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Miconia calvescens
Also called Purple Plague, Bush Currrant, Miconia, Bush Currant
Velvet tree (Miconia calvescens) is a fast-growing shrub or small tree from the Melastomataceae family, native from southern Mexico through Central and South America, and it is one of the world's most invasive plants outside its range. It is grown only where it is legal and controlled, and is not a common garden plant.
Miconia calvescens, the velvet tree, miconia, or bush currant, is a species of flowering plant in the family Melastomataceae. It is native to Mexico and Central and South America and it has become one of the world's most invasive species.
Miconia trees can flower several times a year and bear fruit simultaneously. The inflorescences are large panicles of white to light pink blossoms. The tiny purple fruits are about half a centimeter in diameter and packed with about 120–230 minuscule seeds. The sweet fruits are attractive to birds and other animals which disperse the seeds. A young tree with only two flower panicles can produce 200,000 seeds in its first fruiting season. This heavy seed production and potential for long-distance dispersal help make miconia an invasive threat.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Miconia calvescens by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
