2. A slow-growing, long-living, spreading, evergreen subtropical tree that grows to a height and width of 4 to 30 meters (13 to 98 feet).  Native to the low elevations of the Kwangtung and Fukien provinces in southern China.  Cultivated for thousands of years.  Closely related to the longan.  Trees contain taproots.  The trunk is smooth, gray, and brittle.  Depending on the cultivar, trees can be broad with low-hanging branches or contain upright branches with a dense, compact rounded crown.  Branches are brittle.  Leaves are alternate, pinnately compound and measure 8 to 25 centimeters (3 to 10 inches) long.  Each leaf contains two to five pairs of dark green, smooth, shiny leaflets that are arranged oppositely.  Leaflets are pale underneath, pointed, elliptic, elliptic-oblong or lanceolate in shape, flat to curved upwards, and 2.5 to 6.4 centimeters (1 to 2.5 inches) wide by 5 to 20 centimeters (2 to 8 inches) long.  Leaflet edges can be smooth, wavy, or undulating.  Young leaves are pale green, pinkish or copperish red in color.  Flowers are borne in large quantities on leafless or leafy well-branched, erect, terminal panicles.  Panicles measure 10 to 75 centimeters (4 to 29.5 inches) and are located on branch tips.  Each panicle can contain a few hundred flowers.  Individual flowers are yellow-green, greenish-white, creamy yellow, or brownish-yellow in color, small, and 0.3 to 0.6 centimeters (0.1 to 0.2 inch) long.  Each flower contains small valvate sepals, a fleshy disk and approximately 8 stamens; flowers do not contain petals.  Trees contain three types of flowers.  Type I flowers are male.  These flowers contain six to ten stamens and measure 0.5 to 0.7 centimeters (0.2 to 0.3 inch) long.  Type II flowers contain both male and female parts, but function mostly as female flowers.  These flowers contain a pistil and stigma and measure 0.2 to 0.3 centimeters (0.08 to 0.12 inch).  Type III flowers contain both male and female parts, but function as male flowers.  These flowers contain a pistil and six to ten stamens.  Trees are self-fertile and can be pollinated by insects.  Yellow, orange-red, pink or deep red fruit occurs in long-stemmed, drooping clusters of 2 to 30.  Individual fruit are spherical, elongated, conical or ovoid in shape, 2.5 to 4 centimeters (1 to 1.6 inches) in diameter, and 15 to 30 grams (0.5 to 1 ounce) in weight.  The skin is thin, hard, fragile, leathery, warty, and covered with angular protuberances.  Pulp is whitish, grayish or pinkish in color, glossy, succulent, thick and translucent.  Pulp texture is reminiscent of a grape.  The flavor is sweet to acidic and resembles a grape or rambutan.  Seeds are glossy, hard, round, oblong or bullet-shaped, brown in color, and up to 2.0 centimeters (0.8 inch) long.  Two subspecies of the fruit exist.  The philippinensis subspecies originates from the Philippines and has a long, oval-shaped fruit with thorn-like protuberances that split when ripe.  This fruit is inedible.  The javanensis subspecies originates from Indonesia and grows in hot equatorial areas.  This fruit is edible.  Many varieties exist (PERENNIAL, JANICK, CULL, BARWICK, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, LORENZI, VAN WYK, MORTON, CRFG, ECOCROP).
3. Crop Data:
      a. Season:  Growth flushes of leaves can occur several times per year, depending on the climate.  In the Northern hemisphere, panicles can appear from November to April.  Flowering occurs March to April in Florida.  In Brazil, flowers form in August and September.  In other areas, flowering occurs from late winter to early spring.  Fruit matures in 60 to 90 days.  Fruiting occurs from June to July in Florida, from late November to March in Australia, and at the beginning of summer in Brazil.  Trees are erratic in bearing fruit.  Fruit production occurs 8 to 12 years from seed and 3 to 4 years from vegetative propagation (PERENNIAL, JANICK, CULL, LORENZI, GILMAN).
      b. Cultivation:  Grown in cool tropical and warm subtropical climate with, high humidity, full sun, elevations of 0 to 2,000 meters (6,562 feet), well-distributed medium to high rainfall of 125 to 200 centimeters (49 to 79 inches), and deep, moist, fertile, well-drained medium acid (pH 6 to 7) soil with high organic matter.  In China, trees grow best on alluvial silty loams to clays or laterite soils.  Grows in the lower plains where there are cool, dry winters and autumns and warm, wet summers.  Other cultivars prefer hillsides or orchard systems.  Trees are water-loving; grown along banks and dykes in the Pearl River delta in Guangdong.  Temperature affects flowering and fruiting.  Mature trees tolerate light frosts (-1 to -2 °C or 28 to 30 °F), floods, and a variety of soil types including neutral or slightly alkaline soils.  Does not tolerate drought, wind, or hot, lowland tropics.  Young trees are damaged or killed at -2 to -3 °C (27 to 28 °F).  Propagation is by seed, air layering, cuttings and grafting.  Seeds should be removed from the fruit within one month after harvest.  Viability is lost 4 to 5 days after being removed from the fruit.  Germination occurs in 4 to 10 days.  Air layering is the most popular technique and should be done when there are warm temperatures and the ground is moist.  Trees 6 to 12 months old can be planted during any time of the year when there is sufficient moisture.  Trees should be spaced 5 to 12 meters (16 to 39 feet) apart.  Irrigation and fertilization are given to trees following harvest in summer to promote new growth.  Panicles without fruit are cut to promote growth flushes.  Fruit are harvested when the skin turns red in color, a mature size has been reached, and pulp has increased in sweetness and juiciness.  Fruit do not ripen if harvested when immature.  Fruit are harvested by packing individual fruit in cartons or cutting or breaking off the panicle containing the cluster of fruit.  In some countries, a portion of last year's wood is removed while harvesting to enhance a higher production of terminals next spring.  Fruit quickly turn brown if left to dry.  Fruit can be stored at 8 °C (46 °F) for 4 weeks.  Without refrigeration, fruit can be stored for only 3 to 5 days (PERENNIAL, JANICK, CULL, BARWICK, MORTON, ECOCROP).
      c. Availability in the marketplace:  In Asian countries, fruit are sold while still attached to the panicle in bunches.  In Western countries, individual fruit are sold in containers.  Fruit has been sold in Chinese markets for thousands of years; sold in the U.S. and Canada (JANICK, CULL, MORTON).
      d. Preparation for cooking:  The aril is mostly consumed fresh after being chilled and hand-peeled; Hot-lye dip and mechanical peeling are also used.  Fruit can be dried, pickled, spiced, frozen, canned or preserved; made into sauce, jellies and preserves.  Fruit is used in desserts, including ice cream and salads; added to stir fries, stuffings, meat and fish dishes and curries; processed into fruit juice and liqueur (PERENNIAL, MORTON, JANICK, CULL, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, VAN WYK).
      e. Nutritional aspects:  Fruit are a poor source of calcium, iron, thiamine and riboflavin.  Fruit are a fair source of phosphorus.  Fruit are a good source of niacin, potassium and vitamin C.  The seed is toxic (JANICK, BARWICK, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, LAMBERTS).
      f. Medicinal aspects:  Seeds are used in China as a painkiller for neuralgia.  The fruit peel is used to treat diarrhea and smallpox.  The fruit is used to relieve coughing; can aid stomach pain, tumors, and enlarged glands.  Decoctions of the root, bark and flowers are taken to aid throat ailments.  Roots may aid certain cancer tumors (BARWICK, MORTON).
      g. Crop Photos
4. Production in U.S.:  Florida, Hawaii, California, Texas.  Florida is the largest producer of lychee.  In the 1980s, 59 to 81 hectares (146 to 200 acres) were grown in Florida; after 1992, 207 hectares (512 acres) were grown.  Approximately 620 tonnes (683 tons) were harvested from 206 hectares (509 acres).  Mature trees beared 9,802 kilograms (21 610 pounds) per hectare.  In Hawaii, 91 hectares (225 acres) were grown in 1996 and 123 hectares (304 acres) were grown in 2002.  One-third of the trees bore fruit and yielded 52 tonnes (57 tons) of fruit (CRANE 1995a, KAWATE 1995, JANICK).
5. Other commercial production regions:  China (Guangdong, Fujian, Guangxi, Hainan, and Xichuan provinces), India, South Africa, Thailand, Bangladesh, Japan, Burma, Taiwan, Malaysia, Africa, Madagascar, Réunion, Pakistan, Australia, Mexico, most countries in Latin America including Brazil, the Caribbean, Cuba, Honduras, Guatemala, the Canary Islands, Madeira Islands, Mauritius, Trinidad, Israel, Cambodia, Vietnam, Philippines; cultivated elsewhere.  The major exporters of lychee fruit are China, Taiwan, Madagascar, Pakistan, Thailand, South Africa and Israel.  In 2002, Madagascar shipped 18,079 tonnes (19 929 tons) of fruit to France.  7 to 8 year old trees can produce 45 kilograms (99 pounds) per tree.  10 year old trees can yield 50 to 70 kilograms (110 to 154 pounds); 15 year old trees can yield 100 kilograms (220 pounds) and 20-24 year old trees can yield 150 to 180 kilograms (331 to 397 pounds) of fruit; yields can be 500 kilograms (1,102 pounds) in older trees (GRIN, LOGAN, PERENNIAL, JANICK, VAN WYK, MORTON).
6. Use:  Mainly as fresh fruit in U.S.; in China, canned and dried; ornamental, wood for construction, medicinal purposes; honey plant (GRIN, MARKLE, MORTON, ECOCROP).
7. Part(s) of plant consumed:  Interior fruit pulp
8. Portion analyzed/sampled:  Whole fruit
9. Classifications:
      a. Authors Class:  Tropical and subtropical fruit, inedible peel
      b. EPA Crop Group (Group & Subgroup):  Miscellaneous
      c. Codex Group:  006 (FI 0343) Assorted tropical and subtropical fruits - inedible peel
      d. EPA Crop Definition:  Lychee = lychee, longan, Spanish lime, rambutan, pulasan
10. References:  GRIN, MARKLE, BAYER, CRANE 1995a, KAWATE 1995, LOGAN, PERENNIAL, JANICK, CULL, BARWICK, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, LORENZI, VAN WYK, MORTON, CRFG, ECOCROP, GILMAN, LAMBERTS.
11. Production Map:  EPA Crop Production Region 6, 10 and 13.
12. Plant Codes:
      a. Bayer / EPPO Code:  LIHCH

1. Mabolo [(mabola-tree, velvet persimmon, velvet-apple, yi se shi, pommier velours, pécego-de-Índia, camagón (GRIN))]
      Ebenaceae
      Diospyros blancoi A. DC.  [(syn: Cavanillea philippensis Desr., Diospyros discolor Willd., Diospyros philippensis (Desr.) Gürke (GRIN))]
2. A slow-growing evergreen tree that reaches a height of 7 to 33 meters (23 to 108 feet).  Trees can be small and straggly with drooping branches or erect with a stout, furrowed trunk.  Native to the Philippines.  The trunk is black in color, furrowed, and can reach 80 centimeters (31.5 inches) in diameter.  Wood is smooth, durable and pinkish to dark red, mottled with grey.  The crown is dense and elongated to conical in shape.  Dark green leaves are smooth, glossy, leathery, silvery and hairy underneath, alternate, oblong in shape, pointed at the apex, rounded or pointed at the base and 8 to 30 centimeters (3 to 12 inches) long by 2.5 to 12 centimeters (1 to 5 inches) wide.  New leaves are silky, hairy, and pale green to pink in color.  The petiole measures up to 1.7 centimeters (0.7 inch) long.  Creamy white flowers are fragrant, tubular, four-lobed, waxy, and held on a short stalk.  Trees contain either male or female flowers.  Male flowers are borne in 3 to 7-flowered axillary cymes on short pedicels, contain 24 to 30 stamens united at the base, a tubular 4-lobed calyx, and measure 0.6 centimeter (0.25 inch) wide.  Female flowers are larger than male flowers.  Female flowers occur singly on separate trees, contain four to five staminodes, and measure 1.3 centimeters (0.5 inch) wide.  Male flowered trees must be planted close to female trees in order for fruiting to occur.  Purplish red, pink, yellow, brownish, or orange fruit is a berry that is oval, globose, depressed-globose, or oblate in shape, and 5 to 10 centimeters (2 to 4 inches) in diameter.  Fruit are solitary or occur in pairs.  Unripe fruit are greenish brown in color.  The skin is velvety, thin, pliable and tough; tough and papery when chewed.  The fruit skin gives off an unpleasant cheese-like odor.  The hairs are short, golden brown to copper colored.  Fruit is capped at the base by a stiff dull-green calyx.  The pulp is white to yellowish in color, firm, moist, and creamy to mealy.  Resembles an overripe apple in texture.  The flavor is dry and sweet to astringent.  Some describe the taste as a banana-flavored apple.  Each fruit contains four to eight brown seeds that occur in a circle around the core of the fruit.  Seeds are smooth, wedge-shaped, and 4 centimeters (1.6 inches) long by 2.5 centimeters (1 inch) wide.  A whitish membrane is contained around each seed that is translucent when fresh and opaque when dried.  Seedless cultivars exist.  Tree shape, hairiness of the leaves and branches, and fruit size, shape, color and sweetness vary (PERENNIAL, JANICK, LORENZI, MORTON, AGROFORESTRY).
3. Crop Data:
      a. Season:  Flowering occurs from March to May in Florida, mainly during the dry season (February to April) in the Philippines, August to September in Brazil, and March to April in India.  Fruit matures in 150 to 180 days.  Fruit form in the summer in Brazil, July and August in India, June to September in the Philippines, and June to September in Florida.  Additional fruiting can occur during any time of the year.  Trees bear fruit in 6 to 7 years from seed and 3 to 4 years from grafts (PERENNIAL, JANICK, LORENZI, MORTON, AGROFORESTRY).
      b. Cultivation:  Requires hot, humid tropical lowlands and a monsoon climate.  Prefers elevations of up to 800 meters (2,625 feet) and loam soils.  Grows in primary and secondary low and medium-altitude forests.  Tolerates many soil types, typhoons, and wind.  Propagation is by seed, air layering, budding, rooted shoot cuttings, and shield and cleft grafting.  Germination occurs in 24 days.  Grafting can produce shorter trees, more lateral branches, and pistillate trees with good fruit quality.  At the beginning of the rainy season, grafted trees should be spaced 8 to 10 meters (26 to 33 feet) apart and seedling trees should be spaced 10 to 15 meters (33 to 49 feet) apart.  Tree branches should be pruned.  Fruit are harvested when fruit color changes from greenish-brown to dull-red.  After fruit are harvested, the fruit are wiped with a cloth to remove the hair (PERENNIAL, JANICK, MORTON, AGROFORESTRY).
      c. Availability in the marketplace:  Fruit are sold in the Philippines and Bogor (Indonesian) markets (JANICK).

      d. Preparation for cooking:  Pulp of the fruit is consumed fresh after the skin is peeled and the fruit is chilled in the refrigerator.  Peeling also reduces the cheese-like odor.  Fruit are sliced, diced, seasoned with lime, lemon juice or syrup and served as dessert; fried in butter; preserved; used as a vegetable in fried dishes or salads; served with spicy meat (PERENNIAL, JANICK, MORTON).
      e. Nutritional aspects:  Fruit is a good source of iron, calcium, and vitamin B (MORTON).
      f. Medicinal aspects:  No specific entry.
      g. Crop Photos
4. Production in U.S.:  Grown in experimental gardens in Florida, Hawaii, and the Caribbean (MORTON).
5. Other commercial production regions:  Taiwan, Indonesia, the Philippines, peninsular Malaysia, India; cultivated in domestic orchards in Brazil; widely cultivated in the tropics (GRIN, LORENZI, MORTON).
6. Use:  Fruit, wood for handicrafts, ornamental; rootstock for Japanese persimmon; fruit are fed to animals (GRIN, JANICK, MORTON, AGROFORESTRY).
7. Part(s) of plant consumed:  Interior fruit pulp only.
8. Portion analyzed/sampled:  Whole fruit
9. Classifications:
      a. Authors Class:  Tropical and subtropical fruit, inedible peel
      b. EPA Crop Group (Group & Subgroup):  Miscellaneous
      c. Codex Group:  No specific entry.  General entry is 006 Assorted tropical and subtropical fruits - inedible peel.
      d. EPA Crop Definition: None
10. References: GRIN, BAYER, PERENNIAL, JANICK, LORENZI, MORTON, AGROFORESTRY.
11. Production Map:   EPA Crop Production Region 13.
12. Plant Codes:
      a. Bayer / EPPO Code:  DOSDC (listed as Diospyros discolor WILLD)

1. Madras-thorn [(blackbead, camachile, guayamochil, Madrasthorn, Manila-tamarind, sweet-inga, pois sucré, Camambilarinde, opiuma, guamúchil, huamúchil, madre de flecha (GRIN))]
      Fabaceae (alt. Leguminosae).  Also placed in:  Mimosaceae
      Pithecellobium dulce (Roxb.) Benth.  [(syn:  Inga dulcis (Roxb.) Willd., Mimosa dulcis Roxb. (GRIN))]
2. A fast-growing, medium-sized, hardy tree that reaches a height of 5 to 22 meters (16 to 72 feet).  Native to America, from California to South America.  A broad-spreading thorny tree with irregular branches.  Wood is reddish-brown, hard, heavy, brittle, and strong.  The trunk is short, spiny and 30 to 100 centimeters (12 to 39 inches) in diameter.  The bark is grey in color, smooth or rough, furrowed and peeling.  Branches are slender, irregular and drooping.  The crown is broad, spreading and up to 30 meters (98 feet) across.  Deciduous leaves are bipinnately compound.  Each leaf contains 4 leaflets.  Leaflets are oblong to ovate-oblong in shape, asymmetric, and 2 to 4 centimeters (0.8 to 1.6 inches) long by 1 to 2 centimeters (0.4 to 0.8 inch) wide.  Each leaf contains a pair of short, thin, sharp spines at the base that measure 0.2 to 4 cm (0.08 to 1.6 inches) long.  Spines are longer than the petioles.  New leaves are borne directly after the loss of old leaves.  Flowers occur on short-stalked whitish, racemelike or spiciform panicles in terminal compound inflorescences that range in size from 5 to 30 centimeters (2 to 12 inches) long.  Each panicle contains 20 to 30 densely hairy flowers.  Individual white to greenish-white flowers are small, fragrant, sessile, and measure 1 centimeter (0.4 inch) in diameter.  Flowers contain a hairy corolla, green calyx and 50 thin stamens united in a tube at the base.  Pollination is by bees.  The pinkish, black, brown, or reddish-brown pod can be linear, curved, or coiled in shape, thin, flattened, or irregular, and 1 to 1.5 centimeters (0.4 to 0.6 inch) wide by 20 centimeters (8 inches) long.  The immature pod is green.  The pod splits along both margins, is swollen, constricted between the seeds, and slightly hairy.  Pulp (arils) is thick, white to red in color, and surrounds the seeds.  The flavor is sweet, acidic and resembles a chestnut in flavor.  Each pod contains approximately 5 to 12 black, shiny, elliptical, bean-like seeds that measure 2 centimeters (0.8 inch) long.  Seeds hang on a reddish thread from the pod.  Trees can become weedy and shade out other trees (DUKE, WINROCK, PIER, PARROTTA, AGROFORESTRY, BONNER, FAO).
3. Crop Data:
      a. Season:  Flowering occurs in April in Hawaii, October to November in the Philippines, April to June in West Java, and December to May in Central America.  Flowering generally occurs in 2 to 4 years.  Fruiting occurs from February to August in Central America, June to August in West Java, and January to February in the Philippines.  In Puerto Rico, fruiting can occur throughout the year.  Fruit ripen approximately 3 to 4 months after flowering (WINROCK, PARROTTA, AGROFORESTRY).
      b. Cultivation:  Prefers a warm climate, full sun, an annual precipitation of 25 to 165 centimeters (10 to 65 inches), a mean annual temperature of 0 to 48 °C (32 to 118 °F), a low to medium altitude of up to 1,800 meters (5,906 feet), a pH of up to 8.3, and a well-drained, deep, fertile loamy soil.  Also prefers clay, oolitic limestone, or sand.  Also grown in dry, warm, semi-arid climates with dry seasons of 4 to 5 months, subtropical regions, or tropical regions.  Tolerates tropical lowlands, tropical or subtropical deserts along water courses, severely eroded montane wastelands, dry thickets, wet sands with a brackish water table, grass ecosystems, plains, hilly areas, thorn forests, tropical deciduous forests of the native Pacific slope range, dry pine-oak forests, and forests on coasts, plains and hillsides.  Trees tolerate heavy animal feedings, disturbed areas, drought, heat, fire, poor soil, salt, sand, dry areas, wet areas, and shade.  Does not tolerate extremely windy conditions and frost.  Propagated by seeds and cuttings.  Seeds are viable under dry cool conditions for a period of 6 months.  Germination occurs in 1 to 2 days.  Seedlings should be placed in the field when 40 centimeters (16 inches) tall.  For hedge use, seedlings should be spaced 15 centimeters (6 inches) apart in two rows that are 30 centimeters (12 inches) apart.  Pods are picked from trees or the ground and air-dried in the sun.  Seeds are harvested by hand-flailing or use of a macerator.  Pod fragments are removed with a screen (DUKE, WINROCK, PIER, PARROTTA, AGROFORESTRY).

      c. Availability in the marketplace:  Pods are sold in Mexico, Cuba, India and Thailand on roadside stands (DUKE, PARROTTA, AGROFORESTRY).
      d. Preparation for cooking:  Pulp and seeds are consumed fresh or roasted; the seed and pulp is made into a sweet drink that is similar to lemonade.  In India and Southeast Asia, seeds are consumed fresh in curries; greenish oil from the seed can be used as food (DUKE, WINROCK, PARROTTA).
      e. Nutritional aspects:  Seeds are rich in protein (DUKE).
      f. Medicinal aspects:  The tree is used to cure convulsions, dysentery, stomach problems, earache, leprosy, ulcers, sores, toothache, and venereal disease; bark is used as a fever reducer; root and bark is used in Haiti to reduce diarrhea.  Fruit is used to aid coughs.  Seed juice is taken for chest congestion.  Leaves are placed on sores; an abortifacient, anodyne, astringent, larvicidal and guamachil (DUKE, PARROTTA, AGROFORESTRY).
      g. Crop Photos
4. Production in U.S.:  Southern Florida (weedy), Puerto Rico (weedy), Hawaii (weedy), coasts of California, U.S. Virgin Islands, Southwest U.S. (DUKE, WINROCK, AGROFORESTRY, FAO).
5. Other commercial production regions:  Northern and Central Mexico, Central America, South America including Venezuela, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Surinam, Uruguay and Colombia; weedy on the Caribbean Islands including Cuba, Jamaica and St. Croix; Asia including Thailand; the Philippines, Guam, India, Pakistan; tropical Africa; naturalized elsewhere in the tropics (GRIN, DUKE, WINROCK, PIER, AGROFORESTRY, BONNER).
6. Use:  Agroforestry, ornamental, shade/shelter plant, land rehabilitation, hedge/fence, soil improver, fruit; fruit pods, seeds, press cake residue from seed oil, hedge clippings and leaves are used as forage for livestock; nitrogen fixer, fuel wood, beads, wood for boxes, wheels and other construction; gum from the trunk is used for mucilage; tannin from bark is used for tanning; yellow dye from bark is used; medicinal purposes; oil from seeds are used for food purposes or soap-making; bark is used as a fish poison in the Philippines; tree is used for the cultivation of the lac insect; flowers produce honey (GRIN, DUKE, WINROCK).
7. Part(s) of plant consumed:  Pulp
8. Portion analyzed/sampled:  Whole fruit
9. Classifications:
      a. Authors Class: Tropical and subtropical fruit, inedible peel
      b. EPA Crop Group (Group & Subgroup):  Miscellaneous
      c. Codex Group:  Proposed for 005 Assorted tropical and subtropical fruits - edible peel
      d. EPA Crop Definition:  None
10. References: GRIN, BAYER, DUKE, WINROCK, PIER, PARROTTA, AGROFORESTRY, BONNER, FAO.
11. Production map:  EPA Crop Production Regions 10 and 13.
12. Plant Codes:
      a. Bayer / EPPO Code:  PIFDU

                                         355

1. Mammy-apple [(abricó, mammee-apple, tropical-apricot, abricotier d' Amérique, abricotier des Antilles, Mammiapfel, abricó-de-São-Domingos, abricó-do-Pará,  abricó-selvagem, abricoteiro, albricoque, mamey (GRIN))]
      Clusiaceae (alt. Guttiferae)
      Mammea americana L. [(syn: Mammea emarginata Moc. & Sessé ex Choisy (GRIN))]
2. A, slow-growing, long-lived evergreen tree that grows to a height of 6 to 25 meters (20 to 82 feet).  The tree resembles a magnolia.  Native to the West Indies, Central America and northern South America.  Grown as a food crop for thousands of years.  Heartwood is reddish or purple-brown in color.  Sapwood is light brown in color.  Wood is hard, heavy, fine-grained and strong.  The trunk is short, erect and can reach 0.9 to 1.2 meters (3 to 4 feet) in diameter.  Bark is grey brown in color, smooth, or fissured, and contains a gummy, pale yellow latex.  The canopy is erect and oval to pyramidal.  Branches are ascending and densely foliaged.  Dark green leaves are simple, thick, shiny, smooth, opposite, leathery, broadly elliptic to oblong-ovate in shape, rounded to blunt at the apex, and up to 20 centimeters (8 inches) long by 10 centimeters (4 inches) wide.  Each leaf contains many closely arranged parallel lateral veins.  The petiole is short.  Showy flowers occur singly or in clusters of two to three on thick stalks on the axils of young branches.   Individual white, fragrant flowers are waxy, large, and 2.5 to 5 centimeters (1 to 2 inches) wide.  Male flowers resemble camellia flowers; contain 4 to 6 waxy, white petals and a bunch of golden stamens.  Female flowers contain a pistil.  Male, female and hermaphrodite flowers occur together or on different trees.  Light brown to greyish-brown fruit is a drupe that is spherical to irregular in shape, solitary, 8 to 15 centimeters (3 to 6 inches) in diameter, and 0.5 to 2 kilograms (1.1 to 4.4 pounds) in weight.  Fruit is borne on a short, thick stem.  Each fruit contains a distinct tip or bristle-like floral remnant at the apex.  The skin is leathery, 0.3 centimeter (0.1 inch) thick, bitter and rough.  Skin contains small, scattered, warty or scurfy areas.  Directly beneath the skin, there is a thin, dry, astringent, bitter, whitish membrane that adheres to the pulp.  Pulp is light to golden yellow, reddish or orange in color, non-fibrous, and can range from firm, crisp and dry to tender, melting and juicy.  Immature pulp is usually hard, while mature pulp is usually slightly softer.  Pulp contains milky latex.  The flavor is sweet to sub-acid and is reminiscent of apricots or red raspberries.  Small fruit are usually single seeded and larger fruit usually contain two to four seeds.  Seeds are red-brown to russet brown in color, large, rough, ovoid, oblong or ellipsoid in shape, and 6.25 centimeters (2.4 inches) long (PERENNIAL, JANICK, BARWICK, VAN WYK, LORENZI, MORTON, POPENOE, VOZZO).
3. Crop Data:
      a. Season:  Flowering occurs May through October in the West Indies and Puerto Rico, and January to March in Brazil.  Fruit ripen from July to February in the West Indies, April to May in Barbados, May to July in the Bahamas, June to December in Brazil, and late June to August in southern Florida.  In Puerto Rico, fruiting can occur twice per year.  In Colombia, fruiting occurs June and December.  Fruiting occurs in 6 to 13 years from seed and 4 to 5 years from grafts (PERENNIAL, JANICK, LORENZI, MORTON, VOZZO).
      b. Cultivation:  Requires warm to hot tropical, near tropical, or subtropical moist to wet climates, elevations of sea level to 1,600 meters (5,249 feet), full sun to bright shade, deep, rich, moist, well-drained soil, a mean annual temperature of 27 to 30 °C (81 to 86 °F), and a mean annual rainfall of 150 to 400 centimeters (59 to 158 inches).  Grows in semi-cultivated or disturbed areas, and dry and moist, coastal forests.  Tolerates a variety of soils including shallow, sandy and limestone soils, low to high rainfall, dry conditions, and saline conditions.  Does not tolerate frost.  Propagation is by seed, cuttings, air-layering and grafting.  Germination occurs in 1 to 4 months.  Seed should not be allowed to dry out.  Seedlings should be grown under light shade.  When 3 to 5 months old and 40 to 50 centimeters (16 to 20 inches) tall, seedlings can be transplanted at the beginning of the rainy season.  Grafting can help achieve earlier fruiting.  Plants should be spaced 10 meters (33 feet) apart.  Fertilizer can aid growth.  When mature, fruit should be clipped from the tree, leaving a small portion of stem attached.  Harvesting can occur when the fruit skin becomes more yellowish in color.  As a test for ripeness, fruit can also be scratched.  If the scratched surface is green, fruit are not mature.  If yellow underneath, fruit are fully ripe.  Cultivated in many tropical areas (PERENNIAL, JANICK, BARWICK, VAN WYK, MORTON, VOZZO).
      c. Availability in the marketplace:  Fruit are sold fresh, canned or preserved on local markets and roadside stands (VAN WYK, MORTON, POPENOE).
      d. Preparation for cooking:  Pulp is consumed fresh; for fresh consumption, fruit can be sliced and left to macerate in water for a few hours; added to fruit salads, ice cream and fruit drinks; cooked in pies or tarts; used as a filler for products made of other fruit; served with cream, sugar, or wine; fruit can be stewed, preserved, canned, or made into wine.  Under-ripe fruit is rich in pectin and can be made into jelly, jam, purées, pastes, sorbets, marmalade, chutney, or preserves.  Sap from the tree is used to make a fermented toddy.  Liquor can be distilled from the flowers (PERENNIAL, JANICK, BARWICK, VAN WYK, LORENZI).
      e. Nutritional aspects:  Fruit are rich in carotenoids (which are converted to vitamin A), other vitamins, minerals, and amino acids (including lysine).  Seeds are poisonous (BARWICK, VAN WYK).
      f. Medicinal aspects:  Various parts of the tree are used to treat scalp infections, diarrhea, digestive problems and eye problems.  Powdered seed are used to treat parasitic skin diseases.  An infusion of fresh or dry leaves are used to cure fevers; an antibiotic principle was reported in the fruit.  A liqueur made from the flowers is used as a digestive aid (JANICK, MORTON).
      g. Crop Photos
4. Production in U.S.:  Minor crop production in South Florida, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands (GRIN, MARKLE, JANICK).
5. Other commercial production regions:  The West Indies including the Bahama Islands, the Greater and Lesser Antilles, Bermuda, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, and St. Croix; northern South America including Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, Ecuador and northern Brazil; cultivated in the Amazon region; Central America; southern Mexico; West Africa; Southeast Asia; Java; the Philippines; widely cultivated in the tropics; grown as an ornamental in the lowlands of Costa Rica, El Salvador and Guatemala.  In Puerto Rico, trees can yield 150 to 200 fruits per crop and 300 to 400 fruit per year (GRIN, MORTON, JANICK, VAN WYK, LORENZI, MORTON, AGROFORESTRY).
6. Use:  The fruit may be eaten fresh; cooked as a sauce, preserves or jam; beverage base; sap is used to make a fermented toddy; medicinal purposes, dooryard tree; home garden plant; shade; windbreak; erosion control; wood is used for construction and fuel; tannin from the bark is used to treat leather; all parts of the tree have insecticidal properties (GRIN, MARKLE, JANICK, BARWICK, AGROFORESTRY).
7. Part(s) of plant consumed:  Fruit pulp
8. Portion analyzed/sampled:  Whole fruit
9. Classifications:
      a. Authors Class: Tropical and subtropical fruit, inedible peel
      b. EPA Crop Group (Group & Subgroup):  Miscellaneous
      c. Codex Group:  006 (FI 0344) Assorted tropical and subtropical fruits - inedible peel
      d. EPA Crop Definition:  None
10. References: GRIN, BAYER, MARKLE, PERENNIAL, JANICK, BARWICK, VAN WYK, LORENZI, MORTON, POPENOE, VOZZO, AGROFORESTRY.
11. Production map:  EPA Crop Production Region 13.
12. Plant Codes:
      a. Bayer / EPPO Code:  MAFAM

1. Manduro [(torchwood, y-thorn torchwood, nulo, mguguni, mkonga (GRIN))]
      Zygophyllaceae.  Also placed in:  Balanitaceae
      Balanites maughamii Sprague
2. A long-lived, medium to large, deciduous to semi-deciduous tree that grows to a height of 8 to 25 meters (26 to 82 feet).  Native to Zimbabwe and Mozambique.  Young trees surround older trees.  Older trees have an upright, straight, deeply folded, multi-fluted, or buttressed trunk.  Grey, yellowish-brown or mottled bark is smooth when young, becoming roughly fissured when older.  The crown is sparse, spreading, sometimes rounded and high-branching.  Older trees contain an umbrella-like or V-shaped canopy.  Branches are greyish green to yellow in color, hairy when young, and smooth when mature.  Branches zig-zag, and grow outwards.  Low branches remain close to the trunk.  Branches on the upper bole and younger branches contain unequally forked green spines with brown tips that can be simple or y-shaped and 3 to 15 centimeters (1.2 to 6 inches) long.  Fruit-bearing branches contain thinner, short, straight spines.  Dark grey olive green leaves are leathery, alternate, compound, arranged spirally, and 3 to 9 centimeters (1.2 to 3.5 inches) long by 2 to 7 centimeters (0.8 to 3 inches) wide.  Leaves contain triangular stipules that are hairy, corky, and 0.3 centimeters (0.1 inch) long.  Each leaf contains two leaflets that are hairy or smooth, acute or shortly acuminate, asymmetrical, and ovate, broadly elliptic, obtuse, or round in shape.  Leaflets contain a rounded apex, a tapering base, and an entire margin.  The central vein of the leaf can be off-center and the base can be unequal.  Petioles and petiolules are velvety.  Flowers are borne in fascicle-like cymes of 3 to 7 in leaf axils.  Scented green to greenish-yellow flowers are star-shaped, small, hairy above, smooth below, and 2 centimeters (0.8 inch) in diameter.  Individual flowers contain 5 ovate to obovate sepals (0.5 centimeters or 0.2 inch long), 5 densely hairy oblong-lanceolate to oblanceolate petals (0.5 to 0.9 centimeters or 0.2 to 0.4 inch long), 10 stamens, a 5-chambered ovary, a short velvety stalk (0.5 to 1 centimeter or 0.2 to 0.4 inch long), and both male and female reproductive structures.  Flowers can be sessile.  Brownish-yellow to reddish-brown fruit is a drupe that is large, fleshy, ovoid to oblong-ellipsoid in shape, depressed at both ends, date-like or plum-like in appearance and 3 to 8 centimeters (1.2 to 3 inches) long by 2 to 3 centimeters (0.8 to 1.2 inch) wide.  Fruit contains 5 grooves at the base.  The skin is firm, thin, hairy, and brittle at maturity.  Pulp is thin, spongy, sticky to oily, dark and fibrous.  The flavor is sweet to bitter.  Each fruit contains a large, hard, grooved, cream-colored, ellipsoid to spindle-shaped woody stone that measures 2.5 centimeters (1 inch) long.  The kernel contains a clear, yellow, edible oil that is tasteless and odorless (PLANTZAFRICA, ZIMBABWEFLORA, ECOTRAVEL, KZNWILDLIFE, PROTABASE, FAO).
3. Crop Data:
      a. Season:  Flowering occurs from July to November in South Africa and September to November in Zimbabwe.  Fruit ripens from May to July, September to May, or November to March, depending on the area in Africa (PLANTZAFRICA, ZIMBABWEFLORA).
      b. Cultivation:  Trees grow in small colonies in the bushveld (subtropical dry open woodland of South Africa), African savannah, arid regions, dry forest, sand forest, coastal forest, thorn thicket, sandstone outcrops, along river banks, near springs, on seasonally waterlogged floodplains, and around pans.  Trees mainly grow on sandy soils or sandy- or clay-loam; trees tolerate many soil types.  Grows at elevations of sea level to 1,000 meters (3,281 feet).  Does not tolerate frost. Propagated by seed.  The fleshy part of the fruit should be removed before planting.  The seed should be covered with the same amount of soil as the seed is thick.  Germination occurs in 3 to 4 weeks.  When ripe, fruit falls to the ground with the stem attached (PLANTZAFRICA, ZIMBABWEFLORA, ECOTRAVEL, KZNWILDLIFE, FAO).
      c. Availability in the marketplace:  No specific entry.
      d. Preparation for cooking:  Fruit is consumed raw; can be used for sweets and alcoholic beverages; oil from the fruit is used for cooking (KZNWILDLIFE, PROTABASE, FAO).
      e. Nutritional aspects:  The kernel has a high fat content (FAO).

      f. Medicinal aspects:  Roots and bark are used in purgative medicine.  Roots have emetic properties.  Leaf and twig extracts have genotoxic effects, causing DNA damage.  Bark is placed in water and used as a refreshing bath.  Extracts from the tree can be used to induce vomiting (PLANTZAFRICA, ECOTRAVEL, PROTABASE).
      g. Crop Photos
4. Production in U.S.:  No data (GRIN).
5. Other commercial production regions:  Kenya, Sudan, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia, Zimbabwe, province of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa, East Africa, West Africa, Nigeria, Arabia, Swaziland.  Trees can produce 125 kilograms (276 pounds) of fruit per year.  It is estimated that there are a million trees grow in the Blue Nile province that can produce approximately 100,000 tonnes (110,231 tons) of fruit and 14,000 tonnes (15,432 tons) of oil annually (GRIN, PROTABASE, FAO).
6. Use:  Fruit, oil/fat; fruit is used to make rattles; fruit yields an oil that burns well; wood  produces charcoal, fuel wood; dry kernels burnt as torches; oil pressed from the seed kernel is used as a dressing for hides and skins and as massage oil; oil cake for animal feed; lipids, wood for handicrafts, construction and furniture, medicinal purposes, disease vector control (non-vertebrate poison), vertebrate poison (fish); elephants consume leaves; humans use the tree for magical purposes; ornamental  (GRIN, PLANTZAFRICA, PROTABASE, FAO).
7. Part(s) of plant consumed:  Fruit pulp
8. Portion analyzed/sampled:  Whole fruit
9. Classifications:
      a. Authors Class: Tropical and subtropical fruit, inedible peel
      b. EPA Crop Group (Group & Subgroup):  Miscellaneous
      c. Codex Group:  No specific entry.  General entry is 006 Assorted tropical and subtropical fruits - inedible peel.
      d. EPA Crop Definition:  None
10. References: GRIN, BAYER, PLANTZAFRICA, ZIMBABWEFLORA, ECOTRAVEL, KZNWILDLIFE, PROTABASE, FAO.
11. Production map:  No entry
12. Plant Codes:
      a. Bayer / EPPO Code:  No specific entry

                                      356
1. Mango [(Mangga, mangue, manguier, Mangobaum, Mangopalme, mangueira, manga (GRIN, MARKLE))]
      Anacardiaceae
      Mangifera indica L.
2. A long-lived, fast-growing, exotic evergreen fruit tree that reaches a height of 8 to 45 meters (26 to 148 feet).  Native to Southeast Asia, specifically the region of Northeastern India and Burma.  Relative of the cashew.  Trees have been cultivated for thousands of years.  The taproot can grow up to 6 meters (20 feet) and the lateral fibrous roots can extend beyond the canopy drip-line.  The canopy can be broad, dense, round and reach 38 meters (125 feet) in width or upright, oval and slender.  Mature, dark green leaves are large, simple, alternate, spirally arranged on the tips of branches, leathery, shiny, drooping, aromatic, lanceolate, oblong or oblong-elliptic in shape, smooth-edged, pale underneath, and 7 to 40 centimeters (3 to 16 inches) long by 2 to 10 centimeters (0.8 to 4 inches) wide.  Petioles are slender and 2.5 to 10 centimeters (1 to 4 inches) long.  Flowers are borne on large erect, showy, pyramidal, branched, red-stemmed, terminal or axillary panicles that measure 6 to 60 centimeters (2.4 to 24 inches) long.  Each panicle can contain 300 to 6,000 individual male and perfect flowers (containing both male and female reproductive organs).  Individual small flowers are green, greenish-yellow, yellow, reddish-pink, or pink in color and fragrant; each flower contains a five-lobed calyx and five petals.  Perfect flowers contain one pistil, one functional stamen and four staminodes.  Male flowers contain one functional stamen and four staminodes.  Most varieties are self-fertile, but can be cross-pollinated.  Trees may be pollinated by insects.  Fruit is a large drupe that grows solitary or in small clusters on long, stout stalks.  Individual fruit is lop-sided, round, oblong, oval, ovoid-oblong, kidney-shaped, heart-shaped, or oblate in shape and ranges from 6 to 30 centimeters (2.4 to 12 inches) long and 100 to 2,300 grams (0.2 to 5 pounds) in weight.  Fruit can contain a pronounced beak and a flower scar at the apex.  Fruit color is green to light green with blushes or combinations of yellow, orange, purple or red.  The skin is waxy, smooth, thick, leathery and inedible; skin can contain a powdery bloom.  Pulp of mature fruit is light yellow to orange in color, more or less fibrous, soft, juicy and peach-like.  Immature pulp is hard and white to light yellow in color.  Mature mangoes are sweet and mild to strong and turpentine-like in taste.  Immature mangoes are sharp, acid, and lime-like in taste.  Fruit emits a strong to mild aroma.  Each fruit contains one flat, oval or kidney-shaped longitudinally-ribbed, pale yellowish-white, woody, fibrous stone.  The starchy seed is contained within the stony endocarp.  Each seed can contain one or many embryos.  Fruit form, size, color, and quality vary.  Sap from the fruit stem can highly irritate the skin.  Trees in bloom can cause irritation in some individuals.  There are two main races of mango.  The Indian race evolved in the warm subtropical climate of India, contains monoembryonic seeds, is highly colored, and is susceptible to anthracnose.  The Indo-Chinese race evolved in the hot, humid, lowland tropical areas of Southeast Asia, contains ployembryonic seeds, is green, light green, or yellow in color, and is more resistant to anthracnose.  There are many species and varieties that are consumed on a commercial scale (PERENNIAL, JANICK, LORENZI, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, VAN WYK, BARWICK, MORTON, CRFG).
3. Crop Data:
      a. Season:  In some growing areas, new leaves are borne from late winter to early spring.  Flowering can occur during any time of the year and depends on variety, latitude, and climate.  Flowers form in the winter in Brazil, in December and January in most of India, in January to March in northern India, and in late November to March in southern Florida.  In other locations, flowering occurs in the spring.  Fruiting can occur during any time of the year and can be biennial in certain areas.  Fruit ripen from November to February in Brazil and in January, June and October in Thailand.  Fruit matures in 120 to 180 days.  Fruit production occurs in 6 to 10 years from seed and 3 to 5 years from grafts (PERENNIAL, LORENZI, BARWICK, MORTON).
      b. Cultivation:  Depending on the mango cultivar, the tree requires warm-temperate, warm subtropical or hot, humid, tropical lowlands or forests.  In Southern California, trees are grown in the foothills, away from marine influence.  Trees grow best in areas with a non-freezing cool period (8 to 15 °C (46 to 59 °F)) night/ < 20 °C (< 68 °F) day) and/or an extended dry period that lasts at least 3 months prior to flowering, hot temperatures of 30 to 33 °C (86 to 91 °F) during fruit development, optimum growing temperatures of 24 to 30 °C (75 to 86 °F), full sun, rich, well-drained deep loam soil with a pH of 5.5 to 7.5, elevations of up to 914 meters (3,000 feet), rainfall of 76 to 254 centimeters (30 to 100 inches) in June to September, and access to irrigation from flowering to harvest.  Tolerant of drought, a variety of climates, periodic and repeated flooding, and soil conditions including sands, loams, clays, limestone, and rocky soils.  The Indo-Chinese race is tolerant of excess moisture.  Mangoes are moderately freeze tolerant.  Young trees are damaged or killed at temperatures below -1.1 to -1.7 °C (29 to 30 °F); mature trees are damaged or killed at temperatures of -3.9 to -6.0 °C (21 to 25 °F).  Not tolerant of saline soil and water, and windy conditions, especially during flowering and fruit development.  The Indian race of mango is not tolerant of humidity.  Propagation is by seed, budding, marcottage, rooted cuttings, tissue culture and grafting.  Monoembryonic cultivars must be propagated vegetatively, by budding or grafting.  Seeds should be removed from the fruit when the fruit has become mature and planted.  To increase the speed of germination, kernels should be husked before planting.  Germination occurs in 8 to 14 days in warm climates and 3 weeks in cooler climates.  Before planting out into the field, the taproot of young trees should be pruned to 31 centimeters (12 inches), and plants should be set out for a week in full morning sun.  Young plants are planted in 0.6 meter (2 feet) holes during the rainy season or irrigated until established.  Tree spacing and pruning varies depending on climate, cultivar, soil type, and economics.  Generally, trees should be spaced 4 to 12 meters (13 to 39 feet) in-row and 6 to 15 meters (20 to 49 feet) between rows.  Initial tree training is required in most orchards.  Maintenance pruning should be done after harvest.  For young trees, 100 to 200 grams (3.5 to 7 ounces) of an NPK material should be applied two to four times per year.  As trees mature, rates should increase and frequency should decrease.  Trees should be irrigated from flowering to near harvest.  For commercial production, there are many techniques to induce or enhance flowering including cincturing the trunk or branches, root pruning, smudging and application of saline materials or other chemicals.  Fruit is harvested depending upon the end use of the fruit (crunchy or soft), the distance and time to market, available storage conditions, and required quarantine treatments.  Fruit is picked by hand or with a picking pole.  Fruit are mature when the fruit stem snaps easily from the tree.  Fruit to be exported are pre-cooled, washed, treated with fungicide, waxed, graded, packed, stored, and shipped.  In some areas, fruit are placed stem-end-down to drain the sap.  Fruit can be stored for 2 to 3 weeks at 8 to 21 °C (46 to 70 °F) and 85 to 90% relative humidity.  Mango is grown on a commercial scale throughout warm to cool subtropical and tropical areas of the world (PERENNIAL, JANICK, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, BARWICK, MORTON, CRFG).
      c. Availability in the marketplace:  Fruit are available in local, regional, and national markets year-round around the world, depending upon production location and cultivars available.  In tropical areas, mangoes are one of the most commonly eaten and purchased fruits in tropical countries (JANICK, CRFG).
      d. Preparation for cooking:  The pulp of ripe fruit is consumed fresh after washing and chilling.  Fruit is usually prepared by slicing off the cheeks on either side of the seed, scoring the flesh in a criss-cross pattern, flipping the skin inside out and spooning out the pulp.  Fruit may be difficult to peel.  Pulp can also be cooked, dried, canned in syrup, preserved, powdered, pureed, or frozen.  Pulp is added to beverages, cereals, custards, desserts, ice cream, sorbets, preserves, purées, yogurts, soufflés, jellies, fruit salads, savory salads, sauces, jams, chutneys and pickles; made into fruit leather.  Depending on the variety, immature/unripe/green peel fruit can be made into chutney, pickles, pie filling, jelly, sherbet, and sauces; added to salads and salsas.  Unripe mangoes can be peeled, sliced, and sundried to make a fine off-white to gray powdery spice called amchur.  This spice is reminiscent of lemon juice and is used as a souring agent in Indian, African and Southeast Asian cooking including curries, stews, dips, vegetarian dishes, sauces, soups, dhals, pickles, chutneys, marinades, stir-fries, meat, fish, and bean dishes.  Mango leaves are consumed raw in Thailand.  Seeds are ground into flour or added to pudding in India (PERENNIAL, JANICK, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, VAN WYK, MORTON).
      e. Nutritional aspects:  Fruit is a good source of vitamins A, B and C; high in anti-cancer antioxidants and phenols.  Fat from the kernel is edible and has been proposed for use as a substitute for cocoa butter in chocolate.  The peel is a source of pectin (PERENNIAL, JANICK, VAN WYK, MORTON).
      f. Medicinal aspects:  All parts of the tree have been used medicinally.  The sap (latex), flowers, seeds, and leaves are used as astringents to treat diarrhea, hemorrhages, bladder problems, fevers, hypertension, and hemorrhoids.  The bark is astringent and is used to treat rheumatism and diphtheria.  Gum from the trunk is placed on cracks on the skin and sores.  Leaves are used to alleviate coughs, chest problems, diarrhea, fever, diabetes, skin irritations, and dental problems.  Flowers are used as an aphrodisiac and mosquito repellent.  Ground seeds are used to treat scorpion stings; also used as a vermifuge and an astringent.  Some parts of the tree have antibiotic activity (JANICK, BARWICK, MORTON).
      g. Crop Photos
4. Production in U.S.:  Florida, southern California, Hawaii, Puerto Rico.  In 1995, 761 hectares (1,880 acres) was grown in south Florida and 1,012 hectares (2,500 acres) was grown in Puerto Rico.  There was minor production in Hawaii with 20 hectares (50 acres) in 1994 and 16 hectares (40 acres) in South California (MARKLE, CRANE 1996a, MONTALVO-ZAPATA 1995).
5. Other commercial production regions:  A major fruit in all tropical countries including tropical and subtropical Asia, India, Burma, Malaysia, the Andaman Islands, the East Indies, the West Indies, the Malay Archipelago, Africa, China, Thailand, Malaya, Indonesia, Australia, Egypt, the Philippines, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Mexico, Central America and South America including Brazil.  The top ten mango-producing countries include India, China, Thailand, Vietnam, Mexico, Indonesia, the Philippines, Nigeria, Pakistan, Guinea and Brazil.  India is the world's leading producer of mango.  The top five mango-exporting countries include Mexico, India, Brazil, Peru and the Philippines.  The top five mango importing countries include the U.S., the Netherlands, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Brangladesh.  Approximately 3.7 million hectares (9.2 million acres) of mangos are produced worldwide.  In 2004, mango production was approximately 26.6 million tonnes (29.3 million tons).  Average yields are 2 to 30 tonnes (2.2 to 33 tons) per hectare.  Productive orchards can produce 22 to 25 tonnes (24.2 to 28 tons) per hectare.  Mango is ranked 7[th] in worldwide fruit production (GRIN, KALRA, JANICK, LORENZI, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, MORTON, CRFG).
6. Use:  Fruit, ornamental, medicinal purposes, shade tree, vertebrate poison (mammals); bark and leaves produce a yellow dye; honey plant; kernels can be used as animal feed; seed fat is used for soap-making; wood is used for building; bark is used for tanning hides; gum from the trunk is used to mend crockery and is sold as a substitute for gum Arabic (GRIN, MARKLE, BARWICK).
7. Part(s) of plant consumed:  Pulp only, skin contains allergens.
8. Portion analyzed/sampled:  Whole fruit with stem and pit removed and discarded.
9. Classifications:
      a. Authors Class:  Tropical and subtropical fruit, inedible peel
      b. EPA Crop Group (Group & Subgroup):  Miscellaneous
      c. Codex Group:  006 (FI 0345) Assorted tropical and subtropical fruits-inedible peel
      d. EPA Crop Definition:  Papaya = mango; Avocado = mango
10. References: GRIN, BAYER, MARKLE, CRANE 1996a, MONTALVO-ZAPATA 1995, KALRA, PERENNIAL, JANICK, LORENZI, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, VAN WYK, BARWICK, MORTON, CRFG.
11. Production map:  EPA Crop Production Region 13 with some production in Region 10.
12. Plant Codes:
      a. Bayer / EPPO Code: MNGIN (M. indica), MNGOD (M. odorata GRIFF)

1. Mango, Horse  [(bachang mango, gray mango (GRIN))]
      Anacardiaceae
      Mangifera foetida Lour.
2. A tree that grows to a height of 25 to 40 meters (82 to 131 feet).  Trees rarely reach 40 meters (131 feet) tall.  Native to southeast Asia.  The trunk is straight, long, and can reach a diameter of 100 centimeters (39 inches).  Bark is light brown, dark greyish brown, grey, or whitish grey in color and contains longitudinal shallow fissures with broad flat ridges.  Inner bark is red and has a strong turpentine smell.  Wood is cream in color and soft.  The tree exudes a milky white, sticky sap that turns black on exposure.  Branches are massive.  The crown is dense and globose to ovoid-globose in shape.  Dark green leaves are scattered to subaggregate, stiff, smooth, leathery, oblong, elliptic-oblong, oblanceolate, or broadly elliptic in shape, blunt or notched at the tip, acute at the base, and 12 to 40 centimeters (5 to 16 inches) long by 9 to 15 centimeters (3.5 to 6 inches) wide.  The petiole is stout, swollen at the base, and 1.5 to 10 centimeters (0.6 to 4 inches) long.  Deep reddish-pink panicles are sub-terminal, pyramidal, upright, densely flowered, and 10 to 40 centimeters (4 to 16 inches) long.  Peduncles are stout and red.  Individual reddish-pink flowers emit a turpentine odor when crushed, contain red to greenish yellow bracts that are lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate in shape and 0.4 centimeter (0.2 inch) long, a black-purple flower stalk that is short and 0.05 to 1.1 centimeter (0.02 to 0.4 inch) long, five sepals that are erect, thick, red, ovate, ovate-lanceolate or obovate-lanceolate in shape, and 0.3 to 0.5 centimeters (0.1 to 0.2 inch) long, five petals that are erect, reflexed, narrowly lanceolate in shape, pale reddish-pink at the base, pale yellow at the tip, and 0.6 to 0.9 centimeters (0.2 to 0.4 inch) x 0.15 to 0.25 centimeters (0.06 to 0.1 inch) and one to five 0.5 to 0.8 centimeter (0.2 to 0.3 inch) long violet stamens.  Yellowish green, dark olive green or brownish fruit is subglobose, ovoid-oblong, or globose in shape and 9 to 16 centimeters (3.5 to 6 inches) long by 7 to 12 centimeters (3 to 5 inches) wide.  The skin is thick, smooth, glossy to dull, covered with dirty spots and brown lenticels, and 0.5 centimeters (0.2 inch) thick.  Pulp is pale to dark yellow or orange in color, fibrous and juicy.  The flavor is sweet to turpentine-like.  Fruit emits a strong unpleasant turpentine odor.  Fruit contains one stone that is fibrous and 6 x 5 x 3 centimeters (2.4 x 2 x 1.2 inches).  Similar in appearance to the mango.  There are different forms of this mango that vary in fruit size, shape and color.  One of the best known and most commonly cultivated mango species (PERENNIAL, KOSTERMANS, AGROFORESTRY, FAO, TRADE WINDS).
3. Crop Data:
      a. Season:  Flowering takes place from May to August in Sarawak.  In East Kalimantan flowering occurs April to September.  Fruit ripening occurs August to November in Sarawak and August to January in East Kalimantan.  Fruit are harvested during the rainy season from October to December in West Java (AGROFORESTRY).
      b. Cultivation:  Requires hot tropical lowlands and a monsoon climate.  Grown in wet, evergreen lowland forests and primary lowland forests in the wet tropics at elevations of 1,000 to 1,500 meters (3,281 to 4,921 feet).  Less tolerant of cold temperatures compared to mango.  Does not tolerate a pronounced dry season.  Propagated by seed, budding and grafting.  Seedlings require a large amount of moisture and light shade.  Plants should be planted 14 to 16 meters (46 to 52 feet) apart.  Grown wild and cultivated (PERENNIAL, KOSTERMANS, AGROFORESTRY).
      c. Availability in the marketplace:  Fruit are sold in local markets in Southeast Asia (AGROFORESTRY).
      d. Preparation for cooking:  Pulp is most commonly used in curries, chutneys, preserves, and sambal.  Pulp can be consumed fresh in fruit cocktails.  Mature fruit should be peeled thickly to prevent contact with the irritating sap which produces blisters on the lips and tongue.  The irritating juice is found throughout immature fruit and must be washed with salt water.  Sometimes unripe fruit is used to make pickles and is placed in vegetable salads.  Seeds are ground up and used in dishes   (PERENNIAL, KOSTERMANS, AGROFORESTRY).
      e. Nutritional aspects:  Fruit provides a source of vitamins A and C (PERENNIAL).

      f. Medicinal aspects:  Sap is used to aid ulcers and deepen tattoo scars; Leaves are used to reduce body temperature.  Seeds are used to cure fungal infections, eczema and other skin conditions (KOSTERMANS, AGROFORESTRY).
      g. Crop Photos
4. Production in U.S.:  No data (GRIN).
5. Other production regions:  Southeast Asia; Thailand, Indonesia, Sumatra, Java, Borneo, the Moluccas, Sulawesi, Malay Peninsula, Malaysia, Cambodia, Vietnam, Burma (Myanmar), Indochina, the Lesser Sunda Islands.  Widely cultivated in its area of origin (GRIN, PERENNIAL, KOSTERMANS, AGROFORESTRY, FAO).
6. Use:  Fruit, wood for construction, ornamental (GRIN, AGROFORESTRY).
7. Part(s) of plant consumed:  Fruit pulp
8. Portion analyzed/sampled:  Whole fruit
9. Classifications:
      a. Authors Class:   Tropical and subtropical fruit, inedible peel
      b. EPA Crop Group (Group & Subgroup):  Miscellaneous
      c. Codex Group:  Proposed for 006 Assorted tropical and subtropical fruits - inedible peel
      d. EPA Crop Definition: None
10. References: GRIN, BAYER, PERENNIAL, KOSTERMANS, AGROFORESTRY, FAO, TRADE WINDS.
11. Production Map:  No entry
12. Plant Codes:
      a. Bayer / EPPO Code:  MNGFO

1. Mango, Saipan [(kuwini, kuweni, manguier odorant, bembem, kuini, kweni (GRIN))]
      Anacardiaceae
      Mangifera odorata Griff.
2. Saipan mango is a medium-sized to large tree that grows to a height of 10 to 30 meters (33 to 98 feet).  Native to Malesia.  The trunk is straight and cylindrical.  Bark is grey in color, smooth when young, fissured when old, and contains clear sap which is irritating to the skin.  Branches are thick, cylindrical, smooth, dark green, and contain leaf scars.  Leaves are irregularly scattered on the branches.  Individual leaves are papery to leathery, glossy, oblong-lanceolate to lanceolate-elliptic in shape, pointed or rounded at the tip, wedge-shaped or obtuse at the base, smooth around the edges, and 12 to 35 centimeters (5 to 14 inches) long by 4 to 10 centimeters (1.6 to 4 inches) wide.  New leaves are red purple to dark wine red in color.  The petiole is swollen at the base, yellowish-green, cylindrical, and 3 to 7 centimeters (1.2 to 3 inches) long.  Reddish, yellowish or whitish flowers are in densely-flowered terminal or pyramidal panicles that are 15 to 50 centimeters (6 to 20 inches) long.  Flowers are fragrant and 0.5 to 0.7 centimeters (0.2 to 0.3 inch) in diameter.  Each flower contains 5 dark red 0.2 to 0.4 centimeter (0.08 to 0.2 inch) long ovate, oblong-ovate, obtuse, or acute, concave, smooth sepals, 5 reddish to yellowish 0.4 to 0.6 centimeter (0.16 to 0.24 inch) long by 0.12 to 0.2 centimeter (0.05 to 0.08 inch) wide, lanceolate petals, 5 to 6 stamens, one 0.5 centimeter (0.2 inch) long filament, 0.15 to 0.2 centimeter (0.06 to 0.08 inch) long staminodes, a subglobose ovary and a style.  Green to yellowish-green fruit is a drupe that is ellipsoid-oblong, round-oblique or oblate in shape, plump, and 10 to 13 centimeters (4 to 5 inches) long by 6 to 10 centimeters (2.4 to 4 inches) wide.  Fruit contains a small beak.  Skin is thick (0.3 to 0.4 centimeters or 0.1 to 0.2 inch), tough, and can be spotted with dark brown or yellow lenticels.  Skin contains acrid juice that is very acrid when the fruit is immature.  Pulp is orange-yellow, pale-orange or yellowish in color, firm, fibrous, resinous and juicy.  Each fruit contains a stone that is covered with soft fibers and measures 8 to 10 centimeters (3 to 4 inches) by 4.5 to 5 centimeters (1.8 to 2 inches) by 2.5 to 3 centimeters (1 to 1.2 inches).  The flavor is sour to sweet, with an aftertaste of turpentine.  Fruit has a strong turpentine smell (AGROFORESTRY, MORTON, KOSTERMANS).
3. Crop Data:
      a. Season:  Fruit season in West Java is from August to November.  Trees can produce two crops per year in areas with two dry seasons (AGROFORESTRY, KOSTERMANS).
      b. Cultivation:  Trees thrive in wet tropical climates with elevations below 1,000 meters (3,281 feet), and fairly heavy, equally-distributed rainfall.  Fruit is not found in the wild; grown in tropical rain forests.  In Borneo, fruit is grown in areas near coastal towns or along travel routes.  Tolerates areas with no prolonged dry periods and moderate rainfall of 120 centimeters (47 inches).  Compared to Mangifera indica, Mangifera odorata is more tolerant of humid to wet climates.  Propagation is by seed and grafting.  Trees should be planted 12 to 14 meters (39 to 46 feet) apart.  Trees are mainly grown with other tree species in village orchards or homes.  Mangifera odorata, Mangifera langenifera and Mangifera zeylanica fruit is cultivated or gathered commercially on a small scale in parts of Southeast Asia (PERENNIAL, AGROFORESTRY, KOSTERMANS).
      c. Availability in the marketplace:  Fruit is popular and has local economic significance in places where the common mango (Mangifera indica) cannot be grown (AGROFORESTRY).
      d. Preparation for cooking:  Fruit is consumed fresh after being peeled thick (due to an acrid juice).  To reduce acidity, the fruit can also be soaked in diluted lime-water before consumption.  Fruit are used to make chutney, curries, and pickles.  Young fruit are also used to make pickles.  In Java, a flour is made from the seed kernels.  This flour is used for dishes including `dodol' and `jenang pelok' (AGROFORESTRY, MORTON, KOSTERMANS).
      e. Nutritional aspects:  Fruit contains vitamin C (AGROFORESTRY).
      f. Medicinal aspects:  A leaf poultice is applied externally in the treatment of hysteria and epilepsy.  A bark poultice is applied externally in the treatment of hysterio-epilepsy (AGROFORESTRY, KOSTERMANS).
      g. Crop Photos

4. Production in U.S.:  No data.
5. Other commercial production regions:  Fruit is only cultivated; Malesia, Malay peninsula, southern Vietnam, Christmas Island, Guam Islands, Borneo, Sumatra, Java, peninsular Thialand, Indochina, South Sulawesi, the Philippines on the south coast of Mindanao, the Sulu Archipelago and neighboring islands; Southeast Asia (GRIN, AGROFORESTRY, KOSTERMANS).
6. Use:  Fruit; home garden plant; medicinal purposes, wood (GRIN, AGROFORESTRY).
7. Part(s) of plant consumed:  Pulp only, skin contains allergen.
8. Portion analyzed/sampled:  Whole fruit with stem and pit removed and discarded.
9. Classifications:
      a. Authors Class:  Tropical and subtropical fruit, inedible peel
      b. EPA Crop Group (Group & Subgroup):  Miscellaneous
      c. Codex Group:  Proposed for 006 Assorted tropical and subtropical fruits - inedible peel
      d. EPA Crop Definition:  None
10. References: GRIN, BAYER, AGROFORESTRY, MORTON, KOSTERMANS, PERENNIAL.
11. Production map:  No entry
12. Plant Codes:
      a. Bayer / EPPO Code:  MNGOD (Mangifera odorata GRIFF.)

                                      357
1. Mangosteen [(king's-fruit, mangostan, mang ji shi, mangoustanier, Mangostanbaum, Mangostane, manggis, mangostão, mangostán (GRIN))]
      Clusiaceae (alt. Guttiferae)
      Garcinia mangostana L.
2. A slow-growing, erect, evergreen tree that grows to a height of 6 to 25 meters (20 to 82 feet).  Native to Southeast Asia, specifically Malaysia and Indonesia.  Mangosteen may be a hybrid of G. hombroniana and G. malaccensis.  Bark is dark-brown or nearly black in color and flaking.  Inner bark contains yellow, gummy, bitter latex.  The crown is pyramidal to conical and densely foliaged.  Olive-green to dark green leaves are large, opposite, simple, thick, leathery, glossy, smooth, yellow-green below, oblong, ovate-oblong, or elliptical in shape, pointed at the tip, and 9 to 25 centimeters (3.5 to 10 inches) long by 4.5 to 13 centimeters (1.8 to 5 inches) wide.  New leaves are reddish in color.  Fragrant flowers are terminal, solitary or in groups of 2 to 9 on the tips of older mature shoots and more hidden branches.  Individual flowers measure 4 to 5 centimeters (1.6 to 2 inches) in diameter and contain four thick, persistent sepals in two pairs (2 outer yellowish and 2 inner reddish), four small, thick, fleshy, ovate yellow-green to red petals, a prominent 5 to 8 celled round to mushroom-shaped ovary, short stamens, a four- to eight-lobed stigma, and staminodes.  Flowers open midday.  All trees are female; therefore fruit develops parthenocarpically.  Large purple to reddish-purple fruit is a berry that is ovoid to round in shape, slightly flattened at each end, and 3.5 to 8 centimeters (1.4 to 3 inches) in diameter.  Fruit are grown on twiggy limbs.  The fruit skin is smooth, dense, bitter, leathery, soft to woody, tough, thick (0.6 to 1 centimeter or 0.2 to 0.4 inch), and contains a bitter yellowish latex and purple juice.  The calyx occurs at the stem end.  The pulp (aril) is white to cream in color, fleshy, succulent, and 4 to 8 segmented.  Flesh resembles the texture of a plum.  One or two of the larger segments contains 1 to 5 soft seeds that are ovoid-oblong in shape, slightly flattened, 2.5 centimeters (1 inch) long and 1.6 centimeters (0.6 inch) wide.  The flavor is sweet to sweet-sour, resembling a combination of grapes and strawberries (PERENNIAL, JANICK, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, BARWICK, VAN WYK, LORENZI, MORTON, ECOCROP, POPENOE).
3. Crop Data:
      a. Season:  Flowering occurs from May to August in Brazil.  Flowering can occur twice per year (spring and fall), depending on growing conditions.  Fruiting can also be irregular and yield can vary depending on the tree and season.  In India, fruiting occurs during the monsoon season from July to October and from April to June.  Fruiting occurs from November to February in Brazil.  In Sri Lanka, trees at lower elevations, fruit May through July and at higher elevations, trees fruit July through August or August through October.  In Puerto Rico, unshaded trees fruit in July through August and shaded trees fruit November through December.  Trees can bear in alternate years.  Heavy fruiting in one year can be followed by a smaller crop the next year.  Fruit matures in 150 to 180 days.  Fruit production occurs in 7 to 10 years from seed and 4 to 5 years from grafts (PERENNIAL, JANICK, LORENZI, MORTON).
      b. Cultivation:  Mangosteen is mainly cultivated and is rarely found in the wild.  Requires hot, wet, humid, tropical lowlands with deep, fertile soils (including sandy loam or laterite), full sun, and elevations of sea level to 1,500 meters (4,921 feet).  Grows as a lower canopy tree in the humid tropics where there is a short dry season of 15 to 30 days followed by an uninterrupted water supply.  Irrigation is required during dry conditions if the annual rainfall is less than 127 centimeters (50 inches).  Some trees grow along the banks of streams, lakes, ponds and canals.  Tolerant of a wide variety of soils (including poorly drained heavy soils), some waterlogging, and shade.  Not tolerant of strong winds, salt spray, drought, limestone soils, sandy alluvial soils, sandy soils low in humus, and temperatures below 5 °C (41 °F) or over 40 °C (104 °F).  Leaves and fruit are susceptible to sunburn.  Propagated by seed and grafting (top wedge grafting).  Seeds are viable for 3 to five days if dried or 3 to 5 weeks if left in the fruit.  Seeds should be planted in well-drained growing medium with high humidity and shade.  Germination occurs in 2 to 3 weeks.  Plants are transplanted when plants reach 60 centimeters (24 inches) in size.  Transplanting must be done carefully due to the long taproot and poor lateral root development.  A 40 to 80 square meter (431 to 861 square foot) area should be utilized per mangosteen tree.  60 centimeter (24 inch) trees are planted at the beginning of the rainy season and spaced 8 to 12 meters (26 to 39 feet) apart.  Young trees should be shaded for 2 to 4 years.  Then trees should be exposed to full sun.  Mangosteen trees should be interplanted with more dominant trees including durian, rambutan, and coconut.  Dead branches, suckers and inside shoots should be pruned when the tree contains no flowers, fruit or flushs of new leaves.  Cultivation occurs in Southeast Asia.  Fruit are harvested by hand or with a pole and basket every 2 to 3 days when fruit are soft, dark purple in color, and contain a peduncle.  Export fruit picked at an earlier stage when the fruit is mature and light greenish yellow with irregular pink-red spots.  Marketable fruit contains a fresh and complete green calyx, an unbroken peduncle, and translucent flesh.  Fruit should be greater than 80 grams (3 ounces) in size and free from internal latex.  Since fruit serves as a fruit fly host, harvested fruit are inspected by cutting open the fruit and inspecting the aril before the fruit is frozen whole and shipped.  Heat treatments can also be made to fruit shipments.  Fruit can be stored at 12 to 14 °C (54 to 57 °F) for 20 days (PERENNIAL, JANICK, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, MORTON).
      c. Availability in the marketplace:  Fruit can be exported and sold in local markets.  Since fruit serves as a fruit fly host, movement in international trade is limited (JANICK).
      d. Preparation for cooking:  The aril of the fruit is mostly consumed fresh.  Fruit is enjoyed by cutting through the rind and lightly pulling and twisting the fruit apart.  Fresh fruit can be added to fruit salads, ice cream, sorbets or fruit purées.  Also consumed in a partially frozen state.  Fruit are used to make sorbets, jams, and preserves.  However, preserving causes the color to darken and the unique flavor to be lost.  Fruit that are canned or made into juice lose flavor.  Immature fruit can be canned.  Seeds can be eaten fresh or roasted.  The rind can be made into a purplish jelly (PERENNIAL, JANICK, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, VAN WYK, MORTON).
      e. Nutritional aspects:  Fruit has a low vitamin A and C content, is rich in sugar and carbohydrates, has a high energy value and contains little nutritional/mineral value (PERENNIAL, JANICK, VAN WYK, ECOCROP).
      f. Medicinal aspects:  The fruit rind, dried fruit and bract are used in traditional medicine.  The rind contains the compounds xanthones, which have antioxidant properties.  The dried rind is powdered and taken to aid dysentery, diarrhea, cystitis, sexually transmitted diseases, and skin disorders.  A decoction of the leaves and bark is used to reduce fevers, diarrhea, thrush and urinary disorders (JANICK, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, MORTON).
      g. Crop Photos
4. Production in U.S.:  There are a few small plantings in Puerto Rico, South Florida, and Hawaii (5 hectares or 12 acres in 1996) (MARKLE).
5. Other commercial production regions:  Central America including Honduras, Guatemala, and Panama; South America including Brazil and Ecuador; the Caribbean; Southeast Asia including Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, China, Myanmar, the Philippines, and Indonesia; Sri Lanka, southern India, northern Australia; Madagascar; warm subtropical regions; widely cultivated in the tropics.  Mature trees can produce 200 to 2,000 fruit per tree or 4 to 8 tonnes (4.4 to 8.8 tons) per hectare.  Trees around 45 years of age can yield approximately 3,000 fruit per tree.  Very old trees do not yield as well.  The average yield in Thailand is 4.5 tonnes (5 tons) per hectare (GRIN, MARKLE, JANICK, MORTON, ECOCROP, POPENOE).
6. Use:  Fruit; seeds; medicinal purposes; pericarp can be used to tan leather and dye fabric black; wood for carpentry; yard tree; twigs are used as chewsticks (GRIN, MARKLE, JANICK, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, MORTON).
7. Part(s) of plant consumed:  The pulp is the only part consumed.
8. Portion analyzed/sampled:  Whole fruit

9. Classifications:
      a. Authors Class: Tropical and subtropical fruit, inedible peel
      b. EPA Crop Group (Group & Subgroup):  Miscellaneous
      c. Codex Group:  006 (FI 0346 and FI 4137) Assorted tropical and subtropical fruits-inedible peel
      d. EPA Crop Definition:  None
10. References: GRIN, BAYER, MARKLE, PERENNIAL, JANICK, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, BARWICK, VAN WYK, LORENZI, MORTON, ECOCROP, POPENOE.
11. Production Map:  EPA Crop Production Region 13.
12. Plant Codes:
      a. Bayer / EPPO Code:  GANMA

1. Marang
      Moraceae
      Artocarpus odoratissimus Blanco
2. An evergreen tree that reaches a height of 6 to 25 meters (20 to 82 feet).  Native to Southeast Asia, specifically the Philippines, Malaysia, and Borneo.  Fruit is similar to the jackfruit, but is generally smaller, different in shape and contains spines on the rind.  The trunk is up to 40 centimeters (16 inches) in diameter with low buttresses.  Leaves are papery, large, simple, entire to trilobed, rough on the upper surface, elliptic, oval or obovate in shape, wedge-shaped at the base, shortly pointed at the tip, and 16 to 50 centimeters (6 to 20 inches) long by 10 to 30 centimeters (4 to 12 inches) wide.  Leaf margins are smooth to scalloped.  Stipules are ovate in shape, contain yellow to red hairs, and measure 1 to 8 centimeters (0.4 to 3 inches) long.  The solitary inflorescences are unisexual and are borne terminally or in the leaf axils.  Individual trees contain both male and female flowers.  Male flowers are in ellipsoid club-shaped spikes that measure 4 to 11 centimeters (1.6 to 4 inches) by 2 to 6 centimeters (0.8 to 2 inches).  Female flowers are in globose spikes that contain short, soft hairs, simple bracts, and simple styles that measure 0.15 centimeters (0.06 inch).  Trees are pollinated by nocturnal insects.  Yellowish-brown compound fruit are borne at the ends of branches, are round, ellipsoid or oval in shape, and approximately 16 centimeters (6 inches) long and 13 centimeters (5 inches) in diameter.  Fruit range in size from 1 to 2.5 kilograms (2.2 to 5.5 pounds).  The rind is thick, fleshy, and is covered with short brittle spines and protuberances.  Immature fruit is light green in color.  Pulp is snow white in color, juicy, succulent, and separated into segments that cling to the central core.  Each segment contains an ellipsoid shaped, smooth, white seed that measures 1.5 centimeters by 0.8 centimeters (0.6 inch by 0.3 inch).  Each fruit can contain 100 to 200 seeds.  The flavor is sweet and fruity.  Strongly aromatic (PERENNIAL, JANICK, LORENZI, BOTANIX, FRUITANDNUT, NTBG).
3. Crop Data:
      a. Season:  Flowering occurs from October to November in northern Australia and September to November in Brazil.  In Hawaii, flowering and fruiting occurs year round with sufficient rainfall.  Fruit are harvested the following February in Australia and March to April in Brazil.  Fruit production occurs in 3 to 6 years from seed (PERENNIAL, JANICK, LORENZI).
      b. Cultivation:  Requires hot, wet tropical lowlands, shaded areas, rich, loamy, well-drained soils, elevations of up to 800 meters (2,625 feet), and abundant equally-distributed rainfall.  Temperature requirements are similar to the jackfruit.  In Sarawak, trees are grown at elevations of up to 1,300 meters (4,265 feet) in sandy clay soil.  In the wild, trees grow in sandy to sandy clay soils in secondary forests at elevations up to 1,000 meters (3,281 feet); can grow in some subtropical regions.  Not tolerant of frost; not as hardy as the jackfruit.  Propagation is by seed, inarching and grafting.  Seeds should be sown in sandy well-drained soil after being taken from ripe fruit and cleaned with water.  Germination occurs in approximately 1 week.  One-year-old seedlings should be planted 12 to 14 meters (39 to 46 feet) apart in the field at the beginning of the rainy season.  Pruning can be done to maintain a 3 to 5 meter (10 to 16 foot) tree.  Shoots can be thinned and branches can be cleared for harvesting access.  Irrigation is required in dry areas.  Fruit can be harvested while still hard and left to mature until soft.  Fruit harvested off of the ground has a shelf life of 2 to 3 days.  Mature undamaged fruit are stored at 10 to 12 °C (50 to 54 °F) for 2 to 3 weeks.  Fruit is mostly cultivated in the Philippines and Malaysia for local markets in neighboring countries (PERENNIAL, JANICK, BOTANIX, FRUITANDNUT, NTBG).
      c. Availability in the marketplace:  Fruit is sold whole and in pieces at local markets.  Since fruit have a short shelf life, fruit are transported rapidly to the market (JANICK).
      d. Preparation for cooking:  The aril of mature fruit is consumed fresh.  Fresh fruit are prepared by cutting open the fruit and slicing it into pieces; a dessert fruit.  Mature fruit can also be dried, preserved in simple sugar syrup or used to flavor ice cream.  Fruit can be eaten unripe (25 to 50% full size) as a vegetable.  Seeds are consumed boiled or roasted and resemble the taste of chestnuts (PERENNIAL, JANICK, LORENZI).

      e. Nutritional aspects:  Fruit provides a source of iron and vitamin C (PERENNIAL).
      f. Medicinal aspects:  No specific entry.
      g. Crop Photos
4. Production in U.S.:  Hawaii (JANICK).
5. Other production regions:  Southeast Asia including Indonesia, Borneo, Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines; Australia; Brazil; introduced into neighboring countries; grown in the Tropics.  A mature tree can produce an average of 180 fruit per year (GRIN, PERENNIAL, JANICK, LORENZI).
6. Use:  fruit, seeds, home garden plant (GRIN, FRUITANDNUT).
7. Part(s) of plant consumed:  Fruit pulp
8. Portion analyzed/sampled:  Fruit
9. Classifications:
      a. Authors Class: Tropical and subtropical fruit, inedible peel
      b. EPA Crop Group (Group & Subgroup):  Miscellaneous
      c. Codex Group:  Proposed for 006 Assorted tropical and subtropical fruit - inedible peel
      d. EPA Crop Definition:  None
10. References: GRIN, BAYER, PERENNIAL, JANICK, LORENZI, BOTANIX, FRUITANDNUT, NTBG.
11. Production Map:  EPA Crop Production Region 13.
12. Plant Codes:
      a. Bayer / EPPO Code:  ABFOD

                                      362
1. Marmalade-box [(genip, genipap, confiture de singe, génipa, caruto, genipa, huito, irayol, yagua (GRIN))]
      Rubiaceae
      Genipa americana L. [(syn:  Genipa americana var. caruto (Kunth) Schumach., Genipa caruto Kunth (GRIN))]
2. A medium-sized, semi-deciduous erect tree that grows to a height of 8 to 33 meters (26 to 108 feet).  Native to the West Indies and South America (Amazon Basin).  Fruit has been widely distributed as a cultivated fruit since pre-Columbian times.  Wood is white, tan, yellowish-white, or slightly pinkish or lavender in color with light, reddish-brown streaks; flexible, fibrous, hard, even-textured, strong, compact, and reasonably durable.  The trunk is straight, tall, slender, and may reach 30 to 80 centimeters (12 to 31 inches) in diameter.  Bark is thick, smooth, and green-greyish in color.  The canopy contains many leaves and an abundance of whorled, horizontal spreading branches.  One form of the tree contains a dense coating of soft hairs on the young branchlets and undersides of the leaves.  Dark green leaves are simple, opposite, leathery, smooth, shiny, sometimes faintly toothed, obovoid, oblong-obovate, or oblong in shape, pointed or rounded at the tip, and 10 to 35 centimeters (4 to 14 inches) long by 4 to 13 centimeters (1.6 to 5 inches) wide.  Leaves grow densely on the tips of branches.  Petioles are short and triangular.  Flowers are arranged in small cyclical subcymose inflorescences, and are solitary or in short, branched axillary or terminal groups of two or more.  Individual large, fragrant pipe-shaped flowers contain 5 white to yellowish 4 centimeter (1.6 inch) wide petals and both male and female reproductive organs.  Pollination is by large bees.  Red-brown to yellow-brown fruit is a berry that is round, elliptic, rounded oval or ovoid in shape, tapered at the stem end, 5 to 9 centimeters (2 to 3.5 inches) in diameter, 9 to 15 centimeters (3.5 to 6 inches) long, and 200 to 500 grams (7 to 18 ounces) in weight.  Immature fruit is gray in color.  Clear colored yellowish fresh juice from the immature fruit oxidizes into a dark bluish-black color.  The apex of the fruit contains remains of the stylar tube.  The skin is thin, leathery, and scurfy.  Pulp is succulent, astringent, fleshy, yellowish gray, gray or white in color, spongy to rubbery, and 1.5 centimeters (0.6 inch) thick.  The central cavity of each fruit contains as many as 480 seeds in rows enclosed in grayish-yellow mucilaginous membranes.  Individual seeds are cream, yellowish or brown in color, flattened, circular, and 0.7 by 1.25 centimeters (0.3 by 0.5 inch) long.  The flavor is sweet, acidic or sour and strong and resembles dried apples, pears, or quinces.  Musky aroma (PERENNIAL, JANICK, LORENZI, MORTON, ECOCROP, FRANCIS).
3. Crop Data:
      a. Season:  Flowering occurs in October, at the end of the dry season or in December, at the beginning of the rainy season in Amazonia.  In Brazil, flowering occurs in November or from July through December.  Flowering and fruiting occurs continuously from spring to fall in Puerto Rico.  Fruit ripen during the rainy season from November to March in Amazonia and from September to January with a peak in October and November in Haiti.  Fruiting occurs from February to March or October through June in Brazil.  There are some varieties in Brazil that bear fruit all year.  Trees begin producing fruit 6 to 8 years after the seedling stage (JANICK, LORENZI, MORTON, FRANCIS).
      b. Cultivation:  Requires hot, humid tropical lowlands, full sun, elevations of sea level to 1,500 meters (4,921 feet), deep, rich, loamy, moist, acidic soil, medium to high rainfall of 120 to 400 centimeters (47 to 157 inches) per year, and annual average temperatures of 18 to 28 °C (64 to 82 °F).  Grows in semi-deciduous rainforests in swampy areas, damp flood plains, and humid habitats.  Trees grow along clear water and sediment-rich rivers in the Amazon Basin.  Trees in some areas are adapted to dry seasons that last up to 5 months.  In these areas, trees shed leaves to prevent drought stress.  Tolerant of a seasonal dry period and a variety of fertile soil types in the humid tropics with a pH of 4.6 to 6.5.  Not tolerant of near freezing temperatures.  Propagation is by seed, patch budding, air layering and grafting.  Seeds should be sown after directly being removed from the fruit.  Germination is high (90%) and occurs within 25 to 30 days.  Seed can be stored dried and may remain viable for 3 to 4 months.  Seedlings take 9 months to reach a proper planting size of 20 to 50 centimeters (8 to 20 inches).  A 60 by 60 by 60 centimeter (24 by 24 by 24 inch) planting pit with fertilizer should be prepared for each seedling.  Seedlings should be planted in deep soils with high water-holding capacity.  Each tree should be spaced 10 to 15 meters (33 to 49 feet) apart.  Seedlings can be interplanted with annual or semi-perennial crops during the first years to provide shade.  Pruning should be done on older branches after fruiting.  Fruit usually fall from the tree when ripe and spoil a few days after harvest.  To avoid damage, fruit should be harvested from the tree before ripening fully.  The tree is currently of little economic importance due to its low quality wood and lack of use of the fruit.  Fruit is not produced commercially but is grown in small domestic orchards and home gardens (PERENNIAL, JANICK, LORENZI, MORTON, BARWICK).
      c. Availability in the marketplace:  Fruit are sold in local markets in Brazil (MORTON).
      d. Preparation for cooking:  Fruit pulp can be consumed fresh with sugar when overripe and soft to the touch.  Fruit is mostly used to make beverages including juices (like lemonade), soft drinks, wines and liquors.  Fruit juice is commonly mixed with cane alcohol to prepare `huitochado' or `jenipapada' beverages.  Fruit is also made into syrups, jellies, preserves, sherbets, ice cream, and crystallized candies.  Fruit flesh is sometimes added as a substitute for commercial pectin to aid the gelling of low-pectin fruit juices (PERENNIAL, JANICK, MORTON).
      e. Nutritional aspects:  Fruit contains concentrations of two B vitamins, riboflavin and thiamine (JANICK).
      f. Medicinal aspects:  Fruit is consumed to aid jaundice, anemia, liver problems, and remove intestinal worms.  The juice from the fruit is used as a diuretic and cold remedy.  The pulp is used as a dental anesthetic and has bactericidal and germicidal properties.  An alcoholic drink from the fruit is used to aid rheumatism.  A sweet drink made from the juice of the mesocarp of the fruit or the residual water left over from cooking the fruit is taken to cure asthma and reduce respiratory inflammation.  Bark is used as a diuretic, dental anesthetic, and cure for ulcers.  A mixture of the crushed green fruit and bark are used to aid sores and sore throats.  A decoction of the roots is used as a purgative.  Leaf juice is used as a fever reducer.  Flowers have tonic properties and are used to reduce fevers.  Gum from the trunk is used to treat eye diseases (JANICK, MORTON, BARWICK).
      g. Crop Photos
4. Production in U.S.: Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Southern Florida (MARKLE, JANICK).
5. Other production regions:  South America including northern Argentina, Colombia, Venezuela, Paraguay, Peru, Bolivia, and southeast Brazil; Central America, including Panama; Mexico; the West Indies including Cuba, Hispaniola, Guadeloupe, and Trinidad; other areas in the tropics.  Trees 15 to 20 years old can produce 400 to 600 fruits per year (GRIN, PERENNIAL, JANICK, MORTON, FRANCIS).
6. Use:  Fresh fruit; beverages; wood is used in construction, carpentry, handicrafts, and fuel; juice extracted from the immature fruit is used as a body paint; medicinal purposes; magic; ornamental; shade tree; reforestation; pulp is used as an insect repellent; bark is used to tan leather and yields a fiber for making clothing; fruit is used as fish bait; foliage is consumed by cattle; flowers yield nectar for honeybees (GRIN, MARKLE, JANICK, MORTON, BARWICK).
7. Part(s) of plant consumed:  Fruit pulp
8. Portion analyzed/sampled:  Fruit
9. Classifications:
      a. Authors Class: Tropical and subtropical fruit, inedible peel
      b. EPA Crop Group (Group & Subgroup):  Miscellaneous
      c. Codex Group:  006 (FI 0347) Assorted tropical and subtropical fruit - inedible peel
      d. EPA Crop Definition: None
10. References: GRIN, BAYER, MARKLE, PERENNIAL, JANICK, LORENZI, MORTON, ECOCROP, FRANCIS, BARWICK.
11. Production Map:  EPA Crop Production Region 13.
12. Plant Codes:
      a. Bayer / EPPO Code:  GEIAM

1. Matisia [(South American sapote, sapote, sapotillo, zapote (GRIN))]
      Malvaceae.  Also placed in:  Bombacaceae
      Matisia cordata Humb. & Bonpl.  [(syn:  Quararibea cordata (Humb. & Bonpl.) Vischer (GRIN))]
2. A large, fast-growing, erect, evergreen tree that grows to a height of 12 to 45 meters (39 to 148 feet).  Trees usually grow 12 to 15 meters (39 to 49 feet) tall in cultivation.  Native to South America.  Most roots are superficial.  There are only a few deeper, stabilizing roots.  Wood is lightweight and light-colored.  The trunk is slender, unbranched, and sometimes buttressed.  Bark is smooth, light brownish grey in color, slippery when wet, and usually covered by lichens.  Sap is yellow and gummy.  Branching is pagoda-shaped (tiered whorls of 5).  Individual branches are stiff.  Individual leaves are semi-deciduous, alternate, simple, leathery, broadly heart-shaped, and 15 to 40 centimeters (6 to 16 inches) long and wide.  Leaves are clustered in rosettes near the ends of branches.  Irregularly-shaped, pale yellow-orange, yellowish-white or rose-tinted flowers contain both male and female reproductive organs, five obovate petals measuring 2.5 to 3 centimeters (1 to 1.2 inches), 5 stamens, and one pistil.  Flowers are borne on the older branches and the trunk and can be axillary, solitary or in small groups.  Pollination occurs at night by hummingbirds, bees, wasps, and bats.  Brown to green fruit is a large berry that is round, ovoid, oblong, or elliptic in shape, 12 to 14 centimeters (5 to 5.5 inches) in diameter, and 200 to 800 grams (7 to 28 ounces) in weight.  A rounded knob occurs at the apex and a 2 to 5- lobed velvety, leathery, strongly persistent calyx occurs at the base.  The rind is thick, leathery, downy and elastic.  Pulp is bright orange to orange-yellow in color, soft, fibrous, dense, and juicy.  The flavor is sweet and reminiscent of pumpkin.  Each fruit contains 2 to 5 seeds with long fibers that measure 4 centimeters (1.6 inches) long and 2.5 centimeters (1 inch) wide.  Wild trees produce smaller fruit (PERENNIAL, JANICK, LORENZI, MORTON, FRUITANDNUT).
3. Crop Data:
      a. Season:  Flowering occurs from January to February in Florida, and August to November in the western Amazon of Brazil.  Fruit mature in November in Florida and from February to May in the Western Amazon of Brazil.  Fruit mature in 270 to 300 days.  Fruit production occurs in 6 to 8 years from seed (PERENNIAL, JANICK).
      b. Cultivation:  Requires hot, humid, tropical or subtropical lowlands, lowland rainforests, seasonally flooded forests, or dry land forests, deep, fertile, well-drained, non-flooding clay soil with high organic matter content, or Amazonian dark earth soils (that contain high amounts of carbonized organic matter, phosphorous, calcium, and magnesium), full sun, elevations of sea level to 2,000 meters (6,562 feet), and a favorable rainfall distribution of over 250 centimeters (98 inches).  Native to the foothills of the Andes in the region between the Amazon tropical rainforest and the sub-montane humid forest in Colombia, Ecuador and Peru.  Also grows throughout lowland rainforests and adjacent areas of Brazil, around the mouth of the Javari River, in the Cauca and Magdalena River valleys of Colombia, and near the sea in Colombia.  Tolerates cultivation on the slopes of the Andes and dry, oolitic limestone.  Does not tolerate near freezing temperatures, high winds, dry periods, or prolonged high water tables.  Propagation is by seed, stem cuttings, side veneer grafting, and top cleft grafting.  Seeds must be planted immediately after being removed from the fruit.  Trees should be spaced 8 to 10 meters (26 to 33 feet) apart.  Fruit are harvested when the calyx contracts slightly and leaves a light-colored ring around the edge of the calyx.  Fruit are harvested with a knife or long cutting-pole.  Fruit do not fall from the tree, but remain on the tree until rotting occurs.  Fruit ship well and can obtain a high price at the market.  Not a widely cultivated crop due to alternate bearing, and the lack of high-quality varieties.  Indigenous and peasant communities plant the tree in home gardens and orchards and consume the fruit.  A good alternative crop (PERENNIAL, JANICK, LORENZI, MORTON, FRUITANDNUT).
      c. Availability in the marketplace:  Fruit is used as a source of family income.  During harvest season, fruit are sold in the markets of Antioquia, Buenaventura, Cali and Bogotá in Colombia, Puerto Viejo in Ecuador, Tefé, São Paulo de Olivença, Tabatinga, Benjamin Constant and Atalaia do Norte in Brazil and Iquitos in Peru (JANICK).
      d. Preparation for cooking:  Pulp is consumed fresh out of hand.  Fruit is used most in desserts but can also be made into juice (PERENNIAL, JANICK).
      e. Nutritional aspects:  The fruit has low nutritional value, but the carotene content and fiber is high (JANICK, CAPETRIB).
      f. Medicinal aspects:  No specific entry.
      g. Crop Photos
4. Production in U.S.:  Florida (PERENNIAL).
5. Other production regions:  Costa Rica, Panama; South America including the foothills of the Andes, the Amazon region, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil and Southwestern Venezuela; Australia; a mature tree can produce 300 to 3,000 fruit.  Trees can produce yields of 100 tonnes (110 tons) per hectare per year (GRIN, JANICK).
6. Use:  Fruit; home gardens; wood is used in construction (GRIN, JANICK).
7. Part(s) of plant consumed:  Fruit pulp
8. Portion analyzed/sampled:  Fruit
9. Classifications:
      a. Authors Class: Tropical and subtropical fruit, inedible peel
      b. EPA Crop Group (Group & Subgroup):  Miscellaneous
      c. Codex Group:  Proposed for 006 Assorted tropical and subtropical fruit - inedible peel
      d. EPA Crop Definition:  None
10. References: GRIN, BAYER, PERENNIAL, JANICK, LORENZI, MORTON, FRUITANDNUT, CAPETRIB.
11. Production Map:  EPA Crop Production Region 13.
12. Plant Codes:
      a. Bayer / EPPO Code:  MSJCO

1. Mesquite [(ironwood, bayarone, mesquitebaum, algaroba, prosópis, algarroba, algarrobo, cují negro (GRIN))]
      Fabaceae (alt. Leguminosae).  Also placed in: Mimosaceae
      Prosopis juliflora (Sw.) DC.  [(syn:  Mimosa juliflora Sw., Prosopis horrida Kunth, Prosopis vidaliana Náves (GRIN))]
2. A fast-growing, deciduous to evergreen thorny shrub or small tree that reaches a height of 3 to 20 meters (10 to 66 feet).  Native to Central and South America.  The tree contains a deep taproot that may reach 35 meters (115 feet) long.  The short, twisted trunk grows up to 45 centimeters (18 inches) in diameter and contains long, strong thorns.  Gum exudes from the trunk.  Bark is thick, brown, reddish or blackish in color, rough and shallowly fissured.  Branches are green-brown in color, flexible, wavy, and contain axial thorns on both sides of the nodes that measure 1 to 5 centimeters (0.4 to 2 inches) long.  The crown is thin, open flat-topped or rounded and large.  Dark green leaves are compound and contain 12 to 25 pairs of leaflets.  Leaflets are linear-oblong to oblong in shape, bipinnate, smooth to hairy, rounded, obtuse or sub-acute at the apex, rounded at the base and 0.3 to 1.6 centimeters (0.1 to 0.6 inch) long by 0.15 to 0.32 centimeters (0.06 to 0.1 inch) wide.  Leaves contain stipular spines that are short and yellow in color and one to two pairs of rachis that are almost pendulous.  Sweet-scented, small, greenish-yellow flowers are perfect, lateral to the axis, and in cylindrical spikes that measure 5 to 15 centimeters (2 to 6 inches) long.  Individual flowers contain a deeply lobate corolla measuring 0.4 to 0.5 centimeters (0.16 to 0.2 inch) long, stamens measuring 0.5 to 0.8 centimeters (0.2 to 0.3 inch) long, a tubular, hooded toothed calyx measuring 0.15 centimeter (0.06 inch) wide and 5 hairy petals measuring 0.3 centimeters (0.1 inch) wide.  Pollinated by wind and insects.  Mature brown or yellowish pods are straight, linear, cylindrical, curved and tapered to a point, or ring shaped, thick, leathery, several-seeded and constricted between the seeds, non-dehiscent and 8 to 30 centimeters (3 to 12 inches) long by 0.8 to 1.7 centimeters (0.3 to 0.7 inch) in diameter.  Immature pods are strongly compressed.  Each pod contains 10 to 30 seeds.  Individual seed is compressed, oval, obovoid, or elliptic in shape, hard, dark brown in color and 0.25 to 0.7 centimeters (0.1 to 0.3 inch) long by 0.4 to 0.5 centimeter (0.16 to 0.2 inch) wide.  Mucilaginous endosperm surrounds the embryo.  Mesquite pods are one of the earliest known foods of prehistoric man.  A weedy plant in some areas of the world.  The wood is an important barbeque fuel in the U.S. and produces a sweet smokey flavor in foods (DUKE, AGROFORESTRY, ECOCROP, PIER).
3. Crop Data:
      a. Season:  Flowering occurs twice per year in India (February to March and August to September).  Trees begin to bear fruit in 3 to 4 years (DUKE).
      b. Cultivation:  Trees grow in tropical thorn to dry through subtropical thorn to dry forest Life Zones.  Prefers dry areas including grass and shrublands, and dry forests, elevations from sea level to 2,900 meters (9,514 feet), annual rainfall of 5 to 20 centimeters (2 to 8 inches), an annual temperature of 14 to 34 °C (57 to 93 °F), protected areas from wind, and a pH of 7.  Introduced into tropical areas.  Tolerates drought, grazing, a number of soil types including heavy soil, sand, rocky hills, and saline dry flats, seasonal water logging, saline conditions, mild frost and weeds.  Propagation is by seed, root suckers, grafting and hardwood cuttings.  Germination occurs in 4 to 6 days.  Seeds germinate at a faster rate when exposed to hot water or acid.  In India, seeds are collected and sown from May to June.  Seed collected in September and October are sown in April.  Tree spacing depends on the use.  Trees for fuel wood are spaced 2 by 2 meters (6.6 by 6.6 feet).  Trees for crop production are spaced 5 by 5 to 10 meters (16 by 16 to 33 feet).  Transplants should be sown during the rainy season.  Root cuttings should be made when stems are 1.25 centimeters (0.5 inch) in diameter and 10.0 centimeters (4 inches) long.  For crop production, thinning and pruning are done.  Trees are harvested by hand after the fruits have fallen (DUKE, AGROFORESTRY, ECOCROP, PIER).
      c. Availability in the marketplace:  No specific entry.

      d. Preparation for cooking:  Flour products, bread, sweets, syrup, coffee, sugars, sweeteners, and gruels are made from the pods.  Pods can be fermented into mesquite wine; pods can be baked after removing the seeds, fermented and brewed into beer.  Seeds are toasted and added to coffee.  Pulverized cotyledons and embryos are made into nutritious flour (DUKE, AGROFORESTRY, FAO).
      e. Nutritional aspects:  Ripe pods contain a good amount of crude protein; rich in sugar and nitrogen.  Flour made from cotyledons and embryos is rich in protein and sugar and is consumed by diabetic people (AGROFORESTRY, FAO).
      f. Medicinal aspects:  Juice is used as a folk remedy for cancer; used as a cathartic; emetic; poison; stomachic and vulnerary; folk remedy to treat catarrh, colds, diarrhea, dysentery, excrescences, eyes, flu, head cold, hoarseness, inflammation, itch, measles, pinkeye, stomachache, sore throat, and wounds.  Extracts from the plant are antibacterial.  A syrup made from the ground pods is given to children showing weight deficiency or poor motor skills; used as an expectorant.  Tea made from the tree is used to aid digestive disturbances and skin lesions (DUKE, AGROFORESTRY).
      g. Crop Photos
4. Production in U.S.:  Hawaii, Southern U.S., Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands (GRIN, AGROFORESTRY).
5. Other production regions:  Northern and central Mexico, Central America including Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama; South America including Venezuela, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Argentina, Brazil and Peru; cultivated and naturalized in tropical Africa including Kenya, Senegal, South Africa, Uganda, Sudan, and Tanzania; Iraq, Iran, Southeast Asia including Brunei, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Laos, Malaysia, Vietnam, Myanmar, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Cambodia and Indonesia; Australia, the Indian subcontinent including India and Pakistan; the West Indies including the Dominican Republic, Trinidad, Tobago, Jamaica, the Bahamas, Cuba, Dominica, Grenada, Haiti and Barbados; Mascarenes.  2,000 kilograms per hectare (4,409 pounds) of pods are produced on unmanaged trees.  4,000 to 20,000 kilograms per hectare (8,818 to 44,092 pounds) of pods are produced in arid savannas (GRIN, DUKE, AGROFORESTRY).
6. Use:  Bee plants (pollination), source of honey, shade/shelter, erosion control, land reclamation, nitrogen fixer, soil improver, ornamental, charcoal, fuel wood, fiber used for the production of paper and hardboard; wood for furniture, fence posts, and fuel, medicinal purposes, vertebrate poison (mammals), weed, potential seed contaminant; leaves are used for forage and fodder; seeds are added to coffee; bark is rich in tannin and is used for roofing; gum forms an adhesive mucilage that is used as an emulsifying agent that is used in confectionary and mending pottery (GRIN, DUKE, AGROFORESTRY, ECOCROP).
7. Part(s) of plant consumed:  Pods and seeds
8. Portion analyzed/sampled:  Fruit
9. Classifications:
      a. Authors Class: Tropical and subtropical fruit, inedible peel
      b. EPA Crop Group (Group & Subgroup):  Miscellaneous
      c. Codex Group:  No specific entry.  General entry is 006 Assorted tropical and subtropical fruits - inedible peel.
      d. EPA Crop Definition:  None
10. References: GRIN, BAYER, DUKE, AGROFORESTRY, ECOCROP, PIER, FAO.
11. Production Map:  EPA Crop Production Region 13.
12. Plant Codes:
      a. Bayer / EPPO Code:  PRCJU

1. Mongongo [mangetti, manketti, mogongo, mugongo, mungomo, omunkhete (GRIN)]
      Euphorbiaceae
      Schinziophyton rautanenii (Schinz) Radcl.-Sm [(syn: Ricinodendron rautanenii Schinz (GRIN))]
2. Mongongo is a large 15-20 meter (49-66 ft) tree native to dry upland areas of southern Africa, particularly around the Kalahari.  It is dioecious, with palmately divided alternate leaves bearing 5-7 lance-shaped leaflets on a 15 cm (6 inch) long, hairy petiole.  The small, white to yellow flowers are borne in loose, slender sprays.  The bark is light grey to pale golden brown, and the light, yellowish wood is very useful for making boats, packing crates, and children's toys.  However, this species is primarily valued for its fruit and, particularly, for the nut inside.  The fruits are oval and about 3.5 x 2.5 cm (1.4 x 1 in).  Fruit drop from the tree while still green and ripen on the ground.  This species is highly productive and one female tree has been known to produce up to 950 fruits in a year.  The fruit has a fuzzy, inedible peel and a thin layer of sweet, edible pulp surrounding the large, hard pit.  Inside the pit is a soft inner shell and an edible kernel (1.2 g/0.04 oz) that is valued both for food and oil.  The oil is used both for culinary purposes and as a skin cleanser and moisturizer.  This is one of the most consumed nuts in Africa and in some areas, such as among the Bantu people or the Kung San Bushmen, it is considered a staple food.  The fruit and kernels can both be stored for extended periods of time and remain edible (WIKIPEDIA, BLUEPLANETBIOMES, PURDUE, NATURAL FOOD HUB, FLORA OF MOZAMBIQUE).
3. Crop Data:
      a. Season, harvest:  March to May (WIKIPEDIA).
      b. Cultivation:  This species does not appear to be commercially cultivated; fruits are gathered from the wild.  Prefers hot, dry climates with little rainfall and does well in sandy soil.  Highly drought-tolerant.  Mainly grows on hills or sand dunes in and around the Kalahari.  It often forms large stands (NATURAL FOOD HUB, FLORA OF MOZAMBIQUE, PURDUE).
      c. Availability in the marketplace: The nuts are difficult to obtain outside of the tree's native range. The oil can be sometimes purchased in specialty shops or over the internet.
      d. Preparation for cooking: The fruit is often boiled fresh or dried and boiled to remove the tough skin.  The flesh is then eaten or made into an apple-sauce like concoction.  Some bushmen remove the flesh from the fresh fruit and dry it for later consumption.  The shell around the kernel is extremely hard and to get to the nutritious nut, the pit must be roasted and dried for a long time, usually by burying in hot sand near a fire until it can be cracked open. Alternatively, some people collect the pits from elephant dung as elephants love the sweet fruit.  The trip through the digestive tract leaves the pit weak enough to be cracked open with a rock. The nutmeat is eaten whole, or pounded and added as an ingredient to various other dishes (WIKIPEDIA, NATURAL FOOD HUB, BLUEPLANETBIOMES).
      e. Nutritional aspects: Extremely nutritious.  Contains large amounts of polyunsaturated fats, protein, and vitamin E (NATURAL FOOD HUB).
      f. Medicinal aspects: No specific entry.
      g. Crop Photos
4. Production in U.S.:  No data (GRIN).
5. Other production regions:  Southern Tanzania, southern DRC, Angola, Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and northern South Africa (FLORA OF MOZAMBIQUE).
6. Use: Timber, fruit, nut, edible oil, cosmetic oil (NATURAL FOOD HUB, WIKIPEDIA)
7. Part(s) of plant consumed: Flesh of fruit and kernel of pit.
8. Portion analyzed/sampled: Flesh of fruit and kernel of pit.

9. Classifications:
      a. Authors Class: Tree Nuts and Tropical and subtropical fruit, inedible peel
      b. EPA Crop Group (Group & Subgroup):  Crop Group 14: Tree Nuts;  and Assorted tropical and subtropical fruit - inedible peel
      c. Codex Group:  No specific entry.  General entry is 006 Assorted tropical and subtropical fruits - inedible peel.
      d. EPA Crop Definition:  None
10. References: GRIN, BAYER, WIKIPEDIA, BLUEPLANETBIOMES, PURDUE, NATURAL FOOD HUB, FLORA OF MOZAMBIQUE.
11. Production Map:  No entry.
12. Plant Codes:
      a. Bayer Code: No specific entry.

1. Monkey-bread-tree [(baobab, dead-rat-tree, calebassier du Sénégal, pain de singe, Affenbrotbaum, imbondeiro, baobá (GRIN))]
      Malvaceae.  Also placed in:  Bombacaceae
      Adansonia digitata L.
2. A large, deciduous tree that grows to a height of 10 to 30 meters (33 to 98 feet).  Native to Africa.  The tree appears as if it was planted upside down.  The tree contains a thick taproot and thick lateral roots that end in clusters of tubers.  The trunk is swollen in appearance, bottle-shaped, cylindrical, short, wide, and 3 to 30 meters (10 to 98 feet) in diameter.  With age, the trunk decays and becomes hollow at the center.  This creates a storage cavity for water that can hold as much as 4,500 liters (1,189 gallons).  Bark is soft, smooth to folded, fibrous, thick, pock-marked, 5 to 10 centimeters (2 to 4 inches) thick, and reddish-brown, greyish-brown, or purplish-grey in color; bark can regenerate after it is stripped and is fire resistant.  Branches are spindly to thick, short, root-like, and small in number.  The canopy is round.  Leaves are deciduous, compound, alternate, and three- to nine-foliate.  Dark green leaflets are oblong, ovate, elliptic or obovate-elliptic in shape, pointed at the apex, hairy, and 5 to 15 by 3 to 7 centimeters (2 to 6 by 1 to 3 inches) in size.  Lower leaflets are smaller than terminal leaflets.  Each leaf can contain 5 leaflets when mature.  The petiole is up to 12 centimeters (5 inches) long.  Rotten meat-scented flowers are large, pendulous, waxy, white, bisexual, solitary, and up to 20 centimeters (8 inches) in diameter.  Flowers mainly occur on stalks in the leaf axils.  Individual flowers contain floral parts that occur in fives, a deeply lobed calyx with white, silky hairs, many stamens attached to a large central column, an ovary with five to ten chambers, and large, crinkly, spreading petals.  Flowers open during the late afternoon.  Pollinated by bats, flies and moths.  Large brown fruit is solitary, oblong, globose, ovoid, or irregular in shape, pointed to obtuse at the apex, and 7.5 to 54 centimeters (3 to 21 inches) long by 7.5 to 20 centimeters (3 to 8 inches) wide.  The fruit shell is hard, woody, covered with velvety yellowish hairs, and 0.8 to 1 centimeter (0.3 to 0.4 inch) thick.  Pulp is white in color, dry, powdery, and mealy.  The flavor is sour.  Each fruit contains approximately 100 angular, woody, smooth, dark brown to reddish-black kidney-shaped seeds that measure 1 to 1.3 by 0.8 to 1 by 0.4 to 0.5 centimeters (0.4 to 0.5 by 0.3 to 0.4 by 0.16 to 0.2 inch).  Trees can live up to 4,000 years.  An important crop in Africa (PERENNIAL, JANICK, VAN WYK, BARWICK, PLANTZAFRICA, ECOCROP, GRUENWALD).
3. Crop Data:
      a. Season:  Flowering occurs May to June in western Africa, October to December in southern Africa, and January to March in Sudan.  Flowering can occur during any time of the year, except the dry season.  New leaves emerge during the rainy season in the spring and are harvested from October to November in some areas of Africa.  Fruit matures in 5 to 6 months after anthesis.  In some areas of Africa, fruit are harvested from April through June.  Fruit production occurs in 8 to 10 years (PERENNIAL, JANICK, FAO).
      b. Cultivation:  Requires a hot climate, low to medium rainfall of 30 to 50 centimeters (12 to 20 inches), full sun, a high water table, well-drained sandy loam soil, and an elevation of 450 to 600 meters (1,476 to 1,969 feet).  Widely distributed south of the Sahara; occurs as a single tree or clump of trees in the woodlands of semi-arid to sub-humid tropics in the African savannah.  Also occurs in coastal woodlands, scrub, and hot, dry areas.  Tolerates areas with a prolonged dry season of 4 to 10 months split into one or two periods per year, elevations of up to 1,250 meters (4,101 feet), and many types of soils including heavy, acid, or calcareous soils.  Does not tolerate drought, water logging and frost.  The trunk can shrink during water stress.  Propagation is by seed, cuttings, and bud grafting.  Seeds can remain viable for several years.  Pretreatments such as scarifying the seed coat or subjecting the seed to acid can aid germination.  Germination occurs in 4 to 6 days if treated or 1 to 3 months if untreated.  Seedlings should be gradually exposed to full light over 4 to 7 days and then transplanted into the field after 3 months at the beginning of the rainy season.  Trees should be planted 20 to 30 meters (66 to 98 feet) apart.  Cultivated and wild-harvested in rural areas.  Fruit is harvested during the late rainy season.  Pegs are driven deep into the trunk to form a ladder and fruit are obtained by climbing the tree.  Fruit are also harvested by knocking down the fruit with throwing sticks or waiting for the fruit to fall from the tree.  Leaves are harvested with a sickle at the start of the rainy season and consumed fresh or are dried and stored (PERENNIAL, JANICK, VAN WYK, BARWICK, WICKENS, FAO).
      c. Availability in the marketplace: Sold in the herb and spice markets of Cairo since 2500 BC.  Fruit is sold in African markets in different parts of Africa during different times of the year.  Fruit juice is important in rural areas in Malawi where there are high levels of deforestation (alternative to charcoal dealing).  In East Africa, seeds are exported to several Arab states in the Middle East.  Products made from the tree fiber including cloth and handbags are sold along roadside markets.  An important tree in the local African economies.  Imported to various countries and sold as an ingredient in health foods (JANICK, VAN WYK, WICKENS, GRUENWALD).
      d. Preparation for cooking:  Pulp is consumed fresh or dried; used as a flavoring or mixed with other ingredients.  Pulp is added to gruels after cooking and cooling.  Ground dry pulp is mixed with milk or water and is made into a refreshing drink that has a lemonade-flavor.  Seeds are roasted and consumed as a snack, roasted as a coffee substitute, soaked and fermented, or dried and ground into a powder for a thickening agent in soups, or as a flavoring agent.  In Namibia, dry seeds are used as edible nuts.  In the Middle East, seeds are used as a relish (like groundnuts).  Oil from the seeds is used in cooking.  Leaves are consumed as a fresh vegetable in west Africa.  Leaves are also cut, dried, powdered, and used in cooking during the dry season.  Dried leaves are mainly used as a thickening and flavoring agent in sauces, soups, and cereals.  The pith or seeds are used as a substitute for cream of tartar in baking, to curdle milk and to smoke fish.  Sap, bark and roots of seedlings are consumed as a famine food.  Flowers are consumed raw or used to flavor drinks (PERENNIAL, JANICK, WICKENS, PLANTZAFRICA).
      e. Nutritional aspects:  Pulp is rich in vitamin C, calcium, phosphorus, potassium and citric and tartaric acids.  Seeds are nutritious and contain a high energy value and large quantities of protein, fat, and carbohydrates.  Seeds also contain a high amount of potassium bitartrate and tartaric acid.  Leaves are high in vitamin C, sugars, potassium tartrate, and calcium.  Flowers are high in protein (JANICK, VAN WYK, FAO, PLANTZAFRICA, GRUENWALD).
      f. Medicinal aspects:  Folk medicines are made from the bark, leaves and fruit pulp; used as a fever reducer, anti-asthmatic, anti-histamine and anti-tension medicine.  Fruit pulp and powdered seeds are used to cure dysentery, and fevers.  Bark, fruit pulp, and seeds contain an antidote to Strophanthus poisoning.  Powdered bark or roots mixed with porridge is used to cure malaria.  Pulp mixed with honey is used to treat coughs.  Leaves are used to cure diarrhea, fever, inflammation, kidney diseases, blood disorders, and asthma.  Humans chew on the spongy parts of the bark during water scarcity (JANICK).
      g. Crop Photos
4. Production in U.S.:  No data (GRIN).
5. Other production regions:  Cape Verde, east and northeast tropical Africa, west and west-central tropical Africa, south tropical Africa, southern Africa, Madagascar, Oman, Egypt, Yemen, India, Sri Lanka; Java; Southeast Asia, Taiwan, the Caribbean, South America; Australia; widely naturalized in the tropics (GRIN, PERENNIAL, JANICK, WICKENS).
6. Use:  Ornamental, beverage base, fruit, seeds; the hard fruit shell is used to make pots or is burnt as fuel for cooking.  Ash of the fruit shell is used as salt or is pounded in sniff tobacco mortar to give tobacco a better taste.  Inner bark fiber is used to make rope, cloth, mats, handbags, hats, baskets, nets, snares and fishing lines.  Red dye is made from the roots; soap and glue are made from the tree; wood is used to make canoes and rafts.  Seeds are used to make necklaces in Namibia; medicinal purposes; pith is used as a baking aid for food; parts of the bark are chewed during water scarcity.  The tree is a good honey source.  Hollow trunks and branches are used for beekeeping; leaves are used as fodder for animals; folklore; sap is consumed by humans (GRIN, JANICK, VAN WYK, BARWICK, WICKENS).
7. Part(s) of plant consumed:  Fruit pulp
8. Portion analyzed/sampled:  Fruit

9. Classifications:
      a. Authors Class: Tropical and subtropical fruit, inedible peel
      b. EPA Crop Group (Group & Subgroup): Miscellaneous
      c. Codex Group:  No specific entry.  General entry is 006 Assorted tropical and subtropical fruits - inedible peel.
      d. EPA Crop Definition: None
10. References: GRIN, BAYER, PERENNIAL, JANICK, VAN WYK, BARWICK, PLANTZAFRICA, ECOCROP, GRUENWALD, FAO, WICKENS.
11. Production Map:  No entry
12. Plant Codes:
      a. Bayer / EPPO Code:  AADDI
                                      387

1. Monstera [(Split-leaf philodendron, Fruit-salad plant, Window leaf, cut-leaf-philodendron, Mexican-breadfruit, Swiss-cheese-plant, cériman, Philodendron, banana-de-macaco, banana-do-brejo, banana-do-mato, harpón, piñanona monstera (GRIN, MARKLE))]
      Araceae
      Monstera deliciosa Liebm.
2. A large, fast-growing, stout, herbaceous vine that grows up to 24 meters (79 feet) long.  Native to Mexico and Central America including Guatemala, Costa Rica and Panama.  Closely related to the Philodendron.  The vine can spread over the ground, forming mats and can climb trees.  Green stems are cylindrical, heavy, 6.25 to 7.5 centimeters (2.5 to 3 inches) thick, rough with leaf scars, and rarely branched.  Numerous tough, fleshy, corky aerial roots are produced at the nodes.  Dark green leaves are oval in shape, heart-shaped at the base, leathery to papery, alternate, smooth, large, deeply cut into 23 centimeter (9 inch) strips around the margins, perforated on each side of the midrib with oblong to elliptic holes of various sizes, and 40 to 100 centimeters (16 to 39 inches) long by 80 centimeters (31.5 inches) wide; leaves can reach up to 1 meter (3 feet) in diameter.  Young leaves are heart-shaped, and do not contain holes.  Petioles are stiff, erect, flattened and up to 105 centimeters (41 inches) long.  Multiple inflorescences on tough cylindrical stalks are borne in groups in the leaf axils.  Each inflorescence contains a cream to tan spadix that is surrounded by a waxy white to cream-colored spathe with a pointed apex.  Flowers resemble calla lilies.  The spadix develops into the fruit.  Individual inconspicuous flowers are sessile, and contain two-carpellate and two-locular gynoecia.  Cross fertilization is required for fertilization.  Yellowish-green compound fruit is solitary, cylindrical in shape, corn on the cob-like or pine cone-like in appearance, and 15 to 30 centimeters (6 to 12 inches) long by 5 to 8 centimeters (2 to 3 inches) wide.  The rind is thick, hard, and made up of hexagonal scales that cover the individual segments.  Each segment contains pale yellow to ivory pulp that is juicy and can contain irritating crystals that are unpleasant in the mouth.  Between each segment there is a thin, black membrane.  Each segment is an individual fruit (berry) that measure 1 centimeter (0.4 inch) long by 0.5 to 0.6 centimeters (0.2 to 0.24 inch) in diameter.  When ripe, the small angular "scale" of each individual fruit drops off to reveal the edible fruit.  A pale green, pea-size seed can occur in some of the segments.   The flavor is sweet and reminiscent of a combination of pineapple, banana, and mango with sweet, coconut overtones.  Some believe the taste resembles piña colada.  Aromatic (PERENNIAL, JANICK, VAN WYK, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, LORENZI, MORTON, GILMAN).
3. Crop Data:
      a. Season:  Flowering occurs throughout the year and is most prominent in the spring and summer.  Fruit matures in 90 to 120 days.  Flowering and fruiting can overlap, since it requires 12 to 14 months from the opening of the inflorescence to fruit maturity.  Fruit ripening usually occurs during the summer and fall.  Fruit production occurs in 6 to 8 years from seed and 3 to 6 years from cuttings.  Suckers can produce fruit in 2 to 4 years (PERENNIAL, JANICK, LORENZI, MORTON).
      b. Cultivation:  A tropical species that requires hot, humid, wet tropical lowlands and forests, fertile, well-drained rich loam soil, a yearly rainfall above 100 centimeters (39 inches), semi-shade, and elevations under 600 meters (1,969 feet).  Native to the wet forests of southern Mexico, Guatemala, Costa Rica, and Panama.  Grows under the shade of large trees.  Grown as an indoor plant in subtropical conditions.  Tolerates almost any well-drained, rich soil including limestone.  Does not tolerate saline conditions and frost.  Propagation is by seed, tissue culture, and cuttings.  Cuttings should be 15 to 30 centimeters (6 to 12 inches) long with two nodes and mature leaves.  Suckers can also be used.  Seeds should be sown as soon as possible after removal from the fruit.  Plants can be transplanted near tree trunks or walls.  For fruit cultivation purposes, vines are usually grown on the ground and spaced 91 to 152 centimeters (36 to 60 inches) apart.  Fruit are not usually harvested until the fruit becomes ripe.  Ripening is indicated by a fruity smell and small green "scales" dropping off or slightly separating at the base.  Fruit are harvested with at least 2.5 centimeters (1 inch) of stem attached.  Fruit kept at room temperature will ripen in 5 to 6 days.  Ripe fruit can be kept in a refrigerator for one week.  Frequently cultivated as an ornamental.  Often cultivated for fruit production in California, Florida and Australia (PERENNIAL, JANICK, VAN WYK, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, LORENZI, MORTON, GILMAN).
      c. Availability in the marketplace:  Fruit is found for sale at roadside markets in Southern Florida.  Shipped from Florida to gourmet grocers in New York and Philadelphia.  Marketed in Queensland, Australia (JANICK, MORTON).
      d. Preparation for cooking:  Ripe pulp is consumed fresh, served as a dessert with cream in fruit salads or ice creams, added to purées, or made into jellies, preserves, and jam.  Fruit can be stewed with sugar and lime juice or strained and made into a drink.  Fruit should only be consumed when the rind has loosened the entire length of the fruit (PERENNIAL, JANICK, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, MORTON).
      e. Nutritional aspects:  Unripe fruit pulp contains oxalic acid that may cause throat irritation, hives, allergic reactions, diarrhea or intestinal gases if consumed.  Pulp is rich in potassium and vitamin C (JANICK, VAN WYK).
      f. Medicinal aspects:  An infusion of the roots and leaves are taken to treat arthritis.  A preparation of the roots is used to cure snake bites (JANICK).
      g. Crop Photos
4. Production in U.S.:  Hawaii, California, South Florida (MARKLE, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC).
5. Other commercial production regions:  Mexico; tropical South America including Brazil; Central America including Guatemala, Costa Rica and Panama; Portugal, Algeria; Australia; widely cultivated in the tropics (GRIN, MARKLE, PERENNIAL, JANICK, VAN WYK, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, LORENZI).
6. Use:  Pulp is eaten fresh or made into beverages and preserves; also grown as an ornamental for the outdoors and indoors; vertebrate poison (mammals); aerial roots are used as ropes and made into baskets (GRIN, MARKLE, JANICK).
7. Part(s) of plant consumed:  Pulp only.  Many part of this plant are toxic due to the high concentration of oxalic acid.  The green thick, hard rind or scales and core of the fruit are discarded.
8. Portion analyzed/sampled:  Whole fruit
9. Classifications:
      a. Authors Class: Tropical and subtropical fruit, inedible peel
      b. EPA Crop Group (Group & Subgroup):  Miscellaneous
      c. Codex Group:  Proposed for 006 Assorted tropical and subtropical fruit - inedible peel
      d. EPA Crop Definition:  None
10. References: GRIN, MARKLE, BAYER, PERENNIAL, JANICK, VAN WYK, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, LORENZI, MORTON, GILMAN.
11. Production Map:  EPA Crop Production Region 3, 10 and 13.
12. Plant Codes:
      a. Bayer / EPPO Code:  MOSDE

1. Muriti [(tree-of-life, Morichepalme, Yurumabrot, ite palm, moriche, aguaje (GRIN))]
      Arecaceae (alt. Palmae)
      Mauritia flexuosa L. f.  [(syn: Mauritia minor Burret, Mauritia setigera Griseb. & H. Wendl., Mauritia vinifera Mart. (GRIN))]
2. A robust, solitary-stemmed palm that grows to a height of 4 to 40 meters (13 to 131 feet).  Native to northeastern South America.  Trees form aerial roots in flooded soils.  There are visible roots at the base of the trunk.  The trunk is 23 to 80 centimeters (9 to 31 inches) in diameter.  The tree does not contain a palm heart.  Each tree contains 8 to 20 leaves that are concurrent, fan-shaped and form a large, rounded crown.  Individual leaves consist of a 2.5 meter (8 foot) long blade that is divided into several hundred segments.  The petiole can reach up to 6 meters (20 feet) long.  Many dead leaves hang down below the crown.  Inflorescences are borne from the axils of the leaves and hang down.  Inflorescences contain 20 to 46 rachises.  Each flower stem is approximately 2 meters (7 feet) long and contains many conspicuous bracts.  Flower branches can contain several dozen flowers.  Male flowers are catkin-like and in pairs on the branches.  Female flowers are shorter, thicker, and solitary on the branches.  Male and female flowers occur on different trees.  Yellow, brownish-red or dark red fruit is spherical to ellipsoidal in shape, 4 to 5 centimeters (1.6 to 2 inches) in diameter and 5 to 7 centimeters (2 to 3 inches) long.  The fruit is covered with hard, shiny, brownish-red scales.  Pulp is yellow, orange, or reddish-orange in color, thin, soft and fleshy.  Each fruit can contain up to a dozen seeds.  Seeds are round, brownish in color, and contain a solid, white endosperm.   One of the most extensively utilized palms of the Amazon region (PERENNIAL, JANICK, LORENZI, ECOCROP, PACSOA).
3. Crop Data:
      a. Season:  Flowering and fruiting occur annually and irregularly throughout the year.  Flowering occurs at the end of the rainy season to the beginning of the dry season, from May to August in the central Amazons.  In Venezuela, there are two flowering seasons, one during the beginning of the rainy season (male flowers) and a second in December (female flowers).  In most areas, fruit ripen during the following rainy season.  This pattern also occurs in Colombia.  Fruiting occurs from December to June in the Amazon, February to August in Peru, and January to July in the Eastern Amazonas.  In Venezuela, fruit are found throughout the year, but are most common from August to October and from February to April.  Palms bear fruit after reaching a height of 6 meters (7 to 8 years from seed germination) (JANICK).
      b. Cultivation:  Requires hot, humid, wet, tropical lowlands or damp forests by rivers, full sun, elevations of sea level to 970 meters (3,182 feet), and poorly drained or periodically/permanently or seasonally flooded soils.  Thrives in river margins, flood plains, small groves along watercourses that wind through the non-flooded upland rainforests, and swamps.  Trees form large stands called aguajales in the major Amazonian estuaries.  Grown in the tropics and warm sub-tropics.  Trees mainly occur throughout northern South America east of the Andes.  Found from the Orinoco valley of Venezuela in the north, through French Guiana and the northern coast of the Brazilian state of Amapá, and west up to the Andean foothills in Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia.  Does not tolerate freezing temperatures or dry areas.  In areas that obtain less than 200 centimeters (79 inches) of annual rainfall and areas with dry seasons, water must be provided to the palm.  Propagation is by seed.  Germination occurs in 75 days when seed are collected 10 days before sowing.  Pretreatment in water and acid can increase the germination rate.  Seedlings should be placed in shade.  Most fruit is harvested from wild populations of palms.  Fruit are harvested by collecting the fallen fruit from the ground before fruit fully ripens; taller trees are cut down to make the harvest easier.  The fruit from this palm is a significant source of food in the native country (PERENNIAL, JANICK, LORENZI, ECOCROP, PACSOA).
      c. Availability in the marketplace:  Products from muriti are important in the local commerce of the Amazon basin.  Fruit are available in local markets from December to June in the Amazon and Colombia.  In Peru, mature fruit are abundant in the markets from February to August and there is a shortage of the fruit from September to November.  In the Eastern Amazonas, in Belém, fruit appear in markets from January to July.  In Venezuela, fruit are found in markets from August to October and from February to April (JANICK).