Gossia hillii
(Benth.) N. Snow & Guymer
Scaly myrtle, Scrub Ironwood, Hill's ironwood, Hill's lignum
(c) Ian McMaster, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Ian McMaster
(c) Greg Tasney, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA)
(c) Greg Tasney, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA)
What to Eat
Edible parts: Fruit, Seeds
The fruit and seeds are edible.
Where to Find It
A tropical plant. It needs a partly shady position and a well drained soil. In tropical Queensland it grows from sea level to 1120 m altitude.
Australia*,
How to Identify
A tall shrub. It grows 3-5 m high and spreads 2-4 m wide. It can be a tree to 20 m tall with buttresses. The leaves are 2.5-5 cm long by 1-2 cm wide. They are oval and dark green. The flowers are 1 cm across. They are white. They occur singly in the axils of leaves. The flower stalks are 2.5 cm long. The fruit is a berry about 1 cm across. It is black and shiny with white pulp. The fruit are edible.
How to Grow
Plants can be grown from seed or cuttings.
Notes
There are 14 Austromyrtus species. They occur in Australia.
References (8)
- Bodkin, F., 1991, Encyclopedia Botanica. Cornstalk publishing, p 120 (As Austromyrtus hillii)
- Cherikoff V. & Isaacs, J., The Bush Food Handbook. How to gather, grow, process and cook Australian Wild Foods. Ti Tree Press, Australia p 198 (As Austromyrtus hillii)
- Cooper, W. and Cooper, W., 2004, Fruits of the Australian Tropical Rainforest. Nokomis Editions, Victoria, Australia. p 346
- Elliot, W.R., & Jones, D.L., 1982, Encyclopedia of Australian Plants suitable for cultivation. Vol 2. Lothian. p 262 (As Austromyrtus hillii)
- Hibbert, M., 2002, The Aussie Plant Finder 2002, Florilegium. p 36 (As Austromyrtus hillii)
- Jones D, L, 1986, Ornamental Rainforest Plants in Australia, Reed Books, p 65 (As Austromyrtus hillii)
- Low, T., 1991, Wild Food Plants of Australia. Australian Nature FieldGuide, Angus & Robertson. p 35 (As Austromyrtus hillii)
- Williams, J.B., Harden, G.J., and McDonald, W.J.F., 1984, Trees and shrubs in rainforests of New South Wales and Southern Queensland. Univ. of New England, Armidale. p 113 (As Austromyrtus hillii)
