Common Name: Carrisse

General Information

Carrisse is a much-branched spiny, evergreen shrub or small tree, sometimes adopting a scrambling habit. It grows from 1 - 5.5 metres tall[, , ]. The dark grey bark has straight woody spines up to 5cm long, often in pairs, rarely branching[].
An important resource for local people, the plant is gathered from the wild for use as food and medicine[]. The fruit is of potential commercial interest, and cultivation trials have been carried out in a number of countries[]. The plant is often grown as an ornamental, being valued especially for its attractive white or purple flowers that are borne for much of the year[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

Drier parts of the tropics and subtropics from Africa, through Arabia, Asia to Australia and New Caledonia.

Habitat

Dry deciduous forest and coastal thickets[]. It has been reported as a parasite on henna plants in N Nigeria[]. Savannah woodland, in thickets, forests, disturbed areas and on termite mounds at medium elevations of 1,100 - 1,600 metres[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Evergreen Shrub
Height	4.00 m
Pollinators	Bees
Cultivation Status	Cultivated, Wild

Cultivation Details

A plant of the hot, usually drier tropics, where it is found at elevations up to 1,600 metres[, ]. It grows best in areas where annual daytime temperatures are within the range 20 - 35°c, but can tolerate 10 - 39°c[]. It prefers a mean annual rainfall in the range 900 - 1,300mm, but tolerates 700 - 4,000mm[].
Requires a sunny position[, ]. Requires a well-drained soil[, ]. Prefers a deep, fertile soil, but it also succeeds in dry, sandy and rocky soils[]. In wetter soils there will be excessive vegetative growth and lower fruit production[]. Prefers a pH in the range 6.5 - 7.5, tolerating 6 - 8[].
The plant can flower and fruit for much of the year[].

Edible Uses

Fruit - raw or cooked in jams etc[]. Sweet and very pleasant to eat[, ]. They are often added to the food of a sick person as an appetizer[]. Vinegar can be made from them by fermentation[]. They are often borne in pairs[]. The red-black fruit is about 15mm in diameter and ripens to a blue-black colour[, ].

The roots are put into water-gourds to impart an agreeable taste to the water, and they are sometimes added to soups and stews for the same purpose, or to disguise a strong smell of other food that is cooking[, ].

Medicinal

The plant is well known in Africa for its anthelmintic action in both people and animals and the ground-up root as a remedy for venereal disease. The root is chewed and the saliva swallowed, the root-sap being considered tonic and restorative of virility. The plants are also used as ‘bitters’, macerated in rum, gin, etc. and as an expectorant[].
The root if crushed emits a strong smell of methyl salicylate and if rubbed onto the fingers produces a prickly sensation[].

Root-scrapings are used in the treatment of glandular inflammation (adenites)[]. A root-decoction, combined with pimento, is used as an anthelmintic, especially against Taenia[]. The root is also used for treating chest-complaints, as a cough remedy, tonic and abortifacient[].
The root-bark is mixed with spices and used as an enema for lumbago and other pains[].

The leaf decoction is valued in the treatment of intermittent fever, diarrhoea, oral inflammation and earache[].
The boiled leaves are applied as a poultice to relieve toothache[].

The unripe fruit is rich in tannins and is used medicinally as an astringent[].
The ripe fruit is taken as an antiscorbutic and remedy for biliousness[].

The roots contain an active ingredient, 'carissin', that may prove useful in the treatment of cancer[].

Agroforestry Uses:

The abundant branching habit and the presence of stiff spines to 5 cm long make the plant suitable for planting as a protective hedge[].

Other Uses

The bark contains a white latex of no recorded property[].

The roots are put into water-gourds to impart an agreeable taste to the water, or to disguise a strong smell[].

A piece of the root is sometimes fixed into a hut-roof as a snake-repellent[].
A paste of the pounded roots serves as a fly repellant[].

The fruits are a source of tannins, and have been used in dyeing[].

The white or yellow wood is hard, smooth and useful for fashioning spoons, combs, household utensils and miscellaneous products of turnery[].
The wood is used for fuel[, ].

Propagation

Seed - easy[].
Cuttings are easy[].
Air layering[].

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Captcha: if i have 3 bananas, and i eat them all, how many bananas did i just eat?