Can this wild fruit, zhiguai, be eaten raw directly?

Zhiguai is also called qiujiang zhijiu, jizhualian, jingouli, zhiguai'er, chouqizi, jizhuazi, etc. It is a deciduous tree, so can zhiguai be eaten raw?

1. Growth habits of zhiguai

Zhiguai is a plant of the Rhamnaceae family and the genus Hovenia, mainly distributed in Henan, Shaanxi, Longnan in Gansu, Jiangxi, Anhui, Zhejiang, Guangdong, Fujian, Hubei, Hunan, Guangxi, Sichuan, Guizhou, Yunnan and other provinces.

Zhiguai grows in open land, forest edges on hillsides or sparse forests below 2100 m above sea level; it is often cultivated beside courtyards and homes.

Zhiguai has a relatively strong ability to adapt to the environment, is drought-resistant, cold-resistant, and also tolerant of relatively poor soil. It likes sunlight and mostly grows in valleys, beside streams, roadsides or relatively moist hilly slopes below 1000 m above sea level. It often grows mixed with other evergreen and deciduous broad-leaved tree species. If the soil is deep, fertile and moist, it can grow rapidly.

2. Can zhiguai be eaten raw?

Zhiguai can be eaten raw, and when the fruit is fully ripe it is very sweet when eaten raw. Besides being eaten raw, zhiguai can also be used to make wine. Zhiguai wine has effects such as sobering up and calming the mind, and promoting bowel movements, and drinking it in moderation is also good for the body.

Zhiguai has medicinal value and can treat many kinds of diseases. Its fruit stalks, fruit, seeds, leaves and roots can all be used as medicine, and in traditional Chinese medicine its fruit is called zhijuzi.

According to the Compendium of Materia Medica, zhiguai is sweet in taste, neutral in nature and non-toxic, and has the effects of quenching thirst and relieving restlessness, removing heat above the diaphragm, moistening the five zang organs, and promoting urination and defecation, with effects comparable to honey.

In folk practice, zhiguai wine is often used to soak medicines or is used directly to treat conditions such as rheumatic numbness and traumatic injuries.