Mueller’s damson, Blue Cherry, Australian almond
Terminalia muelleri

Family: Combretaceae

What it is like

A deciduous tree up to 6-10 m tall. The bark is dark grey and rough. It loses its leaves during the year. The leaves are smooth and broadly oval. They are simple and 5-15 cm long by 4-6 cm wide. They are alternate or clumped together in rings. They are normally near the ends of twigs. There are usually 1 or 2 flat glands at the base of the leaf. The flowers are white and contain both sexes. They occur in loose spikes. The fruit is 12-20 mm long by 8-15 mm wide. They occur in spikes in the axils of leaves. They can hang along stalks. There is one seed inside. The seed is 8-9 mm by 2 mm. The flesh is edible.

There are about 200-250 Terminalia species. They are tropical. It is regarded as a weed in Florida.

Where it is found

A tropical plant. They grow in the lowland rainforest in NE Queensland in Australia. It suits monsoonal climates. They favour sunny places. They grow in areas with high summer rainfall. They can be near sea level behind the sand dunes. It grows from sea level to 100 m above sea level. In the Cairns Botanical Gardens. Mt Cootha Botanical Gardens.

Countries/locations it is found in

Asia, Australia (country/location of origin), India, North America, USA

How it is used for food

The fruit are edible but bitter.

Edible parts

Fruit

How it is grown

Plants can be grown by fresh seeds.

Its other names

Local names

Synonyms

Myrobalanus muelleri (Benth.) Kuntze; Terminalia microcarpa Decne.; Terminalia muelleri var. minor Benth.;