Ardisia squamulosa

Presl.

Spicy berry

PrimulaceaeFruitFlowersSpice/BeverageScore: 26/100

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What to Eat

Edible parts: Fruit, Flowers, Spice

The fruit, flowers, and spice are cooked and eaten with fish. Flowers and fruit are sold in local markets.

Where to Find It

A tropical plant. They are widely distributed in primary forest at low and medium altitudes in the Philippines. It grows up to 1000 m altitude.

Asia, Cambodia, Indochina, Pacific, Philippines, SE Asia, Vietnam,

Countries: United Arab Emirates, Afghanistan, Armenia, Australia, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Bahrain, Brunei, Bhutan, China, Fiji, Micronesia, Georgia, Indonesia, Israel, India, Iraq, Iran, Jordan, Japan, Kyrgyzstan, Cambodia, Kiribati, North Korea, South Korea, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Laos, Lebanon, Sri Lanka, Marshall Islands, Myanmar, Mongolia, Maldives, Malaysia, Nepal, Nauru, New Zealand, Oman, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Pakistan, Palau, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Solomon Islands, Singapore, Syria, Thailand, Tajikistan, Timor-Leste, Turkmenistan, Tonga, Turkey, Tuvalu, Taiwan, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, Vanuatu, Samoa, Yemen

How to Identify

A small shrub or tree. It grows 1-2 m tall. It can grow 10 m tall and be 15 cm across the trunk. The leaves are alternate, rather slender and pointed at both ends. They are 6-15 cm long by 2-6 cm wide. The flowers are white or pink and have a smell. They are borne on compound flower arrangements at or near the ends of branches. About 4-5 flowers occur together. The flower arrangements are 1 cm long. The fruit are dark blue or purple, round and less than 1 cm across.

Nutrition Score: 26/100

Part	Moisture	kJ	kcal	Protein	Vit A	Vit C	Iron	Zinc
Fruit	29	—	—	15	—	—	—	—
Flowers	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—

How to Grow

Plants are grown by seed.

Medicinal Uses

Used traditionally as food and spice in Philippine cuisine.

Wikipedia

Source ↗

Ardisia squamulosa is a species of plant in the family Primulaceae. It is endemic to the Philippines. It is used to flavor fish.

Other Information

Flowers and fruit are sold in local markets.

Notes

There are about 250-300 Ardisia species. They are mainly in the tropics. The fresh fruit are 29% water, 15% protein, 2% fat, 22% carbohydrates, 27% fibre and 5% ash. Also put in the family Myrsinaceae.

Names & Synonyms

Babagion, Ba'y ka'k, Butau, Tagpo

Ardisia boissieri A.DC.Ardisia drupacea (Blanco) MerrillArdisia humilis auct. non Vahl

References (5)

Bircher, A. G. & Bircher, W. H., 2000, Encyclopedia of Fruit Trees and Edible Flowering Plants in Egypt and the Subtropics. AUC Press. p 40
Monsalud, M.R., Tongacan, A.L., Lopez, F.R., & Lagrimas, M.Q., 1966, Edible Wild Plants in Philippine Forests. Philippine Journal of Science. p 510
PROSEA handbook Volume 13 Spices. p 247
Seidemann J., 2005, World Spice Plants. Economic Usage, Botany, Taxonomy. Springer. p 49