''Syzygium luehmannii'' is a medium-sized coastal

rainforest Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforest can be classified as tropical rainforest or temperate rainfores ...

tree native to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. Common names include riberry, small leaved lilly pilly, cherry satinash, cherry alder, or clove lilli pilli. The habitat is Australian riverine,

littoral The littoral zone or nearshore is the part of a sea, lake, or river that is close to the shore. In coastal ecology, the littoral zone includes the intertidal zone extending from the high water mark (which is rarely inundated), to coastal areas ...

, subtropical or tropical rainforest.Floyd, A.G., ''Rainforest Trees of Mainland South-eastern Australia'', It grows on

volcanic A volcano is a rupture in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most often found where tectonic plates a ...

soils or deep sandy soils between the

Macleay River The Macleay River is a river that spans the Northern Tablelands and Mid North Coast districts of New South Wales, Australia. Course and features Formed by the confluence of the Gara River, Salisbury Waters and Bakers Creek, the Macleay River r ...

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

to near

Cairns Cairns (, ) is a city in Queensland, Australia, on the tropical north east coast of Far North Queensland. The population in June 2019 was 153,952, having grown on average 1.02% annually over the preceding five years. The city is the 5th-most-p ...

in tropical

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

. It is commonly grown as an ornamental tree and for its fruit, known as a riberry.

Description

Occasionally reaching 30 metres in height and 90 cm in trunk diameter, the tree's crown is dense with small leaves, above a tall straight trunk. Large trees are buttressed at the base. The bark is red brown, light grey or pinkish grey with soft papery scales.

Leaves and flowers

The small, glossy, lance-shaped leaves are a shiny green when mature, but pink/red when young. They are opposite, simple, entire,

lanceolate The following is a list of terms which are used to describe leaf morphology in the description and taxonomy of plants. Leaves may be simple (a single leaf blade or lamina) or compound (with several leaflets). The edge of the leaf may be regular o ...

ovate Ovate may refer to: *Ovate (egg-shaped) leaves, tepals, or other botanical parts *Ovate, a type of prehistoric stone hand axe *Ovates, one of three ranks of membership in the Welsh Gorsedd *Vates In modern English, the nouns vates () and ovat ...

, 4 to 5 cm long, drawn out to a long prominent point. The leaf stalks are 2 to 3 mm long. Flowers form in November or December. They are in small

panicles A panicle is a much-branched inflorescence. (softcover ). Some authors distinguish it from a compound spike inflorescence, by requiring that the flowers (and fruit) be pedicellate (having a single stem per flower). The branches of a panicle are o ...

at the ends of branchlets, half the length of the leaves or less. The white or cream petals form in fours or fives, 1.5 mm long. The

stamina Stamina may refer to: Biology and healthcare * Endurance, the ability of an organism to exert itself and remain active for a long period of time, as well as its ability to resist, withstand, recover from, and have immunity to trauma, wounds, or fat ...

are 2 to 5 mm long.

Fruit and germination

The fruit matures from December to February, being a pear-shaped red

berry A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone or pit, although many pips or seeds may be present. Common examples are strawberries, raspb ...

, known as a riberry, growing to 13 mm long, covering a single seed, 4 mm in diameter. Seed germination is unreliable, complete after 25 days; however, cuttings strike readily. The fruit is eaten by the

Australasian figbird The Australasian figbird (''Sphecotheres vieilloti''), also known as the green figbird (not to be confused with the Timor figbird), is a conspicuous, medium-sized passerine bird native to a wide range of wooded habitats in northern and eastern ...

emu The emu () (''Dromaius novaehollandiae'') is the second-tallest living bird after its ratite relative the ostrich. It is endemic to Australia where it is the largest native bird and the only extant member of the genus ''Dromaius''. The emu' ...

, and flying fox (pteropus).

Uses and cultivation

The tree commonly only reaches 8–10 metres in cultivation. The berry has a tart,

cranberry Cranberries are a group of evergreen dwarf shrubs or trailing vines in the subgenus ''Oxycoccus'' of the genus ''Vaccinium''. In Britain, cranberry may refer to the native species ''Vaccinium oxycoccos'', while in North America, cranberry ...

-like flavour, with a hint of

cloves Cloves are the aromatic flower buds of a tree in the family Myrtaceae, ''Syzygium aromaticum'' (). They are native to the Maluku Islands (or Moluccas) in Indonesia, and are commonly used as a spice, flavoring or fragrance in consumer products, s ...

. It has been popular as a gourmet

bushfood Bush tucker, also called bush food, is any food native to Australia and used as sustenance by Indigenous Australians, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, but it can also describe any native flora or fauna used for culinary or ...

since the early 1980s and is commercially cultivated on a small-scale basis. The fruit is most commonly used to make a distinctively flavoured jam and is also used in sauces, syrups and confectionery. It can also be eaten and enjoyed straight off the tree. The riberry plant is also very popular as a garden ornamental and street tree. It is easily maintained as a smaller tree by light pruning.

References

* Bruneteau, Jean-Paul, ''Tukka, Real Australian Food'', . * Floyd, A.G., ''Rainforest Trees of Mainland South-eastern Australia'', . * Cherikoff, Vic, ''The Bushfood Handbook'', . * Kersh, Jennice and Raymond, ''Edna's Table'', . * Low, Tim, ''Wild Food Plants of Australia'', .

External links

* CSIRO plant profile

{{Taxonbar, from=Q159406 Syzygium, luehmannii Myrtales of Australia Flora of New South Wales Flora of Queensland Trees of Australia Bushfood Australian cuisine Crops originating from Australia Garden plants of Australia Ornamental trees Taxa named by Ferdinand von Mueller