Eugenia foetida
Eugenia foetida
Safety & Hazards
None known
Cultivation Details
Eugenia foetida is a plant of lowland areas in the subtropics and the tropics, it can tolerate occasional short-lived frosts and freezes[1]. The mean annual rainfall of its native range in Puerto Rico ranges from 750 - 1,700 mm[2]. Succeeds in moderately shady positions[1, 2]. Succeeds in most soils[1], though it most frequently grows in areas underlain by limestone rock, usually on ridges and hill sides. It grows on clay and coarse-textured soils, rocky rubble, and often directly into cracks in fractured rock[2]. The plant has a deep taproot and a lateral root system of slender, flexible to moderately stiff brown roots, thus making established plants very drought tolerant[1, 2]. The foliage, especially when crushed, emits a mild, offensive, skunk-like odour[2]. The aromatic compounds released from the leaves of this species apparently are responsible for the slight musky smell present in forests in Puerto Rico where it is common[2]. A moderate to slow growing species, it can live for 30 years or more[2].
Propagation
Seed - Around 51% of freshly harvested seeds germinated, beginning 69 days after sowing. The seedlings are slow-growing[2]. Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2026-02-20. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Eugenia+foetida>
Pollinators
Insects
References
- [1]Trade Winds Fruit — http://www.tradewindsfruit.com/index.htm ↩︎The on-line catalogue of a company selling seeds. Gives descriptions, photos and uses of a very wide range of fruit and other food-producing plants plus ornamentals.
- [2]Wildland Shrubs of the United States and its Territories: Thamnic Descriptions — Francis J.K. (Editor) · USDA; Forest Service International Institute of Tropical Forestr · 2000 · http://www.fs.fed.us/global/iitf/wildland_shrubs.htm ↩︎An excellent series of papers, in PDF format, from various authors giving quite detailed information on a range of shrubs growing in the United States and its Territories. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
- [3]Flora of Guatemala — Standley P.C. & J. A. Steyermark · 1946 - 1976 · http://www.archive.org/ ↩︎A superb reference, though somewhat dated. Gives lots of plant uses as well as information on plant habit and habitat. The entire flora (13 volumes) can now be downloaded from http://www.archive.org/
- [4]Manual of the Southeastern Flora. — Small J.K. · University of N. Carolina Press. · 1933 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org ↩︎Getting rather dated now, an immense work covering the flora of Southeastern N. America. No pictures, it is not for the casual reader. It can be downloaded from the Internet.
- [5]Food Plants in the Americas: A Survey of the Domesticated, Cultivated, and Wild Plants Used for Human Food in North, — Kermath B.M.; Bennett B.C.' Pulsipher L.M. · 2014 ↩︎A pre-publication draft of an amazing, on-going work first started in 1985. It contains information on more than 3,900 taxa from the Americas - from Arctic regions to the Tropics
- [6]Trees of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Second Volume. — Little E.L.; Woodbury R.O.;Wadsworth F.H. · USDA, Forest Service; Washington. · 1974 ↩︎Contains detailed information, and usually an illustration, on 500 tree species, including both native and exotic species.
- [7]The Woods of the United States — Sargent C.S. · D. Appleton & Co.; New York · 1885 · http://www.biodiversitylibrary.org ↩︎Contains information on the woods of a large number of N. American species of trees and shrubs. It can be downloaded from the Internet.