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Rutaceae FAMILY

Tetradium daniellii

Tetradium daniellii

Edibility
2/5
Medicinal
2/5

Safety & Hazards

None known

Cultivation Details

HabitDeciduous Tree
Growth—

Tetradium daniellii is a moderately cold-hardy plant, tolerating short periods with temperatures down to around -20°c when fully dormant[1]. According to one report, this species is not cold-hardy in temperate zones[2], though a large healthy tree (planted in 1934?) was seen growing at Kew (hardiness zone 7 - 8) in 1989[PFAF]. An easily grown plant, preferring a consistently moist, moderately fertile, well-drained soil in full sun, though it is tolerant of some light shade[1]. A fast-growing plant in its first few years from seed[1]. The leaves and flowers are fragrant[1]. A dioecious species - it produces separate male flowers and female flowers, and only one of those types is produced on any individual plant. Therefore both male and female-flowered forms of the plant usually need to be grown if fruit and seed are required[3].

Propagation

Seed - sow late winter in a greenhouse. Variable germination rates[4]. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. Give the plants some protection from the cold for their first winter outdoors. Cuttings of half-ripe wood (preferably forced in a greenhouse), 5 - 8cm with a heel, early summer to August in a warm greenhouse. Fair to good percentage[4]. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-21. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Tetradium+daniellii>

Pollinators

Bees, Insects

References

  1. [1]KemperCentreForHomeGardeningPlantFinder — Missouri Botanical Garden · http://www.mobot.org/gardeninghelp/plantfinder/ ↩︎Basic cultivation details, plant uses, habitat etc for several thousand species of plants, mainly from the temperate zone.
  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]A Revision of the genus Tetradium (Rutaceae) — Hartley T.G. · Botanic Gardens Parks and Recreation Dept., Singapore · 1981 · ISBN 0374-7859 ↩︎
  4. [4]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.
  5. [5]Corean Flora. — Wilson. E. H. and Trollope. M. N. · Royal Asiatic Society · 1918 · ISBN - ↩︎A very small handbook, it does give a little bit of information on Korean plants.
  6. [6]Flora of China — Missouri Botanical Garden Press; St. Louis. · 1994 · http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/china/ ↩︎An excellent, comprehensive resource in 25 volumes. In addition to the botanical information the flora also gives basic information on habitat and some uses. An on-line version is also available.
  7. [7]Tanaka's Cyclopedia of Edible Plants of the World. — Tanaka. T. & Nakao S. · Keigaku Publishing; Tokyo · 1976 · ISBN - ↩︎The most comprehensive list of edible plants I've come across. Only the briefest entry for each species, though, and some of the entries are more than a little dubious. Not for the casual reader.
  8. [8]Plants for Human Consumption. — Kunkel. G. · Koeltz Scientific Books · 1984 · ISBN 3874292169 ↩︎An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of Latin names with a brief list of edible parts.
  9. [9]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.
  10. [10]Atlas of Medicinal Plants. — Kariyone. T. · Nihon Rinshosha; Osaka · 1973 ↩︎A good Japanese herbal.
  11. [PFAF]Plants for a Future — pfaf.org ↩︎