13

The plant has small white flowers and dark fruits - almost black. Seems like a Passiflora subpeltata - but the fruit is very dark - not sure if they started out green as some sites described.

enter image description here enter image description here

I'm seeing a lot of articles which say that they contain cyanide, but others that say they are edible. Also sites which say that some fruits are edible when mature.

It tastes very sweet and stains fingers readily. I thought of using it as a cocktail mixer, but I guess that might not be a good idea.

Are these fruits edible or should I stay away from them?

Improve this question

3 Answers 3

Reset to default
9

That is Passiflora suberosa, or corky stem passionflower. The fruits are edible when ripe. They can contain small amounts of cyanide when green. Note that this is an invasive weed in some areas.

References:

1. (cabi.org) http://www.cabi.org/isc/datasheet/38805

2. (toptropicals.com) http://toptropicals.com/catalog/uid/Passiflora_suberosa.htm

3. (weedyconnections.com) http://www.weedyconnection.com/database/corky_passionfruit.html

4. (hort.purdue.edu) https://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/nexus/Passiflora_spp_nex.html

5. (regionalconservation.og) http://www.regionalconservation.org/beta/nfyn/plantdetail.asp?tx=Passsube

6. (levypreserve.org) http://www.levypreserve.org/Plant-Listings/Passiflora-suberosa

7. (backyardnature.net) http://www.backyardnature.net/yucatan/passion3.htm

8. (beingplants.com) http://beingplants.com/ocart/passiflora-suberosa-5-seeds-corky-passion-flower?search=suberosa

9. (onlineissues.wherewhenhow.com) http://onlineissues.wherewhenhow.com/article/Our+Plants+Passion+For+Rain/1689071/205706/article.html

10. (lepcurious.blogspot.com) http://lepcurious.blogspot.com/2008/09/corky-stems.html

Improve this answer
4

Beware, that does not appear to be Passiflora subpeltata because the fruit are the wrong color. It is a Passiflora, though its dangerous to eat the fruit if it is an unknown variety. Those fruit are way too small to eat anyways since its the pulp inside that is eaten and those would have scant pulp.

Improve this answer
1
  • Very good call. Although I read and added the wiki link to the question 2 months ago, I didn't pay attention to the colour of the fruit in the picture. The article very clearly says yellow-green fruits...
    – Lorem Ipsum
    Commented Jan 15, 2012 at 4:16
0

Passaflora suberuosa and I have eaten it myself and given it to my chickens with no harm

Improve this answer
1
  • 1
    Hi Julie, welcome to the site. You could improve your answer by adding a picture of what your plant or fruit looks like.
    – Rohit Gupta
    Commented Oct 30, 2023 at 1:10

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.