Faramea oblongifolia

Faramea oblongifolia is an evergreen understorey shrub or small tree in the family Rubiaceae native to humid tropical forests of Central and northern South America, including parts of Mesoamerica, the Amazon basin and the Guiana Shield. It typically grows 2 to 6 metres tall, occasionally taller, with slender greyish stems and opposite, simple, glossy dark green leaves that are oblong to elliptic-oblong, 8 to 20 centimetres long, with entire margins, a leathery texture and a prominent, slightly raised midrib; the conspicuous interpetiolar stipules characteristic of Rubiaceae are present at each node. The flowers are small, four-lobed, white to pale bluish or lavender, fragrant, and borne in dense axillary or terminal cymes; they have a slender corolla tube and spreading lobes typical of the genus. The fruit is a small, fleshy, globose drupe that turns from green through pale violet to deep blue-black at maturity, containing one or two seeds, and is dispersed by understorey birds. Faramea is a large Neotropical genus characteristic of moist primary and secondary forest.