Well as I live in neither a tropical nor a sub-tropical area the plant is no threat to my environment and is a mere curiosity in clay pots. In Madeira we stayed in a guest house which had a garden full of it, and they used the fruit to make the jam. Although it merrily seeded itself around it was well under control. The spicy fragrance from the crushed leaves is a actually quite pleasant. It wouldn't survive winter frosts here.

When we stayed in Florence in 2017 the lady of the house provided us with a bowl of fresh fruit that contained a smallish, orange-coloured stone fruit that I'd never seen before. I ate the fruit and smuggled the large pips home. I got just the one to grow and it's now a proud 7-foot tall loquat tree in my garden. I live in hope of a crop one day but I'm not holding my breath.