Bridelia mollis

Hutch.

Velvet sweet berry, Velvet bridelia

PhyllanthaceaeFruit
Bridelia mollis
iNaturalist · cc-by-nc
(c) Grant Reed, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Grant Reed
Bridelia mollis
iNaturalist · cc-by-nc
(c) frasergear, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by frasergear
Bridelia mollis
iNaturalist · cc-by-sa
(c) M Kriek, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), uploaded by M Kriek

What to Eat

Edible parts: Fruit

The fruit are eaten fresh or dried, and can be used for jam and juice. They are especially popular with children.

Where to Find It

A tropical plant. It grows at low altitudes. It is often amongst rocks. It grows between 100-1,525 m above sea level. It can grow in arid places.

Africa, Botswana, East Africa, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Southern Africa, West Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe,

Countries: Angola, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Benin, Botswana, Congo (DRC), Central African Republic, Congo (Republic), Cote d'Ivoire, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Djibouti, Algeria, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Gambia, Guinea, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Comoros, Liberia, Lesotho, Libya, Morocco, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Seychelles, Sudan, Sierra Leone, Senegal, Somalia, South Sudan, Sao Tome & Principe, Eswatini, Chad, Togo, Tunisia, Tanzania, Uganda, South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe

How to Identify

A shrub or small tree. It grows to 7 m high. It often has many branches and is spreading. The bark is dark grey and often rough with vertical stripes. It loses its leaves during the year. The leaves are oval and 2.5-13 cm long by 1.3-9 cm wide. The young leaves are golden and furry. The older leaves have soft hairs. The edge of the leaf is scalloped. The flowers are small and greenish-yellow. They are in tight clusters in the axils of leaves. The fruit are almost round and 10 mm across. They are clustered along the branches. They are finely velvety when young. They are black when mature. The fruit are edible.

Wikipedia

Source ↗

Bridelia mollis is a tree in the family Phyllanthaceae. It is native to southern Africa (Mozambique, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Botswana, Namibia, and Limpopo).

Other Information

The fruit are eaten especially by children.

Notes

There are about 60 Bridelia species.

Names & Synonyms

Capsipsa, Fluweelsoetbessie, Mokokokwena, Mokopakopa, Mudenhanyani, Mufukusi, Mukumbakumba, Munzvaraqauya, Musosoriondo, Muyani, Umgojomba, Umgojomba, Umkumbakumba, Umwane

References (17)
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