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Myrsine africana

Common name:	Cape Myrtle	Family:	Myrsinaceae
Author:	L.	Botanical references:	11, 50, 200
Synonyms:	Myrsine retusa (Aiton.)
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	N. Africa to E. Asia.
Habitat:	Arid stony places and woodlands in W. China[109]. Prefers shady places in the drier oak and rhododendron forests of the Himalayas to 2700 metres[146, 158].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	1	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	3

Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	africana = African; cana = grayed due to hairs;
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Primulales. Myrsine family

Physical Characteristics

An evergreen shrub growing to 0.75m by 0.75m at a slow rate. It is hardy to zone 9. It is in leaf all year, in flower in May. The scented 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). The plant not is self-fertile. We rate it 1/5 for edibility and 3/5 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 can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Hedge, Woodland, Sunny Edge, Dappled Shade.

Edible Uses

Condiment; Fruit.

Fruit[105, 177]. The fruit is about 6mm in diameter and contains a single seed[200]. Two other reports say that the fruit is used as an anthelmintic[146, 158].
The seed is used as an adulterant of pepper[177].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Anthelmintic; Blood purifier; Emmenagogue; Laxative.

The fruit is used as an anthelmintic, especially in the treatment of tape worm[146, 158, 240]. It is also laxative and is used in the treatment of dropsy and colic[240]. The fruit contains 3% embelic acid and 1% quercitol, the seed contains 4.8% embelic acid and 1% quercitol[240]. These are the active ingredients that work as an anthelmintic[240].
A gum obtained from the plant is used as a warming remedy in the treatment of dysmenorrhoea[240].
A decoction of the leaf is used as a blood purifier[240].

Other Uses

Hedge; Wood.

Plants are used for hedging in warm temperate zones[200].
The plant is used in technology[145]. This report gives no more details, we assume that it refers to the wood being used.

Cultivation details

Succeeds in any well-drained fertile circum-neutral soil in full sun or semi-shade[200]. Dislikes shallow chalky soils[188]. Requires a sunny position according to another report[182].
This species only succeeds outdoors in the milder areas of the country[182]. Plants can tolerate several degrees of short-lived frost if they are growing in a well drained soil in a position sheltered from drying winds[200].
Plants are very slow-growing[188].
The leaves are aromatic[182].
Dioecious, male and female plants must be grown if seed is required[182].

Propagation

Seed - sow late winter or early spring in a warm greenhouse. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in a semi-shaded position in the greenhouse for at least their first winter[78]. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts.
Cuttings of half-ripe wood, 3 - 6cm long with a heel in individual pots, July/August in a frame. Good percentage[78].

Scent

Leaves: Crushed: The leaves are aromatic.

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 Myrsine retusa (a possible synonym).

[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.

References for the family Myrsinaceae.

[CHINA] 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

[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.

[50] ? Flora Europaea Cambridge University Press 1964
An immense work in 6 volumes (including the index). The standard reference flora for europe, it is very terse though and with very little extra information. Not for the casual reader.

[78] Sheat. W. G. Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. MacMillan and Co 1948
A bit dated but a good book on propagation techniques with specific details for a wide range of plants.

[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.

[109] Wilson. E. H. Plantae Wilsonae.
Details of the palnts collected by the plant collector E. H. Wilson on his travels in China. Gives some habitats. Not for the casual reader.

[145] Singh. Dr. G. and Kachroo. Prof. Dr. P. Forest Flora of Srinagar. Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh 1976
A good flora of the western Himalayas but poorly illustrated. Some information on plant uses.

[146] Gamble. J. S. A Manual of Indian Timbers. Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh 1972
Written last century, but still a classic, giving a lot of information on the uses and habitats of Indian trees. Not for the casual reader.

[158] Gupta. B. L. Forest Flora of Chakrata, Dehra Dun and Saharanpur. Forest Research Institute Press 1945
A good flora for the middle Himalayan forests, sparsly illustrated. Not really for the casual reader.

[177] Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984 ISBN 3874292169
An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of latin names with a brief list of edible parts.

[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.

[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.

[240] Chopra. R. N., Nayar. S. L. and Chopra. I. C. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants (Including the Supplement). Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi. 1986
Very terse details of medicinal uses of plants with a wide range of references and details of research into the plants chemistry. Not for the casual reader.

[245] Genders. R. Scented Flora of the World. Robert Hale. London. 1994 ISBN 0-7090-5440-8
An excellent, comprehensive book on scented plants giving a few other plant uses and brief cultivation details. There are no illustrations.

Readers Comments

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Bibliography

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
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We make no claims of magical effects or supernatural powers for any item in this catalog. In spite of legendary attributes or occult and craft tradition, such items are offered as curios only and beliefs concerning their magical effectiveness are related only for historical interest.