假虎刺 jia hu ci

Carissa diffusa Roxburgh; C. yunnanensis Tsiang & P. T. Li.

Shrubs or small trees to 5 m tall; spines simple or forked, 1.2-6 cm. Leaf blade ovate to elliptic, 0.5-5.5 X 0.3-2.5 cm, leathery, finely puberulent abaxially, base rounded or acute, apex acute or short acuminate; lateral veins 3-5 pairs, conspicuous. Cymes terminal or axillary, 3-7-flowered, finely puberulent. Sepals ca. 2.5 1 mm, without glands. Corolla white, tube ca. 1 cm, lobes 5-7 mm, overlapping to right; ovules 1 in each locule. Berries shining black, subglobose, 5-12 mm. Seeds 3-5 mm. Fl. Mar-May, fr. Sep-Dec. 2n = 22.

Bushes, roadsides, forest edges. Guizhou, Sichuan, Yunnan [India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand]

The roots are used to treat hepatitis and rheumatoid arthritis.