Garcinia warrenii
{{Short description|Fruit tree}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2016}}
{{Speciesbox
|image = Garcinia-warrenii-SF23279-01.jpg
|image_caption = Native mangosteen in flower
|genus = Garcinia
|species = warrenii
|authority = Mueller, F.J.H. von (1891)
}}
Garcinia warrenii, commonly known as native mangosteen or Warren's mangosteen, a is a fruit-bearing tree up to 15 metres in height of the mangosteen family Clusiaceae. It is found in the tropical rainforests of northern and north-eastern Australia and New Guinea. The genus Garcinia includes about 200 species found in the Old World tropics, mostly in Asia and Africa. Garcinia warrenii is indigenous to New Guinea, the Torres Strait Islands, northeastern Queensland from Cape York Peninsula south to Babinda,{{cite web |title=Garcinia warrenii |url=https://apps.lucidcentral.org/rainforest/text/entities/garcinia_warrenii.htm |website=Australian Tropical Rainforest Plants |publisher=Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) |access-date=28 February 2021}} and a small, isolated population on Melville Island in the Northern Territory, Australia.{{cite web|url=http://www.lrm.nt.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0020/10946/Garcinia_warrenii_EN.pdf|title=Threatened Species of the Northern Territory|website=Lrm.nt.gov.au|accessdate=4 September 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304185423/http://www.lrm.nt.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0020/10946/Garcinia_warrenii_EN.pdf|archive-date=4 March 2016|url-status=dead}}
Garcinia warrenii is found in rain forest, littoral rainforest and riparian forest from 0 to 780 m.{{cite book |last1=Cooper |first1=Wendy |last2=Cooper |first2=William |author-link=William T. Cooper |date=2004 |title=Fruits of the Australian Tropical Rainforest |url=https://www.williamtcooper.com.au/books/fruits-australian-tropical-rainforest/ |publisher=Nokomis Editions |page=124 |isbn=0-9581742-1-0}}
Uses
There are five species of native Garcinia in north Queensland forests but Garcinia warrenii is the only edible one.{{Cite web|url=http://www.rarefruitaustralia.org/2006/05/25/mangosteen-nutrition-management/|title=Rare Fruit Australia » Eat your landscaping » Mangosteen Nutrition Management|website=Rarefruitaustralia.org|accessdate=4 September 2019}} While the fruits are edible, they are not widely sought after.Plants of Tropical North Queensland: the Compact Guide, p. 90.{{cite book |last1=Beasley |first1=John |title=Plants of Cape York |date=2009 |publisher=John Beasley |isbn=978-0-9806863-0-2 |page=154}}
Description
Garcinia warrenii is a close relative of the mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana). This bushy small tree grows up to 15 metres high, they grow straight up and are often difficult to see in the forest. It has fragrant white flowers and purple sweet edible fruit.
The thick, leathery leaves are often stained with mould or lichens. Broken petioles (leaf stalks) and twigs produce a sticky yellow exudate. Leaf blades are about 10 to 16 x 48 cm. The fruit are eaten by Pteropus (fruit bats).
Further reading
- Fruits of the Australian Tropical Rainforest. 2004. Wendy Cooper; illustrated by William T. Cooper. Nokomis Editions, Melbourne.
- Plants of Cape York: the Compact Guide. John Beasley. 2009.
- Plants of Tropical North Queensland: the Compact Guide. John Beasley. Footloose Publications, Kuranda. 2006.
References
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