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Aristotelia chilensis

Aristotelia chilensis: Fruit
Photo by Ken Fern. High resolution version

Common name:	Macqui	Family:	Elaeocarpaceae
Author:	(Molina.)Stuntz.	Botanical references:	11, 139, 200
Synonyms:	Cornus chilensis (Molina.), Aristotelia macqui (L'Hé r.)
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	S. America - Chile, Argentina.
Habitat:	A weedy shrub of cleared forests and waste ground, growing in damp humus rich soils on lower mountain hillsides by rivers between latitudes 31 and 40° south[139].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	3	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	1

Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Maqui [E],
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Malvales. Elaeocarpus family
Other Range Info:	From the Ethnobotany Database
	Chile

Physical Characteristics

An evergreen shrub growing to 3m by 5m . It is hardy to zone 8 and is frost tender. It is in leaf all year, in flower in May, and the seeds ripen from August to September. The flowers are dioecious (individual flowers are either male or female, but only one sex is to be found on any one plant so both male and female plants must be grown if seed is required) and are pollinated by Bees and insects. The plant not is self-fertile. It is noted for attracting wildlife. We rate it 3/5 for edibility and 1/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid and neutral soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Woodland, Sunny Edge.

Edible Uses

Fruit.

Fruit - raw or dried for winter use[11, 22, 46, 61, 97]. A pleasant taste somewhat like bilberries[2]. The fruit is rather small, about 6mm in diameter[200].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Astringent Febrifuge Poultice.

A wine made from the fruit is said to have medicinal properties[11].
The plant (the exact part is not specified) is astringent, febrifuge and poultice. It is used in the treatment of throat infections and intestinal tumours[139].

Other Uses

None known

Cultivation details

Prefers a slightly acid, moderately fertile well-drained soil in full sun with shelter from cold drying winds[200]. Plants are fairly tolerant of maritime exposure[K].
This species is only hardy in the milder and moister areas of Britain[182] and even there can be cut back in severe winters[K]. If the plants are cut back by winter frosts, they normally put up a crowd of vigorous shoots in the spring and these will need thinning[219]. The fruits are freely produced in S.W. England[11]. There is a very good plant at Rosehill near Falmouth[59].
The flowers are very attractive to bees[59].
Dioecious. Male and female plants must be grown if seed is required[182].

Propagation

Seed - sow spring in a greenhouse. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Once the plants are at least 20cm tall, plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. Consider giving them some protection from the cold for at least their first winter outdoors.
Cuttings of half-ripe wood, July/August in a frame[11].
Cuttings of mature wood of the current season's growth in early winter[1]. Take cuttings 15 - 30cm long and plant them in pots or the open soil in a greenhouse. They normally root very easily and can be potted up in early summer then planted out late the following spring[K].

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

PFAF Web Pages

This plant is mentioned in the following web pages

Web References

[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for the family Elaeocarpaceae.

[CHINA] Draft Data Very detailed botanical/identification info. from the Flora of China.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[2] Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972 ISBN 0-486-20459-6
Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.

[11] Bean. W. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. Murray 1981
A classic with a wealth of information on the plants, but poor on pictures.

[22] Sholto-Douglas. J. Alternative Foods.
Not very comprehensive, it seems more or less like a copy of earlier writings with little added.

[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.

[59] Thurston. Trees and Shrubs in &ndndndnd.
Trees and shrubs that succeed in &ndndndnd based on the authors own observations. Good but rather dated.

[61] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974 ISBN 0094579202
Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.

[97] Towle. M. A. The Ethno-Botany of Pre-Columbian Peru.
A very interesting book covering quite a lot of information on plant uses in S. America although many of the plants are not suitable for temperate areas..

[139] ? Flora of Chile. (in Spanish)
Some information about the useful plants of Chile.

[182] Thomas. G. S. Ornamental Shrubs, Climbers and Bamboos. Murray 1992 ISBN 0-7195-5043-2
Contains a wide range of plants with a brief description, mainly of their ornamental value but also usually of cultivation details and varieties.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[219] Grey-Wilson. C. & Matthews. V. Gardening on Walls Collins 1983 ISBN 0-00-219220-0
A nice little book about plants for growing against walls and a small section on plants that can grow in walls.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
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