Diospyros australis

Location & distribution maps

Phylogeny & links to associated information:

Wikipedia links:       Angiosperms  > Eudicots > Asterids > Ericales > Diospyros  australis

Other links:     

Plant  information

Common name:                Black Plum  

• Also, YellowPersimmon

• Grey plum usually denotes its northern relative D. pentamera

Conservation status:  unknown

Etymology:   

Flowers:                  

• Flowers appear between October and December

• They are creamy green and four petalled

• Female flowers are larger than male flowers

Fruit:                         

• Shiny black elliotical berry

• 12 to 20 mm in length

• It matures from February to July

• Around the base of the berry is a four or sometimes five lobed green calyx

• A single seed is in each fruit, surrounded by edible purple aril

Leaves:         

•  Leaves are yellow or yellow-green underneath with a prominent yellow mid vein

• Leaves alternate, smooth edged, elliptical or oblong 4 to 10 cm long

• Leaf stalks 2 to 5 mm long

Stem & branches: 

•  Trunk diameter of 25 cm

• Rarely reaching a height of 20 m

• The base of the tree is not flanged or buttressed

• Bark on the cylindrical trunk is grey or black, with wrinkles, bumps and lines

Roots:         

Habit:        

•  It is a shrub or small tree

Habitat:   

•  Rainforests of seaward eastern Australia

• The habitat is in a variety of different rainforest forms, though not often seen in the cool temperate rainforests

Distribution:                  

• The most southerly of the group of some 450 ebonies and persimmons

• From Durras Lake (35° S) near Batemans Bay in south east NSW, to Atherton (17° S) in tropical Queenslan

Additional notes:     

• The yellow tinged foliage and black berries make identification relatively easy

• Junior synonyms of D. australis are:

  • Cargillia australis R.Br.

  • Diospyros cargillia F.Muell.

  • Diospyros microcarpa Gürke

  • Maba cargilia F.Muell.

• Uses

  • Its edible berries are used in bushfood.

  • The 1889 book 'The Useful Native Plants of Australia records that Indigenous people of the Illawarra area also referred to the plant as "Booreerra" and was source of food

• Cultivation

  • Germination from fresh seed is slow, but reliable

  • After three months, the majority of seeds should germinate

Sources of information:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diospyros_australis (2023)