Rubus ellipticus (PROSEA)

Plant Resources of South-East Asia Introduction

List of species

Rubus ellipticus J.E. Smith

Family: Rosaceae

Vernacular names

• Yellow Himalayan raspberry (En)
• Philippines: bunut (Bontok), kokobod (Igorot), init gan kumadop (Luzon)
• Thailand: nam-khaikung, mahuluang, buhadoi (Chiang Mai)
• Vietnam: ngây lông, quantsoe, hoan bao.

Distribution

Himalayas, India, Sri Lanka, Burma, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, China, the Philippines (Luzon). Introduced and naturalized in Java, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, Africa and Australia.

Uses

The fruits are said to be edible and of fairly good flavour. Roots and young shoots used to cure colic pains.

Observations

• Scrambling or climbing shrub, up to 4 m long, densely woolly with red bristles and prickles.
• Leaves trifoliolate.
• Flowers white.
• Collective fruit ovoid to globose, ca. 1 cm diameter, yellow-orange.

In forests and secondary growth, at 1000-2400 m altitude.

Selected sources

• Brown, W.H., 1951-1957. Useful plants of the Philippines. Reprint of the 1941-1943 ed. 3 Volumes. Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources. Technical Bulletin 10. Bureau of Printing, Manila, the Philippines.

• Flore du Cambodge, du Laos et du Vietnam (various authors), 1960-. Vol. 1-24. Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris.

• Zandee, M. & Kalkman, C., 1981. The genus Rubus (Rosaceae) in Malesia. 1. Subgenera Chamaebatus and Idaeobatus. Blumea 27: 75-113.

Authors

P.C.M. Jansen, J. Jukema, L.P.A. Oyen, T.G. van Lingen