Plant Directory
Blue Quandong (Elaeocarpus)
Elaeocarpus is a large genus of shrubs and trees found throughout the tropical and subtropical regions of Asia and the Pacific Islands. Of the 350 species, Australia is home to about 30, many of which can be found in our rainforests.
The name is derived from the Greek words for olive tree (elaia) and fruit (carpos) referring to the brightly coloured drupes found on the plant.
These are attractive plants with species suiting different size gardens from the Blueberry Ash (E. reticularis) which makes a nice specimen tree at 8 metres tall, to the magnificent Blue Quandong (E. augustifolius syn. grandis) which can reach heights of 35 metres with buttressed roots and is prized for its timber.
The flowers of Elaeocarpus plants are small, pendulous and fringed, but thanks to the abundance of flowers, can give the appearance of thousands of tiny ballerinas dancing through the foliage. Most flower with white petals though one cultivar of the Blueberry Ash known as Prima Donna has soft pink petals. The flowers are also fragrant.
Often the older leaves turn bright red creating a striking contrast with the dark green of the rest of the plant. Some species also have pink or bronze coloured young leaves. This flush is particularly attractive on the Smooth Leafed Quondong (E. eumundii).
The fruit has an edible flesh over a hard, woody stone containing up to 5 seeds. It attracts birds such as rainforest pigeons. Germination of the seed can take up to 2 years though this can be sped up by scarifying of fermenting the seed. Better propagation results can be obtained by taking semi hardwood cuttings.
Mostly, Elaeocarpus prefer to be grown without any pruning. Poorly pruned specimens will develop odd shapes. One exception is E. reticularis. Pruning will encourage it to bush out rather than develop a single trunk, making it suitable for dense hedges.