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Ericaceae FAMILY

Arbutus unedo

Arbutus unedo

Edibility
3/5
Medicinal
3/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitEvergreen Tree
GrowthMedium

Arbutus unedo is mainly a plant of the Mediterranean, but also with a thriving popultion in southern Ireland. Plants thrive in regions with mild, wet winters, though they have also withstood temperatures down to -16°c without injury at Kew Gardens in England[1]. Requires a nutrient-rich well-drained moisture-retentive soil in sun or semi-shade and shelter from cold drying winds, especially when young[1, 2]. Grows well in heavy clay soils and in dry soils. Most species in this genus require a lime-free soil but this species is fairly lime tolerant[1, 2]. Succeeds in fairly exposed maritime positions[3, 2]. A tree in a very exposed position at Rosewarne in N. Cornwall was looking rather tattered in April 1987 but it was 4.5 metres tall and carrying a very good crop of immature fruit[PFAF]. Tolerates industrial pollution[2]. Plants resent root disturbance and are best placed in their final positions whilst young[1, 4]. Give them some protection in their first winter. The strawberry tree flowers in late autumn and early winter - the fruit takes 12 months to ripen and so the tree carries both mature fruit and flowers at the same time and is incredibly beautiful at this time[PFAF]. The flowers have a soft honey scent[5]. There are a number of named varieties[6] developed for their ornamental value. 'Elfin King', 'Croomei' and 'Rubra' are all small forms that fruit well when small[7]. The variety 'Rubra' was 1.2 metres tall at Kew in late 1990 and was laden down with fruits and flowers[PFAF]. 'Elfin King' only reaches a height of 1 metre, comes into bearing when young and fruits well[6]. It is ideal for container culture[6]. 'Croomei' is said to be a more reliable fruiting form[8].

Propagation

Seed - best surface sown in a cold frame as soon as it is ripe. Stored seed should be soaked for 5 - 6 days in warm water and then surface sown in a shady position in a greenhouse[9]. Do not allow the compost to become dry. 6 weeks cold stratification helps[4]. The seed usually germinates well in 2 - 3 months at 20°c[4]. Seedlings are prone to damp off[10], they are best transplanted to individual pots as soon as they are large enough to handle and should be kept well ventilated. Grow them on in a greenhouse for their first winter and then plant out in late spring after the last expected frosts[PFAF]. Basal cuttings in late winter[2]. Cuttings of mature wood of the current season's growth, late autumn in a frame. Poor percentage[9]. Layering of young wood - can take 2 years[11, 2]. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-20. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Arbutus+unedo>

Pollinators

Bees

References

  1. [1]Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. — Bean. W. · Murray · 1981 · ISBN - ↩︎A classic with a wealth of information on the plants, but poor on pictures.
  2. [2]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · 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.
  3. [3]The Milder Garden. — Taylor. J. · Dent · 1990 ↩︎A good book on plants that you didn't know could be grown outdoors in Britain.
  4. [4]Growing from Seed. Volume 2. — Rice. G. (Editor) · Thompson and Morgan. · 1988 · ISBN - ↩︎Very readable magazine with lots of information on propagation. An interesting article on Ensete ventricosum.
  5. [5]Scented Flora of the World. — Genders. R. · 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.
  6. [6]Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. — Facciola. S. · 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.
  7. [7]Ornamental Shrubs, Climbers and Bamboos. — Thomas. G. S. · 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.
  8. [8]Shrubs for the Milder Counties. — Arnold-Forster. ↩︎Trees and shrubs that grow well in Cornwall and other mild areas of Britain. Fairly good, a standard reference book.
  9. [9]Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. — Sheat. W. G. · MacMillan and Co · 1948 · ISBN - ↩︎A bit dated but a good book on propagation techniques with specific details for a wide range of plants.
  10. [10]Shrubs. — Phillips. R. & Rix. M. · Pan Books · 1989 · ISBN 0-330-30258-2 ↩︎Excellent photographs and a terse description of 1,900 species and cultivars.
  11. [11]RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 — F. Chittendon. · Oxford University Press · 1951 · ISBN - ↩︎Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaced in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [ 200 ]).
  12. [12]Flora of the British Isles. — Clapham, Tutin and Warburg. · Cambridge University Press · 1962 · ISBN - ↩︎A very comprehensive flora, the standard reference book but it has no pictures.
  13. [13]Flowers of Greece and the Balkans. — Polunin. O. · Oxford University Press · 1980 · ISBN 0-19-217626-9 ↩︎A good pocket flora, it also lists quite a few plant uses.
  14. [14]Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. — Hedrick. U. P. · Dover Publications · 1972 · ISBN 0-486-20459-6 ↩︎Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.
  15. [15]Growing Unusual Fruit. — Simmons. A. E. · David & Charles; Newton Abbot. · 1972 · ISBN 0-7153-5531-7 ↩︎A very readable book with information on about 100 species that can be grown in Britain (some in greenhouses) and details on how to grow and use them.
  16. [16]Food for Free. — Mabey. R. · Collins · 1974 · ISBN 0-00-219060-5 ↩︎Edible wild plants found in Britain. Fairly comprehensive, very few pictures and rather optimistic on the desirability of some of the plants.
  17. [17]Encyclopaedia of Medicinal Plants. — Chiej. R. · MacDonald · 1984 · ISBN 0-356-10541-5 ↩︎Covers plants growing in Europe. Also gives other interesting information on the plants. Good photographs.
  18. [18]The Encyclopedia of Herbs and Herbalism — Stuart. M. (Editor) · Orbis Publishing. London. · 1979 · ISBN 0-85613-067-2 ↩︎Excellent herbal with good concise information on over 400 herbs.
  19. [19]Dictionary of Economic Plants. — Uphof. J. C. Th. · Weinheim · 1959 · ISBN - ↩︎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.
  20. [20]The Encyclopedia of Medicinal Plants — Chevallier. A. · Dorling Kindersley. London · 1996 · ISBN 9-780751-303148 ↩︎An excellent guide to over 500 of the more well known medicinal herbs from around the world.
  21. [21]Antileishmanial potential of medicinal plant extracts from the North-West of Morocco — Abdelhakim Bouyahya; Abdeslam Et-Touys; Nadia Dakka; Hajiba · 2017 · http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.bjbas.2017.06.003 ↩︎
  22. [22]A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. — Usher. G. · 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.
  23. [23]Flowers of the Mediterranean. — Polunin. O. and Huxley. A. · Hogarth Press · 1987 · ISBN 0-7012-0784-1 ↩︎A very readable pocket flora that is well illustrated. Gives some information on plant uses.
  24. [24]Herbs of Greece. — Niebuhr. A. D. · Herb Society of America. · 1970 · ISBN - ↩︎A pleasant little book about Greek herbs.
  25. [25]A Modern Herbal. — Grieve. · Penguin · 1984 · ISBN 0-14-046-440-9 ↩︎Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.
  26. [PFAF]Plants for a Future — pfaf.org ↩︎