Hard aspen
Acronychia laevis, Fam. Rutaceae
Shrub to small tree, with pale brown, smooth with slight vertical wrinkling.
| Weed Category: | |
| Weed: | No |
| Form or habit: | Shrub, Small tree |
| Family: | Rutaceae |
| Leaf: | One foliolate, opposite, entire, obovate to oblong-elliptic, 2.5-9.5 x 1-5cm. Apex rounded or notched, glossy green on both sides, distinct joint at point of attachment to the petiole. Oil dots very numerous and easy to see when the leaf is held up to the light. Very aromatic when crushed. |
| Flower conspicuous: | Conspicuous |
| Flower colour: |
White, Cream |
| Flower description: | Flowers cream or white, borne in cymes in leaf axils. Mostly summer to autumn. |
| Fruit conspicuous: | Conspicuous |
| Fruit colour: |
Purple, Pink, Red |
| Fruit: | |
| Fruit description: | Pinkish red to purple, fleshy, lobed drupes, depressed at the top. |
| Habitat: | Littoral rainforest, rainforest. |
| Distribution | Queensland, New South Wales, Melanesia. |
| Food source for: | Fruit and/or seeds eaten by the green catbird, emerald dove, topknot and white headed pigeons. Larval food plant of the moths Acrocercops macaria (a leaf miner) and Dichomeris capnites. Produces large fruit crops but seed production is often poor. |
| Toxicity: | No toxicity known |
| Origin: | Australia, Melanesia. |
| Notes: | The ripe fruit is edible but usually not pleasant. Prefers well composted soil and some shade. Grow from cuttings, seed is difficult to germinate but germination is improved by soaking the fresh seed for several days. Timber is creamy white, fine grained and tough. |
| Information sources: | Melzer R. & Plumb J. (2007) Plants of Capricornia. |
