Native wild edible : Morinda citrifolia

Native wild edibles, What we grow

Oct 112012

Specimen : Cultivated trees

Local names : Apatot, Bangkoro

Trade names : Noni, Morinda, Indian mulberry

Botanical name : Morinda citrifolia

Family : Rubiaceae

Specimen height : 2-4 meters

Fruiting season : Year round

Traits : Evergreen; Drought tolerant; Fast growing; Salt spray tolerant; Shade tolerant; Shrub to small tree; Tolerant of infertile soil; Wind hardy

Recommendations : Agroforestry; Backyards; Coastal stabilization; Edible gardening; Farms; Home gardens; Honey tree; Living fence; Nurse tree; Ornamental tree; Plantations; Public spaces; Roadside tree; Urban greening; Wildcrafting

Used for : Fruits eaten raw or cooked or processed and sold commercially as Noni juice; Young leaves are eaten as vegetable or used as wrap in cooking fish or meat; Fruits and leaves are boiled or infused in hot water to make a medicinal tea; Fruits are eaten as purge; A red dye is obtained from the bark which is used in processing textiles; Fodder tree; Timber used in light constructions and carving; Fuelwood

Native range : Southeast Asia (including the Philippines) to Australia

National conservation status : Not threatened in the Philippines

Note : There appears to be 2 variants of this species - M. citrifolia var. citrifolia and M. citrifolia var. bracteata as quoted in the literature below. Rojo’s Revised Lexicon of Philippine Trees also listed a species M. bracteata.