Taylor Fruit (Chinee Apple)
Taylor Fruit – Ziziphus mauritiana
Habit: Thorny, spreading shrub to 6m. Glossy leaves are white underneath Flowers are white –green. Ripe stone fruit is brown with white flesh.
Spread: Birds, animals and people eat the fruit and spread the seeds. Often in gardens.
This is another weed that has spread through intentional planting. The fruit is very tasty (like apples) and full of Vitamin C goodness and so many people have them in their backyards. Unfortunately, the birds also think the fruit is pretty awesome and animals like black cockatoos and stock eat the fruit and distribute the seeds throughout the bush. Because some people may rely on this as a nutritious food source, it is important to consult about any local control works being undertaken, stage the process over a number of years and replace with plants with similar properties. Gubinge and Marool (Terminalia sp.) fruits are also known to have high quantities of vitamin C. See Family Combreteceae under the Native Plants tab for more information on these species.
(Photo: Noel Wilson)
Unripe fruits start off as green and mature to a red-brown colour.
(Photo: Colin Wilson)
The upper side of the leaf is glossy. Watch out for the thorns! These plants grow easily in overgrazed situations. This is generally the case for many species that are unpalatable due to toxins or mechanical defences – Survival of the unpalatable!
(Photo: Gary Scott)
There are native Ziziphus sp. ( Ziziphus quadrilocularis in WA) and an easy way to tell if it is the weed species, is that the underside of Taylor fruit leaves are white as above.
(Photo: Gary Scott)
Comments»
No comments yet — be the first.