Myrcianthes rhopaloides

Native to the Andes from Venezuela and Colombia south to Bolivia, it is a shrub or tree of moist mountain forests. Its leaves release a guava-like scent when crushed. Small, fragrant flowers have four white or cream petals and numerous slender stamens. The edible fruits ripen to dark purple or blue-black and retain the calyx at their tips. In Colombia, the wood is used for fence posts, tool handles and rural construction. Photographed in Bogotá, Colombia.