Common Name: African Holly

General Information

African holly is a short-lived, softly woody, spiny shrub or small tree usually growing 2 - 4 metres tall, sometimes to 8 metres[, ].
The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food and in traditional medicine. It is sometimes grown to provide shade in Cardamom plantations and is often grown as an ornamental in gardens[].

Known Hazards

Although providing many well-known foods for people, including the potato, tomato, pepper and aubergine, most plants in the family Solanaceae also contain poisonous alkaloids. Unless there are specific entries with information on edible uses, it would be unwise to ingest any part of this plant[].

Botanical References

,

Range

Tropical Africa - Sierra Leone to Ethiopia and Somalia, south to Angola, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and S. Africa; E. Asia - India, Sri Lanka.

Habitat

Forest edges, riverine forest and among rocks on granite outcrops; at elevations from sea level to 1,650 metres[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Tree
Height	4.00 m
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Ornamental, Wild

Cultivation Details

Not known

Edible Uses

The fruits are edible but bitter[].

The fruits are used to curdle milk[].

Medicinal

The fruits and leaves are used in African traditional medicine to treat sores[].

The woolly hairy underside of the leaves is used to clean wounds and the glabrous upper side is used to dress wounds[].
The powdered dry leaves are added to bath water to overcome sleeplessness[]

The fruits are edible but bitter and are used to treat throat ulcers[].

Agroforestry Uses:

The tree is commonly grown in S India as a shade tree in cardamom plantations[, , ].

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed -

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