Peumus boldus

What to Eat

Edible parts: Leaves - tea, Fruit, Oil

The fruit can be eaten raw or cooked. It is sweet and aromatic with an agreeable flavour and grows up to 2cm in diameter. The leaves and bark are also used as a condiment.

Known Hazards

Where to Find It

It is a subtropical plant. It is damaged by frost. It does best in a warm sheltered position. It needs a well-drained, sandy, acid soil. It needs to be in the sun. It suits hardiness zones 9-11. Arboretum Tasmania.

Africa, Andorra, Australia, Bolivia, Central America, Chile*, Côte d'Ivoire, Ecuador, Europe, Guinea, Guinée, Ivory Coast, Mexico, North America*, Paraguay, Peru, South America, Tasmania, Turkey, Türkiye, West Africa,

How to Identify

An evergreen shrub or tree. It has an aroma. It grows 4-6 m tall. It can grow to 20 m tall. The leaves are oval and dark green. They are 5 cm long. The leaves have yellow silky hairs underneath. Male and female flowers are on separate plants. The flowers are small and white. They are in short panicles at the ends of branches. The fruit are the size of hawthorn berries. They are edible.

How to Grow

Dislikes soils that are too moist. Prefers a well-drained acid sandy soil in full sun. Hardy in climatic zone 9 (tolerating occasional light frosts), this plant normally requires greenhouse protection in Britain but is capable of withstanding light frosts and might succeed outdoors in the mildest areas of the country, especially if grown against a sunny wall. One report says that the plant succeeds outdoors at Kew Gardens in London, where it often flowers all year round. All parts of the plant are sweetly aromatic. The leaves have a lemon-camphor aroma. Dioecious, male and female plants must be grown if fruit and seed is required.

Propagation: Sow seed in spring in a warm greenhouse. Prick seedlings into individual pots once large enough to handle and grow on under glass for at least the first winter. Plant out in early summer with protection from winter cold for at least the first two years outdoors. Alternatively, take half-ripe cuttings in July or August and root in a frame, growing them on under cover for at least their first winter.

Medicinal Uses

Boldu is a traditional remedy of the Araucanian Indians of Chile, where it has long been used as a tonic. It stimulates liver activity and bile flow and is chiefly valued for treating gallstones and liver or gallbladder pain. It is typically taken for only a few weeks at a time, as an infusion or tincture, and is often combined with herbs such as Berberis vulgaris or Chionanthus virginicus when treating gallstones. The leaves are analgesic, antiseptic (specifically urinary), bitter, cholagogue, diuretic, stimulant and tonic, and are considered in South America to be an effective treatment for gonorrhoea. The plant is taken internally for liver disease (though the bark is more effective for this), gallstones, urinary tract infections, intestinal parasites and rheumatism. It has historically been used as a quinine substitute for treating malaria. Leaves are harvested during the growing season and dried for later use. A volatile oil from the plant destroys internal parasites, and alkaloids in the bark stimulate the liver. The plant should not be used by pregnant women. The German Commission E Monographs approve Peumus boldus for dyspeptic complaints.

Other Uses

The bark yields tannin and is also used as a dye. A fragrant essential oil is obtained from the leaves. Dried, powdered leaves can be scattered among clothes to sweeten them and repel insects. The small fruits are dried and used as beads in necklaces; when warmed by the body or sun they release a scent of cinnamon. The wood is used to make charcoal.

An evergreen tree growing to 6 m at a slow rate, hardy to UK zone 9. It retains foliage year-round and flowers from August to September. The species is dioecious, requiring both male and female plants for seed production. It grows in light or medium soils with good drainage and prefers mildly acid to neutral pH. It tolerates semi-shade or full sun in dry or moist conditions.

Notes

There is only one Peumus species. It grows natually in Chile. An oil extract from the bark is used in medicine.

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