Edible Parts: Flowers  Fruit  Leaves
Edible Uses: Drink

Fruit - usually eaten raw, they are also made into pies, tarts, jellies or used in salads [301 ]. Fruit makes an excellent jam. The fully ripe fruit is sweet and much liked by children [303 ]. It is somewhat astringent before it is fully mature [303 ]. In Cambodia and Vietnam, fermented fruit makes an alcoholic wine-like drink called 'ruou sim (myrtle wine)'. In Vietnam, the fruits are freshly canned with syrup for export. The purple oblong fruit is up to 15mm long and 10mm wide[200 ].

Plants For A Future can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.
Antidiarrhoeal  Antiseptic  Dysentery

The fruit has been used as a cure for dysentery and diarrhoea [303]. A decoction of the roots or leaves is drunk as a treatment for diarrhoea and stomachache and a protective medicine after birth [303]. A decoction or the extracted juice of the buds and young leaves has a beneficial effect in treating colic, diarrhoea, dysentery, abscesses, furunculosis and haemorrhage [283]. A concentrated decoction of the leaves is used as an antiseptic wash for treating wounds, impetigo and abscesses [283]. The crushed leaves are used to dress wounds [303 ].

Cosmetic  Dye  Fire retardant  Pioneer

Within its native range, R. tomentosa is a quick-growing early successional species. It is fire-adapted and sprouts prolifically after a fire. It has shown promise as a fire retardant species for use in fire breaks in the Himalayas. The wood tar can serve as a black dye and has been used to blacken teeth and eyebrows [303]. R. tomentosa is cultivated both as an ornamental plant and for its edible berries. It is more commonly grown for its ornamental value and its beautiful flowers. In southern China, it has been tested in restoration to provide shade for slower-growing native plant species. Another frequently-cultivated species in the Myrtaceae family, Acca sellowiana, looks similar to R. tomentosa; however, unlike those of R. tomentosa, the leaves of A. sellowiana are whitish-hairy beneath, particularly when young, and are not 3-nerved from the base [1-8]. Suitability for pots. Attracts wildlife. The fruit is also used as a food source for animals and birds.

Special Uses

Attracts Wildlife  Food Forest