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Elaeocarpaceae FAMILY

Aristotelia serrata

Aristotelia serrata

Edibility
3/5
Medicinal
2/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitDeciduous Tree
Growth—

Plants are not very hardy, tolerating occasional short-lived temperatures down to around -10°c[1]. If cut back in severe winters they will often resprout from the sturdier branches[2]. The young growth in spring, even on mature plants, is frost-tender and so it is best to grow the plants in a position sheltered from the early morning sun[PFAF]. Prefers a slightly acid, moderately fertile well-drained soil in full sun with shelter from cold drying winds[3]. Plants grow best in light shade[2]. It will grow well in most soils, except those that are very poorly drained, or particularly drought prone[4]. The plant grows well in light woodland[5]. A fast-growing tree, but short-lived species, usually dying out after 10 - 15 years[4, 6]. Plants do not really require pruning[2]. A dioecious species - both male and female forms must be grown if fruit and seed are required.

Propagation

Seed - sow spring in a greenhouse. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Once the plants are at least 20cm tall, plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. Consider giving them some protection from the cold for at least their first winter outdoors. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, mid summer in a frame[1]. Cuttings of mature wood of the current season's growth in early winter[7]. Take cuttings 15 - 30cm long and plant them in pots or the open soil in a greenhouse. They normally root very easily and can be potted up in early summer then planted out late the following spring[PFAF]. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-20. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Aristotelia+serrata>

Pollinators

Bees, Insects

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]Gardening on Walls — Grey-Wilson. C. & Matthews. V. · Collins · 1983 · ISBN 0-00-219220-0 ↩︎A nice little book about plants for growing against walls and a small section on plants that can grow in walls.
  3. [3]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.
  4. [4]Trees for Survival — http://www.tfsnz.org.nz/resources.cfm ↩︎An excellent site, giving fairly comprehensive information on a small number of native New Zealand trees.
  5. [5]The Milder Garden. — Taylor. J. · Dent · 1990 ↩︎A good book on plants that you didn't know could be grown outdoors in Britain.
  6. [6]People Plants Database — https://maoriplantuse.landcareresearch.co.nz/WebForms/default.aspx ↩︎An online database of New Zealand plants and their Maori names and uses. An excellent information source.
  7. [7]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 ]).
  8. [8]Flora of New Zealand. — Allan. H. H. · Government Printer, Wellington. · 1961 · http://floraseries.landcareresearch.co.nz/pages/Book.aspx?fileName=Flora%201.xml · ISBN - ↩︎The standard work, in 5 volumes though only the first two are of interest to the plant project. Very good on habitats. There is also an on-line version.
  9. [9]Native Edible Plants of New Zealand. — Crowe. A. · Hodder and Stoughton · 1990 · ISBN 0-340-508302 ↩︎A very well written and illustrated book based on the authors own experiments with living on a native diet.
  10. [10]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.
  11. [11]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.
  12. [12]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.
  13. [13]Economic Native Plants of New Zealand. — Brooker. S. G., Cambie. R. C. and Cooper. R. C. · Oxford University Press · 1991 · ISBN 0-19-558229-2 ↩︎An interesting and readable book on the useful plants of New Zealand.
  14. [14]Plants of New Zealand. — Laing. and Blackwell. · Whitcombe and Tombs Ltd · 1907 · ISBN - ↩︎An old flora of New Zealand in a readable style. Some details of plant uses.
  15. [PFAF]Plants for a Future — pfaf.org ↩︎