大花假虎刺 da hua jia hu ci

Arduina macrocarpa Ecklon, S. African J. 1: 372. 1830; A. grandiflora E. Meyer; Carissa grandiflora (E. Meyer) A. de Candolle.

Shrubs or small trees to 5 m tall. Spines 1- or 2-forked, 2-4 cm, strong. Leaf blade broadly ovate, 2.5-7.5 X 2-5 cm, thick leathery, glabrous, base rounded to obtuse, apex mucronate, lateral veins obscure. Cymes terminal, (1-)3-flowered. Pedicel 2-3 mm. Flowers fragrant. Sepals very narrowly ovate, 3-6 mm. Corolla white or pink, tube 1.1-1.8 cm, pubescent inside; lobes oblong, 0.9-2.4 cm, overlapping to left. Ovules numerous. Berries bright red to violet, ovoid, 2-5 cm, ca. 16-seeded. Fl. Aug. 2n = 66.

S Fujian and S Guangdong [introduced from S Africa]

Cultivated for its edible fruit.