Wikimedia Commons
Sapotaceae
Miracle Fruit Flower
Synsepalum dulcificum
Transformation and hidden sweetness.
- Family
- Sapotaceae
- Genus
- Synsepalum
- Native to
- West Africa
- Bloom season
- Year-Round In Tropics
- Type
- evergreen shrub
- Height
- 150–450 cm
- Sunlight
- part shade
- Soil
- acidic, well-drained, humus-rich
- Water
- moderate; consistent moisture
- Hardiness
- 10–12
- Lifespan
- perennial; slow-growing, long-lived
Did you know
- The berry contains miraculin, a protein that binds to taste receptors and makes sour foods taste sweet for up to two hours.
- The tiny white flowers are unremarkable, but they must be present for the plant's legendary berries to form.
- Miracle fruit 'flavor-tripping' parties became a foodie trend in the 2000s, where guests eat lemons that taste like candy.
- Japanese researchers have explored miraculin as a natural sweetener for diabetics, since it contains no sugar.
- The plant grows painfully slowly — it may take 3–5 years to produce its first flowers from seed.
Color meanings
White
miraculous change in perception