Perennial Edible Fruits C2P33

Cultural requirements: Hot, humid tropical lowlands; deep, fertile soils best.

Description: Tree to 35 m Propagation by seed Fruit 7-12 cm long, 8-15 cm in diameter; external color brown, edible portion white.

Utilization: Seed eaten fresh, roasted. Flavor rich, excellent; high appeal. Rich in oil and protein. Good potential for further development.

Reference: Fouqué 1974.

Lecythis zabucajo Aubl. (= L. usitata Miers)
Common names: paradise nut (English); nuez de paraiso, nuez sapucaia, olla de mono (Spanish); noix de paradis, noix de sapucaia (French); sapucaia (Portuguese).

Origin: Brazil

Distribution South America; introduced elsewhere but not common.

Cultural requirements: Hot, humid tropical lowlands; deep, fertile soil best.

Description: Tree to 35 m Propagation by seed. Fruit 15-20 cm long, 22-26 cm in diameter; external color brown, edible portion white.

Utilization: Seed eaten fresh, roasted. Flavor excel-lent; high appeal. Rich in oil, protein, B vitamins. Good potential for further development as food crop.

References: Fouqué 1974, Leon 1968.

Leguminosae

Ceratonia siliqua L.
Common names: carob, St. John's bread (English); algarroba (Spanish).

Origin: Africa. Middle East.

Distribution: Dry subtropics.

Cultural requirements: Dry, seasonally hot subtropi-cal climate with minimum of 300-380 mm of rainfall without irrigation. Grows but does not fruit well in high-rainfall areas.

Description: Tree to 10 m. Propagation by seed, grafting. Fruit production in 10-12 years from seed, 5-6 years from grafts. Dioecious, but hermaphroditic selections known. Fruit a narrow pod, 10-15 cm long, external color brown.

Utilization: Pulp eaten fresh, processed as chocolate substitute and thickener. Rich in carbohydrates, lair source of protein. Good potential in and climates.

References: Coit 1949, Sturrock 1959.

Cordyla pinnate Milne-Redh. (= C. africana Lour.)
Common names: wild mango (English); poivrier du Senegal (French).

Origin: West Africa.

Distribution: Tropical Africa.

Cultural requirements: Hot, dry tropical climate.

Description: Tree Propagation by seed. Fruit ex-ternal color yellow.

Utilization: Pulp eaten frest. Flavor sweet, astringent; limited appeal. Little potential for development.

Reference: Dalziel 1948.

Coumarouna odorata Aubl. (= Dipteryx odorata Willd.)
Common names: tonka bean (English); choiba, sarrapia (Spanish); gaiac de Cayenne (French); cumaru verdadeiro (Portuguese).

Origin: South America.

Distribution: South America.

Cultural requirements: Hot, humid tropical lowlands.

Description: Tree to 30 m. Propagation by seed. Fruit production in 5 years. Fruit 5-6 cm long, 3 cm in diameter, external color brown.

Utilization: Pulp eaten fresh. Seed eaten after boiling to remove toxins. Little potential for development.

References: Fouqué 1974, Perez-Arbelaez 1956.

Cynometra cauliflora L.
Common names: namnam (English); nam-nam (Malaya).

Origin: Southeast Asia.

Distribution: Southeast Asia; introduced elsewhere but rare.

Cultural requirements: Hot, humid tropical lowlands.
Description: Tree to 7 m. Propagation by seed. Fruit
5-10 cm long, 2.5 cm wide. External color brown, internal yellow.

Utilization: Pulp eaten fresh, cooked, pickled, in chutney, curries. Flavor sour, pleasant. Important in local areas. Little potential for commercial development

References: Burkill 1935, Molesworth Allen 1967.

Detarium microcarpum Guill. at Perr.
Common name: sweet dattock (English).

Origin: West Africa.

Distribution: Tropical Africa.

Cultural requirements: Hot, dry tropical climate.

Description: Tree to 10 m. Propagation by seed. Fruit 4 cm long, 2.5 wide; external color brown, internal greenish.

Utilization: Pulp eaten fresh, dried. Little potential for commercial development.

Reference: Dalziel 1948.

Perennial Edible Fruits of the Tropics

Leguminosae