Cestrum latifolium

Lam.

Bitter greens

SolanaceaeFruitLeavesPotential hazards — see below

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(c) Riley Fortier, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Riley Fortier

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(c) Sébastien SANT, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Sébastien SANT

What to Eat

Edible parts: Leaves, Fruit

The leaves and fruit are edible and sold in markets.

Known Hazards

Where to Find It

A tropical plant. It grows in coastal areas and in open savanna forest and on slopes. It grows in moist rich soil and can be in full sun or light shade.

Africa, Asia, Central Africa, Central America, Congo, Guatemala, Guiana, Guianas, Guyana, Indonesia, Panama, SE Asia, South America*, Suriname, West Indies,

Countries: United Arab Emirates, Afghanistan, Antigua & Barbuda, Armenia, Angola, Argentina, Azerbaijan, Barbados, Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, Bahrain, Burundi, Benin, Brunei, Bolivia, Brazil, Bahamas, Bhutan, Botswana, Belize, Congo (DRC), Central African Republic, Congo (Republic), Cote d'Ivoire, Chile, Cameroon, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Cape Verde, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Algeria, Ecuador, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Grenada, Georgia, French Guiana, Ghana, Gambia, Guinea, Equatorial Guinea, Guatemala, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Honduras, Haiti, Indonesia, Israel, India, Iraq, Iran, Jamaica, Jordan, Japan, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Cambodia, Comoros, St Kitts & Nevis, North Korea, South Korea, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Laos, Lebanon, St Lucia, Sri Lanka, Liberia, Lesotho, Libya, Morocco, Madagascar, Mali, Myanmar, Mongolia, Mauritania, Mauritius, Maldives, Malawi, Malaysia, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Nicaragua, Nepal, Oman, Panama, Peru, Philippines, Pakistan, Puerto Rico, Paraguay, Qatar, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Seychelles, Sudan, Singapore, Sierra Leone, Senegal, Somalia, Suriname, South Sudan, Sao Tome & Principe, El Salvador, Syria, Eswatini, Chad, Togo, Thailand, Tajikistan, Timor-Leste, Turkmenistan, Tunisia, Turkey, Trinidad & Tobago, Taiwan, Tanzania, Uganda, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, St Vincent, Venezuela, Vietnam, Yemen, South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe

How to Identify

A shrub or slender tree. It grows 4 m tall. The flowers are in tufts in the axils of leaves. There are 4-12 flowers in a group. The fruit is an oval berry. It is 0.7 cm long by 0.5 cm wide. The fruit are green to dark purplish-blue. There are 3-4 seeds.

How to Grow

Plants can be grown from seeds or tip cuttings.

Other Information

Sold in markets.

Notes

There are about 175-200 Cestrum species. The fruit are used as fish poison.

Names & Synonyms

Barriga de sapo, Bella de noche, Bita wiwiri, Cazabe, Ciruelilla, Ciruelo de monte, Clavito, Daun pahit, Ke tipen

Cestrum albopunctatum DunalCestrum billbergianum Beurl.Cestrum chloranthum DunalCestrum floribundum Willd. ex Roem. & Schult.Cestrum hirtum Sieber ex Sendtn.Cestrum latifolium var. genuinum Stehlé ex FournetCestrum latifolium var. tenuiflorum (Kunth) O.E. SchulzCestrum oliganthum DunalCestrum oliganthum var. latifolium DunalCestrum ovatum Willd. ex Roem. & Schult.Cestrum poeppigii Sendtn.Cestrum prieurei DunalCestrum tenuiflorum KunthCestrum tenuifolium FranceyCestrum vespertinum Griseb.

References (7)

Altschul, S.V.R., 1973, Drugs and Foods from Little-known Plants. Notes in Harvard University Herbaria. Harvard Univ. Press. Massachusetts. no. 4055
Grandtner, M. M. & Chevrette, J., 2013, Dictionary of Trees, Volume 2: South America: Nomenclature, Taxonomy and Ecology. Academic Press p 121
Jardin, C., 1970, List of Foods Used In Africa, FAO Nutrition Information Document Series No 2.p 66
Martin, F.W. & Ruberte, R.M., 1979, Edible Leaves of the Tropics. Antillian College Press, Mayaguez, Puerto Rico. p 219
Sukarya, D. G., (Ed.) 2013, 3,500 Plant Species of the Botanic Gardens of Indonesia. LIPI p 606
Tabl. encycl. 2(vol. 3):5. 1794
van Roosmalen, M.G.M., 1985, Fruits of the Guianan Flora. Utrecht Univ. & Wageningen Univ. p 416 (var. tenuifolium)