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Blue Marble Tree
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Blue Marble Tree
ntroduced Photo: Shaista Ahmad
Common name: Blue Marble Tree, Blue Quandong, Bracelet Tree, Blue Fig • Nepali: रुद्राक्ष Rudraakshya • Hindi: रुद्राक्ष Rudraksh • Sanskrit: नमेरु Nameru, रुद्राक्ष Rudraksh • Mizo: Van-tha-mu-thing
Botanical name: Elaeocarpus angustifolius    Family: Elaeocarpaceae (Rudraksh family)
Synonyms: Elaeocarpus grandis, Elaeocarpus ganitrus, Elaeocarpus crenatus

Blue Marble Tree is a fast growing, large, spreading, distinctive, rainforest tree, growing to 35 m tall. It is native to Australia. Alternately arranged oblong-elliptical leaves, 10-18 cm long, have shallow, toothed margins. Leaves are dark green above. Flowers are greenish or white, bell-shaped, with 5 fringed petals, in numerous racemes borne along branches from leaf scars. The white flowers in summer are followed by metallic blue fruits 3 cm diameter, which contain a hard pitted centre. Fruit stones were used by native Australians for necklaces. The natives were known to make up an edible paste of the ripe fruit by squashing them into a bark trough filled with water.

Identification credit: Shanker Rao Photographed in IISc Campus & Lalbagh Garden, Bangalore.

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