Randia obcordata

Family: Rubiaceae

What it is like

A shrub. It grows 2-4 m tall. It has thorns. The spines are stout, in pairs and 4-10 mm long. The leaves are 4-20 mm long and wide and in tufts. The flowers are small, white and tube shaped. They occur singly and do not have stalks. The fruit are mottled green when young and yellow to black when ripe. They are 5-9 mm across. The fruit can make people sick.

Where it is found

It is a subtropical plant. It grows on hillsides in the Cedros Valley, Sonora.

Countries/locations it is found in

Mexico, North America

How it is used for food

The fruit are eaten. Caution: Eating too many fruit causes giddiness.

Edible parts

Fruit, caution

How it is grown

It flowers and fruits intermittently throughout the year.

Its other names

Local names

Papache borracho, Papachillo

Synonyms

Randia gaumeri Greenm. & C. H. Thomps.; Randia rhagocarpa Standl.; Randia texensis Lundell;