Eustrephus latifolius
| Eustrephus latifolius | |
| Light: |  |
| Moisture: |  |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Height: | 16' |
| Blooms: | Early Summer |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
 | |
Eustrephus latifolius (common name: wombat berry)
Propagation: Seed - sow spring in a greenhouse. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant out into their permanent positions in early summer.
Division in spring.
Cultivation: Requires a sheltered position with plenty of humus in the soil[1]. Succeeds in heavy shade in Australian gardens, requiring shade in most soil types[2].
This species is not very hardy in Britain, though it can succeed outdoors in the mildest areas of the country[1]. It tolerates temperatures down to at least -7°c in Australian gardens[2], but this cannot be translated directly to British gardens due to our cooler summers and longer, colder and wetter winters.
Plants require support by tying[2].
Range: Australia - New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria.
Habitat: Open forests, extending into dry woodlands and rainforests[3].
Edibility: Fruit - raw. It has very little flesh[4][3]. The orange berry is about 10mm in diameter[5].
Root - raw[6]. Juicy with a sweet flavour[7][3], but barely worth the effort of excavating them[3]. The roots bear small tubers up to 3cm long[3]. It has been suggested that these tubers are probably capable of enlargement through cultivation[3].
Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Also Known As: E. brownii.
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Wrigley, John and Murray Fagg. Australian Native Plants. Collins, 1988.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Low, Tim. Wild Food Plants of Australia. Angus and Robertson, 1989.
- ↑ Cribb, Alan and Joan Cribb. Wild Food in Australia. Fontana, 1976.
- ↑ Carolin, R. Flora of the Sydney Region. Reed, 1993.
- ↑ Kunkel, Günther. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books, 1984.
- ↑ Ewart, Alfred. Recording Census of the Victorian Flora. 1923.