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There is a question that I believe has perplexed you for a long time: usually we see the red fruit similar to red bayberry falling from the road, is it the nephew of red bayberry, can we eat it?

The fruit of Broussonetia papyrifera Photo Source: wikipedia, a fruit bar, actually belongs to Broussonetia papyrifera.

However, Broussonetia papyrifera is a plant of Moraceae, while Myrica rubra is a plant of Myricaceae, and they are not closely related. However, the two also have something in common, that is, they both originated in China.

Broussonetia papyrifera is so adaptable that it is often used as an urban greening tree, which is why its fruit can be seen in the north and south of our country.

The female flower of a tree. Photo: wikipedia Broussonetia papyrifera usually blossoms in April-May and bears fruit in June-July. It is difficult for allergic friends not to know the existence of Broussonetia papyrifera, because the amount of pollen of male Broussonetia papyrifera is so amazing that it can be harmed by its AOE remotely.

The male flower of the tree is the root of all evil. Photo Source: wikipedia, of course, "falling powder" is also a major reason for the "falling powder" of Broussonetia papyrifera in foreign countries.

Because of its adaptability and the fact that male trees can spread by cloning themselves without the need for females, Broussonetia papyrifera has invaded many countries from Asia, especially Pakistan, Uganda, Ghana, Argentina and the United States. Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina and other states in the United States have listed Broussonetia papyrifera as an invasive species.

Pakistan lists Broussonetia papyrifera as one of the six worst invasive plants. Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, is the hardest hit area of tree pollen, and many people lie in the morgue at the turn of spring and summer because of pollen allergy.

Use the bark of a tree to make paper. Photo Source: wikipedia but in his hometown, Broussonetia papyrifera has a high status, because China's ancient paper industry relies on Broussonetia papyrifera, and its bark fiber can be used to make paper. Xuan paper, that is, immortal paper, is used to build trees.

The vast area of radiation from China to the South Pacific is also fond of Broussonetia papyrifera, because its fiber can also be used to make many household items, such as blankets. In fact, the researchers found that Broussonetia papyrifera was the most widely distributed fiber crop in prehistoric times, occupying the entire South Island (South Pacific archipelago, including Hainan and Indonesia).

Hawaiian special blanket Kapa is made of Broussonetia papyrifera fiber. Photo Source: wikipedia, so can the fruit of Broussonetia papyrifera be eaten and tasty?

Delicious fruits all look alike. Like bayberry, the fruit of Broussonetia papyrifera is not only edible, but also delicious. But the fate of delicious fruit is also similar, the fruit of Broussonetia papyrifera is also easy to rot, so it is difficult to buy fresh, you can only pick up the green belt if you want to eat fresh. However, the dried fruit of Broussonetia papyrifera can be used as medicine, which is called Fructus thunbergii.

Yashiko. Photo source: see the watermark can eat not only the fruit of the tree, but also its furry leaves. The leaf protein content of Broussonetia papyrifera can reach 21%, which is a good feed. But be careful when picking, Broussonetia papyrifera will produce white pulp when it is injured. This thick pulp is so sticky that clothes may be wasted if they touch it.

If you play in Chenshan Botanical Garden in Songjiang, Shanghai, you may find another kind of fruit that is more like bayberry.

This is the fruit of a strawberry tree, not a bayberry. Photo Source: Weird Fruit Explorer is actually the fruit of a strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo). They are also edible.

Although there is the word "strawberry" in the name, the strawberry tree has little to do with strawberries and bayberries. It is a plant of the genus Lycopersicum in the rhododendron family and is closely related to blueberries and cranberries.

The flowers and fruits of strawberry trees. Photo: the wikipedia strawberry tree is an ancient evergreen shrub that appeared before the Pliocene (5.3 million-2.6 million years ago) and is from the Mediterranean.

Strawberry trees are drought-resistant and do not pick the soil. And because of its good appearance, strawberry trees are planted as greening plants in areas where it is hot in summer and rainy in winter. It is found in the Chenshan Botanical Garden in Songjiang, Shanghai mentioned above.

The flowers of strawberry trees. Photo: wikipedia strawberry trees are fire plants: they are easy to recover after a hill fire. Therefore, strawberry trees are regarded as important pioneers of forest reconstruction in countries prone to forest fires, such as Greece, Italy, Portugal and Spain.

These Mediterranean countries are particularly fond of strawberry trees. The national tree of Italy is the strawberry tree, because its green leaves, white flowers and red fruits correspond to the Italian national flag. The Madro ñ o in the famous statue of bears and strawberry trees (El Oso y el Madro ñ o) in central Madrid, Spain is the strawberry tree.

Famous statues of bears and strawberry trees in the center of Madrid, Spain. Photo Source: wikimedia, how does the fruit of the strawberry tree taste?

The fruit of strawberry trees is a carbon bomb, with a sugar content of 42% 52% when ripe, which is higher than that of litchi (17%), and these sugars are mainly fructose and glucose, which is very sweet in theory.

What the inside of a strawberry tree looks like. Photo source: Weird Fruit Explorer, but people who have tasted it may not immediately fall in love with its taste, because strawberry fruit contains bitter molecules such as tannins, which tastes a little bitter and tastes a bit like fruity black tea without milk. This bitterness is also found in its flowers, so there is also some bitterness in the honey of strawberry trees.

It may be because of this inexplicable bitterness that the strawberry tree was given the name of dissuasion: the "unedo" in its scientific name means "just one".

In other words, not many people have really tasted the fruit of the strawberry tree, because the fruit of the strawberry tree has to hang up on the tree for a whole year to ripen.

Strawberry trees blossom in autumn and bear fruit in autumn, that is to say, the fruit of strawberry trees ripens at the same time as the next flower in the coming year. Once ripe, the fruit will fall to the ground. Strawberries rot quickly because of their high sugar content, so like bayberries, there is no way to transport them far away.

The streets of Portland, Oregon are strewn with strawberry fruit. Photo: Weird Fruit Explorer: people who know the taste of strawberry trees are mainly residents of the Mediterranean region. Mediterranean countries have had a tradition of eating strawberry fruit in ancient Greece, and strawberry fruit is also part of the Mediterranean recipe. If the fruit of the strawberry tree is really bad, it will not be collected by the Mediterranean food gathering place.

Portuguese fruit-flavored brandy aguardente de medronhos with flowers and fruits of strawberry trees. In these places, the fruit of strawberry trees is made into fruit sauce or used to make wine. The Portuguese make strawberries into a fruity brandy called aguardente de medronhos. Another Portuguese mead, Dom Cristina, is also made from strawberries. The Italian island of Sardinia also produces a bitter honey miele di corbezzolo, which comes from strawberry trees.

Miele di corbezzolo, an Italian Sardinia specialty honey painted with flowers and leaves of strawberry trees. If you also want to try the fruit of a strawberry tree, you can plant a strawberry variety called Elfin King, which can be used as a potted plant, and the fruit is said to be delicious.

In recent years, strawberry trees have attracted the attention of researchers because they contain many antibacterial and antioxidant ingredients. Other studies have found that the caproic acid contained in strawberry trees can make other plants develop disease resistance.

In 2010, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) called on countries to develop the economic and medical value of strawberry trees in a report called The Second Report on the State of the World's Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture.

They are good-looking and can be eaten. These landscape plants can be regarded as fruit stalls with a height of two meters. I feel that I have missed 100 million.

Delicious fruit is the same, interesting greening buy one get one free.

This article comes from the official Wechat account: take Science Home (ID:steamforkids), author: Qijun

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