Miconia umbellata

Native to the Greater Antilles, this shrub grows in moist habitats and can reach about fifteen feet tall. Young shoots and leaves have a reddish to orange coloring from their dense hairs, becoming greener as the leaves mature. Broad, opposite leaves have heart-shaped bases and pointed tips. Clusters of white to pinkish flowers develop into juicy purple berries containing many tiny seeds. The fruits are edible and provide food for birds. In Puerto Rico, it grows along roadsides, on landslides and in large forest gaps, and flowers and fruits through much of the year. Photographed on the western side of Colombia’s Central Andes near Buga, in the department of Valle del Cauca.