolepis"
Burkill, I.H., 1966, A Dictionary of the Economic Products of the Malay Peninsula. Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Vol 2 (I-Z) p 1901 (As Raphiolepis indica)
Cundall, P., (ed.), 2004, Gardening Australia: flora: the gardener's bible. ABC Books. p 1140
Flora of China @ efloras.org Volume 9

Show all 16 references

Hedrick, U.P., 1919, (Ed.), Sturtevant's edible plants of the world. p 554 (As Raphiolepis indica)
Hibbert, M., 2002, The Aussie Plant Finder 2002, Florilegium. p 246
Hu, Shiu-ying, 2005, Food Plants of China. The Chinese University Press. p 452
Llamas, K.A., 2003, Tropical Flowering Plants. Timber Press. p 324
Marinelli, J. (Ed), 2004, Plant. DK. p 466
Plants for a Future database, The Field, Penpol, Lostwithiel, Cornwall, PL22 0NG, UK. http://www.scs.leeds.ac.uk/pfaf/
Recher, P, 2001, Fruit Spirit Botanical Gardens Plant Index. www.nrg.com.au/~recher/ seedlist.html p 7
Reis, S. V. and Lipp, F. L., 1982, New Plant Sources for Drugs and Foods from the New York Botanical Garden herbarium. Harvard. p 102 (As Raphiolepis)
Staples, G.W. and Herbst, D.R., 2005, A tropical Garden Flora. Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu, Hawaii. p 478
Sukarya, D. G., (Ed.) 2013, 3,500 Plant Species of the Botanic Gardens of Indonesia. LIPI p 698
Valder, P., 1999, The Garden Plants of China. Florilegium. p 324