Coffee Berry -Rhamnus californica
- To: recipients medit plants <MEDIT-PLANTS@ucdavis.edu>
- Subject: Coffee Berry -Rhamnus californica
- From: B* S* O*
- Date: Tue, 28 Sep 1999 22:05:30 PST
- Priority: Normal
I noticed this shrub across the road from my office (in the hills of South San Jose, CA)
earlier this year, and was intrigued by its beauty.
(it is fairly compact in a dry sunny situation, and the stems are a beautiful red-mahogany color,
similar to madrone, the flowers are pleasing if not showy, and the berries look very like a coffee
bean, hence its name!) I found one in the woods near my home and picked a couple of berries
to plant.
My source book "Plants of the Coast Redwood Region" says the following:
Coffee Berry
Rhamnus californica
Blooms: May-July
Rhamnaceae (Buckthorn) Family
"...hardy shurb which preferes dry wooded areas or chaparral... commonly seen along many
mountain trails.
This shrub has alternate leaves 2-5 inches long, and like most dry-region plants the leaves
are hard and leathery to prevent moisture loss. In fall, clusters of greenish flowers ripen into
black berries.
*This shrub is a close relative of the cascara shrub which is cultivated commercially and used in
the preparation of laxatives. The berries are edible either raw or cooked and are quite nutritious."
A friend of mine, who docents at Henry Cowell state park in Morgan Hill, CA told me 2 interesting things:
1. It is easily identifiable because of the stem of the leaves is very pronounced (sticks out)
2. and had heard that the berries were edible, but could be laxative, so he had never eaten more than
1 at a time!
>From the *marked sentence above, I can see how people might be wary, but the ending statement
seems to refute that!
Anyone had any experience with this native californian, eating the berries or propogating from such?
This seems to me to be a truly mediterranean type bush (actually almost a small tree in form)
and I wonder why it isn't used more in landscaping?
Has anyone had any experiences with growing it?
Maura O'Neill, Boulder Creek, CA
Sunset zone 15
