Swamp satinash
Syzygium angophoroides

Family: Myrtaceae

What it is like

A straggly tree up to 10-20 m tall. Trees can be up to 30 m tall and have buttresses. Often small shoots occur on the trunk. The bark is brown, rough and papery. The young twigs are four angled and have short wings. The leaves are sword shaped and 8-16 cm long by 3-5.5 cm wide. They are dark green on the upper surface and paler green underneath. They are smooth and leathery. They have a pointed tip. The veins in the leaf are easy to see. The leaf stalk is less than 1 cm long. The flowers are cream coloured and occur as clusters on the ends of small branches. They have many stamens and are 0.8-1 cm across. The flowers are towards the ends of branches. The fruit is fleshy and dark purple. They are 1.3 cm across. They hang in clusters. They are edible. There is one seed in the fruit.

Where it is found

It is a tropical plant and occurs in northern Australia. It is found in monsoon forest. It occurs near swamps on land that is occasionally flooded. They require a sheltered position. They are sensitive to frost. They do best with soils with a high organic matter.

Countries/locations it is found in

Australia (country/location of origin), SE Asia, Singapore

How it is used for food

The fruit are eaten.

Edible parts

Fruit

How it is grown

They are grown from seed. The seed needs to be fresh.

Seedlings are fairly slow growing. The flowers occur from July to November and fruit are ripe October to February.

Its other names

Local names

Roly poly satinash, Yarrabah Satinash

Synonyms

Eugenia angophoroides F. Muell.;