''Eugenia uniflora'' is a

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

in the family

Myrtaceae Myrtaceae (), the myrtle family, is a family of dicotyledonous plants placed within the order Myrtales. Myrtle, pōhutukawa, bay rum tree, clove, guava, acca (feijoa), allspice, and eucalyptus are some notable members of this group. All ...

, native to tropical South America’s east coast, ranging from

Suriname Suriname, officially the Republic of Suriname, is a country in northern South America, also considered as part of the Caribbean and the West Indies. It is a developing country with a Human Development Index, high level of human development; i ...

French Guiana French Guiana, or Guyane in French, is an Overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of France located on the northern coast of South America in the Guianas and the West Indies. Bordered by Suriname to the west ...

to southern

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

, as well as

Uruguay Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the A ...

and parts of

Paraguay Paraguay, officially the Republic of Paraguay, is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the Argentina–Paraguay border, south and southwest, Brazil to the Brazil–Paraguay border, east and northeast, and Boli ...

and

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

. It is also known as Brazilian cherry, Cayenne cherry, cerisier carré, monkimonki kersie, ñangapirí, pitanga, shimarucu, and Suriname cherry. It is often used in gardens as a hedge or screen. It produces small, ribbed fruits (2 to 4 centimetres or 3⁄4 to 1+1⁄2 in), starting as green, then ranging through orange, scarlet, and maroon as they ripen. The tree was introduced to

Bermuda Bermuda is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. The closest land outside the territory is in the American state of North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. Bermuda is an ...

for ornamental purposes, but is now out of control and listed as an

invasive species An invasive species is an introduced species that harms its new environment. Invasive species adversely affect habitats and bioregions, causing ecological, environmental, and/or economic damage. The term can also be used for native spec ...

. The tree has also been introduced to

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

Description

''Eugenia uniflora'' is a large shrub or small tree with a conical form, growing slowly to high. When bruised, crushed, or cut, the leaves and branches have a spicy

resin A resin is a solid or highly viscous liquid that can be converted into a polymer. Resins may be biological or synthetic in origin, but are typically harvested from plants. Resins are mixtures of organic compounds, predominantly terpenes. Commo ...

ous fragrance, which can cause respiratory discomfort in susceptible individuals. The leaves are without stipules, ovate, glossy, and held in opposite pairs. New leaves are bronze, copper, or coppery-pinkish in color, maturing to deep glossy green, up to long. During winter, the leaves turn red. Flowers have four white petals and are borne on long, slender stalks, with a conspicuous central cluster of white

stamen The stamen (: stamina or stamens) is a part consisting of the male reproductive organs of a flower. Collectively, the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filament ...

s ending in yellow anthers. Flowers develop into ribbed fruits long, starting as green, then ranging through orange, scarlet, and maroon as they ripen. Because fruit-eating birds distribute the seeds, they can become a weed in suitable tropical and subtropical habitats, displacing native flora.

Uses

Culinary uses

The edible fruit is a

botanical berry In botany, a berry is a fleshy fruit without a drupe (pit) produced from a single flower containing one ovary. Berries so defined include grapes, currants, and tomatoes, as well as cucumbers, eggplants (aubergines), persimmons and bananas, b ...

. The taste ranges from sweet to sour, depending on the

cultivar A cultivar is a kind of Horticulture, cultivated plant that people have selected for desired phenotypic trait, traits and which retains those traits when Plant propagation, propagated. Methods used to propagate cultivars include division, root a ...

and level of ripeness (the darker red to black range is quite sweet, while the green to orange range is strikingly tart). Its predominant food use is as a flavoring and base for jams and jellies. The fruit is high in

vitamin C Vitamin C (also known as ascorbic acid and ascorbate) is a water-soluble vitamin found in citrus and other fruits, berries and vegetables. It is also a generic prescription medication and in some countries is sold as a non-prescription di ...

and a source of

provitamin A A provitamin is a substance that may be converted within the body to a vitamin. The term previtamin is a synonym. The term "provitamin" is used when it is desirable to label a substance with little or no vitamin activity, but which can be converte ...

. The leaves are also used for tea in certain parts of Uruguay.

Use as an insect repellent

The leaves are spread on some house floors in Brazil so that they exude a smell that repels flies when crushed underfoot.

Medical uses

''Eugenia uniflora'' has several significant pharmacological properties. Its essential oil is

antihypertensive Antihypertensives are a class of drugs that are used to treat hypertension (high blood pressure). Antihypertensive therapy seeks to prevent the complications of high blood pressure, such as stroke, heart failure, kidney failure and myocardial infa ...

, antidiabetic, antitumor and

analgesic An analgesic drug, also called simply an analgesic, antalgic, pain reliever, or painkiller, is any member of the group of drugs used for pain management. Analgesics are conceptually distinct from anesthetics, which temporarily reduce, and in s ...

, and it has shown antiviral and antifungal activity. It has performed against microorganisms such as ''Trichomonas gallinae'' (in vitro), ''Trypanosoma cruzi'' and ''Leishmania amazonensis''.

Gallery

File:Starr 080610-8163 Eugenia uniflora.jpg, flowers Image:Eugenia_uniflora_fruits.jpg, ''Eugenia uniflora'' fruits Image:Eugenia_unifloraZZ.jpg, ''Eugenia uniflora'' Image:Eugenia uniflora.JPG, ''Eugenia uniflora'' Image:Eugenia_flor.JPG, ''Eugenia uniflora'' Image:Eugenia uniflora -young leaves.jpg, Eugenia uniflora -young leaves File:Z Eugenia uniflora, Pitanga140525NI1.JPG, With fruits on tree File:ריבת פיטנגו.jpg, Pitanga jam

References

External links

Purdue University New Crop Resource Online Program''Eugenia uniflora'' in the Global Invasive Species Database

* ttp://www.hear.org/pier/wra/pacific/eugenia_uniflora_htmlwra.htm Weed risk assessment for ''Eugenia uniflora'' for Hawaii/PacificRetrieved 2010-06-20.
Bermuda Department of Conservation Services, Invasive Species Page for Suriname Cherry.
{{Taxonbar, from=Q306504 uniflora Flora of Southern America Plants described in 1753 Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus