Antidesma bunius

Ripe bignay fruit

It is a variable plant which may be short and shrubby or tall and erect, approaching 30 metres (98 feet) in height. It has large oval-shaped leathery evergreen leaves up to about 20 centimetres (8 inches) long and 7 cm (3 in) wide. They are attached to the twigs of the tree with short petioles, creating a dense canopy.

The species is dioecious, with male and female flowers growing on separate trees. The flowers have a strong, somewhat unpleasant scent. The staminate flowers are arranged in small bunches and the pistillate flowers grow on long racemes which will become the long strands of fruit. The fruits are spherical and just under 1 cm (1⁄2 in) wide, hanging singly or paired in long, heavy bunches. They are white when immature and gradually turn red, then black.

Each bunch of fruits ripens unevenly, so the fruits in a bunch are all different colors. The skin of the fruit has red juice, while the white pulp has colorless juice. The fruit contains a light-colored seed. The fruit has a sour taste similar to that of the cranberry when immature, and a tart but sweet taste when ripe.

There is an inverse correlation between the ability to taste phenylthiocarbamide and bitterness in A. bunius.[2]

Bignay, Philippines

It is native to Southeast Asia and northern Australia, found in rainforests and semi-evergreen tropical forests.[3] It is often grown as a backyard fruit tree in Java.

The roots of specimens growing in Africa are poisonous. Parts of the plant besides the fruit may be toxic.[3]

The tree is cultivated across the tropics.[3] The fruits are edible raw[3] and most often used for making wine and tea, in addition to jams and jellies.

• Antidesma montanum

• Purdue New Crops Profile
• Antidesma Species Accounts
• Wild Cherry Tea PhenQGuide.net
• Getting To Know The Bignay Tree CitraRespati.eu.org