''Luma chequen'', the white Chilean myrtle, is a species of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

in the genus ''

Luma Luma or LUMA may refer to: Arts * La Trobe University Museum of Art, Melbourne, Australia * LUMA Projection Arts Festival, an annual event featuring building-scale projection mapping and light installations in Binghamton, NY * LUMA Foundation, ...

'' in the family Myrtaceae, native to the central

Andes The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S ...

mountains between

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

and

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

, at latitudes located 30 to 41° South. Synonyms include ''Eugenia chequen'' Molina, ''Myrtus chequen'' (Molina) Spreng., and ''Luma gayana'' (Barn.) Burret. Common names in Spanish include chequén, huillipeta, and arrayán blanco (white myrtle). It is a shrub (rarely a small

tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...

) growing to 9 m tall, with dull grey-brown bark (unlike the smooth red bark of the related ''

Luma apiculata ''Luma apiculata'', the Chilean myrtle or ''temu'', is a species of flowering plant in the myrtle family, native to the central Andes between Chile and Argentina, at 33 to 45° south latitude. Growing to tall and wide, it is a vigorous, bushy, e ...

''). It is

evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has foliage that remains green and functional through more than one growing season. This also pertains to plants that retain their foliage only in warm climates, and contrasts with deciduous plants, whic ...

, with small fragrant oval leaves 0.5-2.5 cm long and 0.3-1.5 cm broad, and white

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...

s in early to mid summer. Its

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...

is an edible dark purple berry 1 cm in diameter, ripe in early autumn. It has been introduced as ornamental in the North Pacific Coast of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

Etymology

''Luma'' is a derivation of a vernacular Chilean name for this species.Gledhill, David (2008). "The Names of Plants". Cambridge University Press. (hardback), (paperback). pp 243

External links

''Luma chequen'' in Encyclopedia of the Chilean Flora

Myrtaceae Flora of Chile Flora of Argentina {{Myrtaceae-stub