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Macadamia tetraphylla

Common name:	Queensland Nut	Family:	Proteaceae
Author:	L.A.S.Johnson.	Botanical references:	200
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	Australia - New South Wales, Queensland.
Habitat:	In or near rainforests[167].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	1	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	0

Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Macadamia Nut [P],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	aphylla = leafless
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Proteales. Protea family

Physical Characteristics

An evergreen tree growing to 10m by 10m at a slow rate. It is hardy to zone 9 and is frost tender. It is in leaf all year. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Bees. The plant is self-fertile. We rate it 1/5 for edibility and 0/5 for medicinal use.

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

Habitats and Possible Locations

Woodland, Sunny Edge, By Walls, By South Wall, By West Wall.

Edible Uses

Oil Seed.

Seed - raw or cooked[2, 46, 105]. Pleasantly flavoured and nutritious[1, 61]. They can be eaten as a dessert nut and can also be ground into a flour and then mixed with cereal flours to enrich the protein content. The shell is very hard, making it difficult to extract the seed[260].
The seed contains up to 72% of a high grade oil[156].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

None known

Other Uses

None known

Cultivation details

Plants grow best in rich moist but well-drained soils and a position in full sun[117]. They require copious summer watering in their early stages[167]. Mature plants need at least 1250mm of rainfall equally distributed throughout the year and a mild frost-free climate[117]. Trees require a sheltered position and are easily damaged by strong winds[117, 200].
Plants can be grown in climates cooler than their native habitat, but they are not very hardy in Britain. They produce fruit in Australia when growing at least as far south as Sydney[157]. They can survive slight frosts[200] and have succeeded outdoors in the Scilly Isles[1]. Growth is optimal between temperatures of 20 - 25° c, ceasing when they fall below 10° c or rise above 30° c[200]. Cold weather can result in the loss of the entire crop[200].
The macadamia nut is cultivated for its edible seed in many tropical and sub-tropical areas[167], there are some named varieties[167, 183]. Plants are slow growing in cultivation, seedlings take 6 - 7 years to produce their first fruit[117, 167]. The trees then produce commercial crops for about 40 - 50 years and can fruit for up to 100 years[200]. Plants are self-fertile but yield better if cross-pollinated[117].
Pruning is not normally necessary, but is tolerated if carried out in the autumn[188].

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a warm greenhouse[188]. The dehusked seed germinates quickly at 25° c[200]. The seed can also be sown in the spring in a warm greenhouse[188]. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. If trying them outdoors, give the plants some protection from the cold for their first few winters.
Cultivars may be grafted.

Suppliers

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

Web References

[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for the family Proteaceae.

[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

[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.

[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.

[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.

[105] Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976
The most comprehensive guide to edible plants I've come across. Only the briefest entry for each species, though, and some of the entries are more than a little dubious. Not for the casual reader.

[117] Rosengarten. jnr. F. The Book of Edible Nuts. Walker & Co. 1984 ISBN 0802707699
A very readable and comprehensive guide. Well illustrated.

[156] Cribb. A. B. and J. W. Useful Wild Plants in Australia. William Collins Pty Ltd. Sidney 1981 ISBN 0-00-216441-8
A very readable book.

[157] Wrigley. J. W. and Fagg. M. Australian Native Plants. Collins. (Australia) 1988 ISBN 0-7322-0021-0
A lovely book, written in order to encourage Australian gardeners to grow their native plants. A little bit of information for the plant project.

[167] Holliday. I. and Hill. R. A Field Guide to Australian Trees. Frederick Muller Ltd. 1974 ISBN 0-85179-627-3
A well illustrated and very readable book, but it does not contain much information for the plant project.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[188] Brickell. C. The RHS Gardener's Encyclopedia of Plants and Flowers Dorling Kindersley Publishers Ltd. 1990 ISBN 0-86318-386-7
Excellent range of photographs, some cultivation details but very little information on plant uses.

[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.

[260] Phillips. R. & Rix. M. Conservatory and Indoor Plants Volumes 1 & 2 Pan Books, London. 1998 ISBN 0-330-37376-5
Excellent photos of over 1,100 species and cultivars with habits and cultivation details plus a few plant uses. Many species are too tender for outdoors in Britain though there are many that can be grown outside.

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