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Malpighiaceae FAMILY

Malpighia fucata

Malpighia fucata

Edibility
2/5
Medicinal
0/5

Safety & Hazards

The leaves are poisonous and can irritate the skin[1]. The plant has stinging needle-like hairs that lay flat on the lower leaf surfaces[2].

Cultivation Details

HabitEvergreen Tree
Growth—

Malpighia fucata is found mainly in the wet tropics. Species in this genus generally grow best in a sunny position, preferring a well-drained, fertile, humus-rich soil[3]. The plant flowers and produces fruit intermittantly throughout the year[2].

Propagation

Seed - Cuttings - cuttings of half-ripe wood, with entire leaves, in a frame with bottom heat[3]. Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2026-02-20. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Malpighia+fucata>

Pollinators

Data unavailable

References

  1. [1]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
  2. [2]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.
  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]Flowering Plants of Jamaica — Adams. C.D. · University of the West Indies; Jamaica. · 1972 ↩︎A terse treatment of the flowering plants of Jamaica, with a botanical description of each plant, notes on habitat etc.
  5. [5]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.
  6. [6]Perennial Edible Fruits of the Tropics : an Inventory — Martin, F. W.; Campbell, C. W.; Rubertbe, R. M. · U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service · 1987 ↩︎A booklet giving terse details of almost 300 species of edible fruits, plus regional lists of Botanical and Common names for over 2,500 less well-known edible fruits of the tropics.