Bumpy Satinash

Description:

The Bumpy Satinash, aka White Apple, is a species of Syzygium tree native to the rainforests of Queensland in northeastern Australia, and belongs to the family Myrtaceae. Flowers and fruits infrequently (every two to five years); when they do appear, the flowers and fruits grow directly from the trunk and branches, giving the plant its 'bumpy' appearance. This unusual tree is both "ramiflorous", with flowers and fruits on its branches, and "cauliflorous" where the flowers and fruits appear directly on its trunk. The tree can grow to 30 metres in height and up to a metre in diameter. After flowering, it produces white or pale pink coloured fruits which are edible and crunchy, with a floury texture similar to an apple, but quite tart to taste. The Indigenous Australians in the rainforest areas would chew on the fruits to relieve their thirst on long walks.

Habitat:

Endemic to Queensland, occurs in CYP and NEQ. Altitudinal range from sea level to 1100 metres. Grows in well developed rainforest on a variety of sites and also in some of the drier, more seasonal rainforests. These specimens were spotted in the Brisbane Botanical Gardens, Mt. Coot-Tha, in a large, well-established sub-tropical rainforest section of the gardens.

Notes:

The fruit and flowers attract a wide variety of native fauna. During the day, it attracts birds such as the honey-eaters and lorikeets. At night, it's the Common Striped Possum, the Long-tailed Pygmy Possum and the Herbert River Ringtail Possum. The nectar is also an important food for the Queensland Blossom Bat (Macroglossus minimus), a tiny rainforest bat which is smaller than a mouse and weighs just 15 grams. The fruits are also a popular food source for the Southern Cassowary. Needless to say, Bumpy Satinash is an important rainforest species. https://www.worldwidefruits.com/genus-sy... Syzygium is also the same genus of Australia's Lilli Pillies, also considered bush tucker plants.