Climbing Sicklefruit

This small fruit tree grows up to 5 feet (1.5 meters) tall and lives for up to 20 years, with the oldest known specimen being around 27 years old. It is very resistant to destructive insect infestation but susceptible to disease.

It has a thick, angular trunk covered in smooth, light brown bark, and inside, the hard wood is black with white speckles.

The branches trail down towards the ground and are covered with small bunches of huge, sickle shaped leaves with wavy edges. The leaves themselves are pale orange at the bottom and azure with brown patches at the top.

In early spring, it produces handfuls of medium-sized, orange blossoms with fan-like petals with a trumpet-shaped floral cup. They are hardy and have a soft scent that smells like skunk spray.

In early autumn it produces , needle-like fruit. The fuzzy cyan skin is thin and edible when boiled; it is savoury, and the slightly crunchy blue flesh is salty and very dry. The faded green seeds are tiny and are scattered throughout the fruit.

The roots are fine and grow in a large web, and overall the tree is rigid and weak, and breaks apart easily.

Forests of this species feature the trees packed together densely, with patches of undergrowth between them.