Strawberry Tree
Strawberry Tree (Arbutus unedo L. 1753 ) is a evergreen shrub of the family Ericaceae, widespread in the western Mediterranean.
Its fruits ripen one year after the blossom, in autumn. For this reason the plant has both flowers, not ripen and ripen fruits at the same time, making this species very ornamental. The fruits are red berries which have from 4 to 6 oval dark seeds.
During the Risorgimento it was considered as symbol of the national unity for the three colours of the plant which recall the Italian flag: white (flowers), red (fruits) and green (leaves). The poet Giovanni Pascoli wrote a poem to the strawberry tree.
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Notes
Sandro Pignatti, Flora d'Italia, Bologna, Edagricole, 1982. Volume 2, p. 260