A medium sized tree in cultivation. Branches in upper tree more or less pendulous. Leaves relatively small, alternate or in alternating opposite pairs, mostly elliptic to obovate to 11 cm long, 6 cm wide, generally wedge-shaped and unequal at the base, narrowed to a blunt tip, primary and secondary veins prominent, appearing 3-nerved at the base; major vein pairs 5-9; stipules to 1.5 cm long. Leaf stalk with an articulation. Fruits 9-12 mm wide, in pairs, stalkless, more or less round, yellowish at first then ripening from pink to purple then black, bracts 3. [f. hillii F.M. Bailey]

NE Qld, Indonesia, New Guinea, New Caledonia and nearby Islands

Grows naturally in strand forest.

Widely grown in New South Wales and northwards especially as a roadside tree especially near the coast, also in tubs as an indoor plant.

Small leaves rather similar to those of Syzygium smithii (syn. Acmena smithii), Lilly Pilly with an overlapping articulation where the leaf blade joins its stalk, slightly unequal at the base and with long basal veins that extend round the leaf margin, appearing 3-nerved at the base. The var. microcarpa is occasionally cultivated; it has larger leaves with a less pronounced articulation at the stalk [F. retusa L.]. The rather similar F. obliqua has stipules mostly 2-3 cm long and 2 basal bracts.

SA: Gilberton (Street tree outside 45 Park Terrace). NSW: Sydney (Balmoral Beach (north end), Centennial Park, Hyde Park; Redfern Park); Milton (Mick Ryan Reserve, canopy c. 46 m wide, c. 14 m tall). VIC: Albert Park (St Vincent Gardens); Footscray (park, below lake); Armadale (clipped street tree in High Street).

Source: Spencer, R. (1997). Moraceae. In: Spencer, R.. Horticultural Flora of South-eastern Australia. Volume 2. Flowering plants. Dicotyledons. Part 1. The identification of garden and cultivated plants. University of New South Wales Press.