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| Fruits of the Strawberry Tree |
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Medronho: a Portuguese specialty |
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The Strawberrs Tree (Arbutus) is a genus of flowering plants in the family Ericaceae, native to warm temperate regions of the Mediterranean, western Europe, and North America.
North American members of the genus are called Madrones, from the Spanish name madroño. The European species are called Strawberry Trees from the superficial resemblance of the fruit to a strawberry; some species are sometimes referred to simply as the "Arbutus".
They are evergreen trees or large shrubs growing to 5-25 m tall, with red or brown bark. The leaves are spirally arranged, oval to broad lanceolate, with a serrated or entire margin. The flowers are bell-shaped, 5-10 mm long, white or pink, and produced in racemes or corymbs. The fruit is a rough-textured red or orange-red berry 1-2 cm diameter containing yellow fruit flesh with numerous very small seeds; the fruit are edible but have minimal flavour and are not widely eaten.
The famous Medronho, a Portuguese brandy, is destilled from these fruits. The Medronho is mostly served as digestif. |
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| Strawberry Tree (Arbutus) |
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Família: Ericaceae
Unterfamilie: Arbutoideae
Especies: Arbutus |
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