Freycinetia excelsa
F. Muell.
Slender Climbing Pandan
(c) Steve Fitzgerald, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA), uploaded by Steve Fitzgerald
(c) Matthew Borella, some rights reserved (CC BY)
(c) Matthew Borella, some rights reserved (CC BY)
What to Eat
Edible parts: Fruit
The fruit are eaten, though they burn the back of the throat, possibly due to oxalates.
Known Hazards
Where to Find It
A tropical plant. It grows in tropical and subtropical places. In tropical Queensland it grows from sea level to 1250 m altitude. It needs a protected, partly shady position. It is damaged by drought and frost.
Australia*, Pacific, Papua New Guinea, PNG,
How to Identify
It partly attaches to and grows from other plants. It is an evergreen vine. It climbs to a height of 30 m. The stem is vigorous with many branches. It scrambles over logs and rocks. The stem is less than 1 cm across. The leaves are fairly rigid and curve and have spiny edges. They are 30-50 cm long and 0.6-0.8 cm wide. The form a short sheath around the stem at their base. The flowers are small and have red bracts around them. The bracts are 5-7 cm long by 2.5-3.5 cm wide. The female heads are in groups of 1-4 and are 3-4 cm long by 2-3 cm wide. The male spikes are in groups of 1-3 and are 2-3 cm long by 1-1.5 cm wide. The fruit is a cluster of berries. Each berry is 0.7 cm across and they are bright red. The fruit are produced at the stem tips. The fruit are edible
How to Grow
It is grown by dividing the stem. They can be grown from seed.
Wikipedia
Source ↗Freycinetia excelsa is a species of climbing plant in the family Pandanaceae. Naturally found growing in northern and eastern Australia, as far south as the Tweed Valley in New South Wales.
Production
In Australia, fruit occur from January to April.
Notes
There are about 100-175 Freycinetia species.
Names & Synonyms
Giant climbing pandan
References (10)
- Bodkin, F., 1991, Encyclopedia Botanica. Cornstalk publishing, p 481
- Cooper W & Cooper W T, 1994, Fruits of the Rain Forest. RD Press p 144
- Cooper, W. and Cooper, W., 2004, Fruits of the Australian Tropical Rainforest. Nokomis Editions, Victoria, Australia. p 382
- Cronin, L., 1989, The Concise Australian Flora. Reed. p 255
- Edible and Useful Native Plants (off internet)
- Elliot, W.R., & Jones, D.L., 1992, Encyclopedia of Australian Plants suitable for cultivation. Vol 4. Lothian. p 318
- Jackes, B.R., 2001, Plants of the Tropics. Rainforest to Heath. An Identification Guide. James Cook University. p 72
- Jones, D.L. & Gray, B., 1977, Australian Climbing Plants. Reed. p 104
- Nicholson, N & H., 1994, Australian Rainforest Plants 4, Terania Rainforest Publishing. NSW. p 36
- Townsend, K., 1994, Across the Top. Gardening with Australian Plants in the tropics. Society for Growing Australian Plants, Townsville Branch Inc. p 220
