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Plants & People: The Intersection of Botany and Human Experience

Maqui (Petiole)

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Aristotelia chilensis: The Super Fruit Abstract:

Nomenclature History:
The plant Aristotelia Chilensis, also known as the Maqui and Chilean Wineberry, originating from Chile was discovered by the Botanist Molina Stuntz. The berry can also be referred to as “maquei”, “quelon”, “quelron”, “koelon”, or “clon”. These names are usually derived from the Mapuche tribes who occupy reservations in Chile and who use the Maqui berry regularly.
Evolutionary History:
The evolutionary history of the plant is that it originates from the Patagonia Andean forests. The plant belongs to the Elaeocarpaceae family and the Aristotelia genus. It shares dinucleotide sequences with the European alder, the Vaccinium macrocarpon-which is a cranberry-, and the mung bean (Vigna radiata). However, according to the article written by Gianoli et al. its sister group is the Eucryphia cordifolia which is part of the Cunoniaceae Family.
Ecology & Life History:
The Berries are grown and harvested in the Chilean lands, and have remained preserved since their cultivation. The berry is sacred to the Mapuche Indians and so throughout its history, they have fought for it to remain in the sacred grounds. The habitat in which it thrives must be in edaphoclimatic conditions. The Chilean wineberry grows best in rich moist soil on the side of hills or edges of forests. It can branch out into new locations with grazed land and cultivate there. The plant can flourish in hot dry areas and temperate rainforests. On the other hand, due to its high genetic diversity, it can survive in less than ideal conditions. The high genetic diversity is from the way it pollinates, which is through wind and distribution by insects.The life history of these plants have been related to the Mapuche tribe. Its antioxidant, medicinal properties, and flavor have been very useful to these people and so they have ensured the growth of them for centuries. They even have a century-old ancestral tradition of harvesting this berry, and so, have made the Maqui berry a sacred plant. As far as the research collected, the phylogenetic tree of these plants has many gaps in them. Specifically, there was no definitive wild type of Aristotelia Chilensis found. There are some close relatives as described before but the wild type of the plant is mostly unknown.
The Morphology (Vegetative & Reproductive):
The Morphology of Aristotelia chilensis is of a dioecious shrub with small white/yellow flowers, mature purple berries, green simple leaves, and red colored petioles. It grows up to 3-4m during its lifetime. This evergreen plant is dioecious but does not practice self fertilization. Instead, it uses its reproductive parts, the flowers, to attract insects and bees for cross pollination. A hermaphrodite flower morphology with unisexual functionalit has also occured. The flowers are of light yellow color and are in clusters. The flowers are facing towards the ground instead of up as to help the insects with pollination. The berries of the Maqui berry plant start off small, with green colors. Once Spring rolls around, the plant loses its vegitative state and becomes floral, while growing its berries. The berries turn into a dark purple color once they are in their mature forms. The Lanceolate leaves are a dark green color, with serrated margins, thin and flexible branches and are used to protect the plant while also conducting photosynthesis. There is not much information on the roots of this particular plant. However, an article written by Vogel et al. states that the roots will decrease in size when the flowering season begins because it is when the soil begins to dry due to the hotter temperatures.