Tropical and Subtropical Fruii r» The Popular Series of publications of the Department of Botany is designed to give brief, non-technical accounts of various features of plant life, especially with reference to the botanical exhibits of Chicago Natural History Museum, and of the local flora of the Chicago region. BOTANICAL PUBLICATIONS, POPULAR SERIES, ISSUED TO DATE No. 1. Figs $ .10 No. 2. The Coco Palm 10 No. 3. Wheat 10 No. 4. Cacao 10 No. 5. A Fossil Flower .10 No. 6. The Cannon-ball Tree 10 No. 7. Spring Wild Flowers 25 No. 8. Spring and Early Summer Wild Flowers . . . .25 No. 9. Summer Wild Flowers 25 No. 10. Autumn Flowers and Fruits 25 No. 11. Common Trees (second edition) .25 No. 12. Poison Ivy (second edition) 15 No. 13. Sugar and Sugar-making 25 No. 14. Indian Corn .25 No. 15. Spices and Condiments (second edition) ... .25 No. 16. Fifty Common Plant Galls of the Chicago Area .25 No. 17. Common Weeds .25 No. 18. Common Mushrooms .50 No. 19. Old-Fashioned Garden Flowers 25 No. 20. House Plants 35 No. 21. Tea 25 No. 22. Coffee 25 No. 23. Carnivorous Plants and "The Man-Eating Tree" 25 No. 24. Mistletoe and Holly 25 No. 25. The Story of Food Plants 25 No. 26. Tropical and Subtropical Fruits .50 CLIFFORD C. GREGG, Director CHICAGO NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM CHICAGO, U.S.A. PEACH PALM FRUIT Tropical and Subtropical Fruits BY B. E. DAHLGREN CURATOR EMERITUS, DEPARTMENT OF BOTANY Drawings by Albert Frey CHICAGO NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM POPULAR SERIES BOTANY, NUMBER 26 1947 123995 PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA BY CHICAGO NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM PRESS Copyright 1947 by Chicago Natural History Museum CONTENTS PAGES Frontispiece Facing Title Page Introduction v-x Old World Fruits 1-28 New World Fruits 31-67 Bibliography 68-70 Index 71-72 in INTRODUCTION The larger cultivated fruits of the northern temperate zone, apples, pears, quinces, plums, peaches and their allies, are all of Old World origin, natives of Asia or of Europe where they were thoroughly established long before their introduction into North America. The same is true of most of the smaller fruits. Though some of them are represented in the American flora by identical or corresponding species, it is with few notable exceptions the Old World stock that has been propagated and now yields the bulk of our standard cultivated fruits in their many varieties. None of them are included in the present publication, which deals with the principal edible fruits of the tropics and of the bordering regions intermediate between the tropical and temperate zones. A large part of these fruits also are of Old World origin. Among their number are some that are native in or about the eastern Mediterranean or have been cultivated there since early historic time or before. Such are the fig, the date, the pomegranate, the common spiny jujube, and perhaps also the lime, identified from seeds that were found in Sumerian excavations in Mesopotamia and indicate its early presence there. Scarcely known in northern Europe and not capable of being cultivated there, these did not reach North America by the northern route, but at an early date directly by way of the Spanish peninsula, together with the oranges, lemons and limes that had been brought to the Mediter- ranean by Arab traders and become well established there before the time of the great navigators. The interesting history of the introduction of some of the citrus fruits is summarized in a recent publication by Webber and Batchelor (see p. 70). Columbus on his second voyage brought plants and seeds as well as useful animals from Spain and the Canary Islands to the New World. Included among them were the then recently- arrived sweet orange for which people of wealth were building orangeries in southern Europe, the sour orange which had been grown in Italy and Spain for several hundred years, the lemon, citron, and lime, as well as melons, figs and pomegranates, all of which were planted and tended in the settlement which Columbus established in the island of Hispaniola, now occupied by the repub- lics of Haiti and Santo Domingo. From there these fruits soon reached other islands of the larger Antilles and were also carried by Spanish explorers, settlers and missionaries to Mexico, Central America, and Panama, as well as to northern and north- western South America. The eastern part of the South American continent, which is now Brazil, was supplied by the Portuguese who, after taking possession, promptly introduced seeds and plants from many distinct parts of the world that they were the first to reach. The east coast of the North American mainland was visited early in the 16th century by Spaniards from the islands who called the southern peninsula Florida and planted citrus and other fruits that flourished and multi- plied long after the Spanish settlements had been aban- doned. Two hundred years later Bartram in his travels described wild or abandoned groves of such trees on St. John's River (1774). While these consisted mostly of Seville or sour orange, there were also trees of sweet orange, limes and rough lemon growing among the native bay trees, live oaks, and magnolias. Traces of such ancient plantings were once numerous. Their descend- ants may be seen today in occasional wild sour orange and rough lemon trees in Florida hammocks. Many of these have furnished stock used in the establishment of citrus groves which have multiplied since the peninsula became part of the United States in 1821. The grapefruit, which is considered to have originated from the pummelo brought from the East Indies to Barbados by a Captain Shaddock, was first planted in Florida by a Spanish settler in 1809. On the west coast Spanish missionaries arriving by way of Mexico planted citrus and other subtropical fruits in lower and later in southern California. Some of the earliest groves were started with trees obtained directly from the missions. With the influx of settlers after the acquisition of California by the United States in 1848, cit- rus groves multiplied. Recent large scale development of citrus culture in this country has been made possible chiefly by improved practices and standards, and a con- stantly expanding market for the fruit. Of other exotic fruits brought from Mediterranean countries the principal ones were figs and dates. Though introduced repeatedly in various places in the United States, it is only recently that they can be said to have been well established. The first figs grown in California were black mission figs brought by Franciscans from Spain or Portugal. The successful cultivation of the Smyrna fig had to await the introduction of the fig wasp and a proper understanding of the importance of the so-called capri- fication of the fig, practised for thousands of years in countries of the eastern Mediterranean. An account of the introduction, culture, varieties, and literature of the fig is found in Eisen's treatise cited in the bibliography (p. 68). The introduction of many kinds of figs from various sources, as well as of many other fruits of foreign countries, is to be credited to many private individuals and growers, as well as to government agencies. Date palms have been planted in many places in the warmer parts of this country but the successful production of dates in the southwestern states is a recent achievement following the studies of their culture and pollination, especially in the region about the Persian Gulf, and the introduction of selected varieties by Swingle and associates of the United States Department of Agriculture. Like the peach among temperate fruits, that came originally from China by the overland route to Persia before it reached Europe and became established there and finally in North America, some of the tropical fruits have had a history of extensive wanderings. The banana, the most important of all tropical fruits, made its first New World appearance in Hispaniola as did the citrus fruits somewhat earlier. Originally from the tropics of southeastern Asia, it was transported from India to Africa by Arab traders, and in the course of time, from Arabian settlements or trading posts on the east coast of that continent across the width of Africa to Guinea. Its African name banana was doubtless acquired during the traverse. From the Guinea coast it was only a step to the islands off the African continent. From the Canaries it was brought to Santo Domingo in the 16th century by a Spanish priest. From there it soon spread to other West Indian islands and to Central America which has become one of the main banana producing regions of the world. Introductions of bananas directly from the oriental tropics have of course been made since, both by Pacific and Atlantic routes. English horticulturists have always excelled in growing exotic plants under glass. The most authentic and com- plete collection of cultivated figs, comprising sixty-six varieties, was obtained from England for introduction in California. Many new plants were first described from such cultivated specimens. The strawberry guava is an interesting instance. It was obtained from an English grower who had received it from China. It was grown under glass and fruited in England, where it was described and named Cattley guava. It is now recognized as a well- known fruit of eastern Brazil where it is native; but, early carried to Asia by some Portuguese mariner, it now bears the name of the English horticulturist. Since the establishment of the office of Foreign Seed and Plant Introduction in the Bureau of Plant Industry, many valuable additions have been made to the fruits capable of being grown in the United States, including superior varieties of those already in cultivation. Vol- umes of descriptive lists of seeds and plants brought from many parts of the world testify to the activity of the office. Among the most important of its many introductions of edible fruits is that of the avocado in its various forms from the West Indies, Mexico and Central America. The credit for this belongs to David Fairchild, veteran ex-chief of the Office of Plant Introduction, and Wilson Popenoe, botanical explorer. Many types of mangoes, persimmons, jujubes, and numerous other fruits of foreign lands have been introduced, and others are constantly being added to the experiment gardens of the Bureau of Plant Industry from which they are eventually released to plant breeders and nurserymen. Unfortunately the area within our boundaries suitable for cultivation of plants requiring tropical or near-tropical conditions is very limited. The banana can be seen grow- ing in scattered clumps in many places in Florida, but for an adequate supply of it we shall doubtless continue to depend on its cultivation in West Indian islands and Central American countries where superior conditions exist for its production. The same is true of pineapples and may be expected to apply also to papayas and various other more or less tropical fruits that are likely to be much in demand once they become well enough known and readily obtainable. Many products of the tropics are already familiar to a considerable part of the American public. With in- crease in foreign travel they will become more widely known. With airplane transportation of perishable products under way, it may be confidently predicted that tropical flowers and fruits will make their regular appearance in our markets. In the following pages the fruits are divided into two groups, those of Old World origin and those of the New World; and the most important in each group are placed first. The others are arranged rather with regard to botanical relationship and usual systematic sequence than in order of importance or excellence. Beyond a certain point it appears quite impracticable to attempt to classify- according to their relative value the many fruits in- cluded, for there can be no general agreement about the quality and popularity of many of them. Anyone who has sampled only a poor mango can scarcely imagine that very superior ones exist. One who has tasted only an unripe persimmon would be likely to rate all persim- mons very low. A few of the fruits included might be considered fourth class in a well supplied metropolitan market, but have appreciable merit where the choice is more limited. Some might perhaps have been omitted, and others could have been added. The scientific names — in italics under each illustration in the following pages — are for the most part old and well established. Where recent changes have been made the old names are placed in parentheses below or after the new. The foreign or vernacular names cited at the end of each description will be of interest to travelers and resi- dents in other countries of this hemisphere. Almost all of the tropical and subtropical fruits described and illustrated in the following pages are repre- sented in the botanical exhibits of Chicago Natural His- tory Museum. The illustrations are from pen and ink drawings by Mr. Albert Frey. Some of them have appeared in a manual edited and printed by the Navy Medical Service during the last year of the second world war. The illus- tration of Barbados cherry on page 46 is adapted from a drawing in DeCandolle Herbarium, Geneva, Switzerland, of a Sesse" & Mocino plate or collection (F. M. neg. 30564). TROPICAL AND SUBTROPICAL FRUITS OF OLD WORLD ORIGIN Musa paradisiaca subsp. sapientium BANANAS The cultivated banana is doubtless the most important and most widely grown of all tropical fruits. It is a conspicuous example of a cultivated plant which has definitely lost its ability to produce seed and must be propagated by shoots from its underground stem. It was originally a native of the oriental tropics. There are two main types, the common banana and the dwarf Chinese or Cavendish banana, each with numerous varieties, especially the former. The variety generally grown in Central America and the West Indies for the U.S. market is known as Gros-Michel. Figue-Banane (Fr.), Banana (Sp. & P.), Cambur (Venez.), Bacove (Guianas). The plantain, M. paradisiaca, is a more robust plant pro- ducing larger fruit which requires cooking. Pisang (Malay), Meel Banaan (D.), Banane a cuir (Fr.), Pldlano (Sp.), Banana da terra, Pacova (Braz.). CITRUS FRUITS Typified by the oranges and lemons, these form a distinctive group of tropical and subtropical fruits. They are mostly natives of southeastern Asia, but were brought to the Mediterranean by the Arabs, and to the New World first by Columbus. The most important citrus fruits are the sweet orange, the sour or Seville orange, the lime, the citron, the lemon, the mandarin orange, the pummelo or shaddock with its American offspring the grapefruit, and the small ornamental kumquats. There are many varieties of all these and hybrids. Valencias and Washington navel oranges are the chief varieties of the sweet orange. Tangerines, including Satsumas, are varieties of the mandarin. Of the citrons, grown for their thick rind, there are varieties fingered citron and Etrog, the latter used by the Jews in the Feast of the Tabernacles. All of these have a substantial rind, dotted with oil glands. The pulp of the segments consists of a mass of thickened, elongate cells filled with fragrant juice. Rue family. Phoenix dactylifera DATES Dates are the fruit of a feather-leaved palm of the arid region of southwestern Asia, especially the neighborhood of the Persian Gulf, and westward through Arabia, Egypt, and northern Africa. There are hundreds of named varieties. Some are strictly local, but a general distinction is made between dry and sweet dates. The former constitute the daily bread of the nomadic Arabs, while softer sweet dates are preferred by other peoples and are packed for export. Some of the best varieties have been introduced into this country and now grow well under irrigation in hot and arid parts of the southwest. Datte (Ft.), Ddtil (Sp.), Tdmara (P.), Dadel (D.). 3 Mangifera indica MANGO A native of India and East Indies, this is the most widely planted of large tropical fruit trees. The numerous varieties now found in all warm countries differ considerably in quality as well as in color, size, and shape of fruit. The soft pulp of the ripe fruit is juicy, sweet, and aromatic, usually with a more or less distinct suggestion of turpentine-like flavor. A mass of fine fibers connects the pulp firmly to the large, hard pit; but the fruit is readily eaten out of hand after slitting the thick skin at the apex and peeling it back toward the base. Usually eaten fresh, it is also made into jam, or cooked with spices and pickled while green as in mango chutney. Sumac family. Manja (D.G.), Mangue (F.G.), Manga (P.), Mango, Manga (Sp.)- 4 Ficus Carica FIGS The cultivated fig is a large-leaved shrub or low spreading tree of the eastern Mediterranean region. It is probably descended from the wild caprifig native in southern Arabia. Figs were known in ancient Egypt and have been cultivated since antiquity in Greece, Asia Minor, Syria, Persia and North Africa. They are grown also in Italy, Portugal and southern France. There are many varieties differing in color of fruit and in other respects. Dried figs, especially the well-known Smyrnas (variety Lop Ingir), remarkable for their size and sugar content, are an important article of export from the Levant. Cultivated figs are now grown in many warmer parts of the world where the climate is not too humid in the fruiting season. In the tropics of both hemispheres numerous species of wild figs bear edible fruit of inferior quality. Mulberry family. Vijg (D.), Figut (Fr.), Higo (Sp.), Figo (P.). Artocarpus altilis (A. incisa, A. commit BREADFRUIT Breadfruit trees were introduced in- to the American tropics from the Pacific islands. There are two kinds, those having fruits with and those without seeds The fruit of the former is prickly, and only the somewhat immature seeds are eaten, boiled in saltwater or roasted like chest- nuts. The seedless breadfruit illustrated here is eaten baked, boiled, or sliced and roasted, or even fried. Boiled and mashed it may be prepared and seasoned like macaroni. A part of the dramatic story of the introduction of the tree is familiar to readers of The Mutiny on the Bounty by Nordhoff and Hall. Mulberry family. Broodvrucht (D.G.), Arbre a pain (F.G.), Fruta de pan, Pan de pobre (Sp.), Fruta pao (Braz.). Artocarpus heterophylla (A. integrifolia) JACKFRUIT A large and handsome tree of India, long grown in the Malayan region, the jackfruit was introduced in the American tropics, especially Jamaica and Brazil. It has simple, dark green shiny leaves and rough or prickly compound fruits of the size of water- melons, which grow on short stalks directly from the stem or old branches. The large brown seeds are edible when roasted. The fleshy sweetish yellow pulp about the seeds is boiled, and is esteemed by those who are not deterred by its heavy musky odor. Mulberry family. Jak from the Portuguese Jaca, "Tsjaka" (Brit. Malaya), Jacca (D.), Jacque (F.), Jaca, Jaca da Bala (Braz.). Eriobotrya japonica This oval fruit, as large as a small plum, has a soft yellow skin, white to yellowish flesh, and several black seeds. It is the product of a tree of the rose family and has a refreshing sweet-acid flavor reminiscent of apples or pears. Originally from central eastern China, it is now grown in many warm countries. It is well known in the Mediterranean region, where it is called Japanese medlar. All parts of the tree including the fruit are covered with a white or gray down. Improved varieties exist. Rose family. Bibace, Bibace du Japon (Fr.)f Nispola del Japon (Sp.), Ameixa amarella, Ameixa do Japao, Nispera (P.). Tamarindus indica TAMARIND This is the fruit of a large leguminous tree of India, now estab- lished in all tropical countries. It is recognized by its delicate feathery foliage and curved brown pods which remain hanging for a long time on the tree. The smooth seeds are imbedded in a brown pulp of agreeable sweet-acid flavor and are said to contain more acid and more sugar than any other fruit. The pulp serves for the preparation of a refreshing drink and is used sometimes to add bulk and flavor to guava jelly. Bean family. Tamarinde (D.G.), Tamarin (F.G.), Tamarindo (Sp. & P.). 9 Averrhoa Bilimbi BILIMBI This fruit of a sumach-like tree of the sorrel or Oxalis family, is a native of the Moluccas, but is now cultivated in many places in the moist tropics of both hemispheres. The dark red flowers and fruit grow in clusters from the trunk and the older branches. The gherkin-like fruits are very acid, but pleasant when candied or cooked with sugar as a preserve. There is said to be a form with sweet fruit. Wood-Sorrel family. Souri (Br.G.), Birambi (D.G.), Groselha China (Sp.). 10 Averrhoa Carambola CARAMBOLA A five-winged yellow fleshy fruit of a small Indo-Chinese tree introduced in the West Indies and South America. The fruit is usually very sour and is edible only when cooked with sugar, though an agreeably sweet variety is said to exist. It is of botanical interest as one of the few large fruits of the Wood-Sorrel family. Five fingers (B.G.), Fransche birambi (D.G.), Carambole (Ft.), Carambola (Sp.). 11 Lansium domesticum LANGSAT This tall-growing tropical tree of the Chinaberry, or Mahogany, family is restricted chiefly to the Malaysian region, Siam, and Indo- China. Its ovoid to globose velvety fruits of the size of pigeon's eggs, grow in grape-like clusters from the larger branches. The fruit has a thick, bitter, rather leathery, inedible skin, which encloses from one to three segments of a white translucent pulp, and usually only one seed. The pulp is juicy, subacid, aromatic, and when ripe is sweet and of excellent flavor. A cultivated variety named duku (Doekoe) has larger and more desirable fruit in small clusters. 12 Phyllanthus distichus (Cicca disticha) OTAHEITE GOOSEBERRY This small tree, introduced from India or the East Indies, with small, apparently pinnate leaves on slender twigs at the tips of the branches, bears an abundance of small fruit in clusters on the stems. The fruits, of the size of cherries, are pale green and smooth but ribbed, yellow when ripe, with crisp flesh and a single seed. Even when fully ripe they are too acid to eat raw but excellent when cooked with sugar. Spurge family. Otaheite Gooseberry (B.W.I. ), Cerise de Vlnde (F.), Cerezo, Cerezo comun, Cerezo agrio, Grosella (Sp.), Groselha (Braz.). 13 Spondias dulcis GOLDEN-APPLE This cultivated tree is recognized by its compound leaves with numerous leaflets and by its fruit in mango-lfke clusters. The fruits are smaller than mangoes, dull yellow-orange in color, and often mottled with rusty brown. The firm skin encloses yellow fibrous pulp, juicy, acid, aromatic and somewhat resinous in taste. The golden apple is inferior to a good mango but is eaten fresh, or cooked and sweetened, or used as flavoring for sherbets and cool drinks. Otaheite apple (B.G.), Fransi Mope (D.G.), Pomme de Cythere (F.G.), Cajd manga (Braz.). Spondias lutea YELLOW MOMBIN The Yellow Mombin grows wild in many places from the Baha- mas to Brazil. It is similar to the above, with much smaller, yellow sub-acid fruit, aromatic and of good flavor but fibrous and somewhat astringent. Sumac family. Hog-plum (B.W.I. ), Mompe, Mope (D.G.), Jobo (Sp.), Cajd, Cajd mirim, Taperebd (Braz.). 14 Blighia sapida AKEE This tree of west African origin is planted in the West Indies and South America for its handsome foliage and showy clusters of peculiar fruit. The latter, about the size of large lemons, turn yellow and bright red as they ripen; at maturity they split lengthwise into three parts and display three large black seeds. Each seed projects from a glistening white, or ivory-colored mass of edible tissue. This "aril" is a good vegetable with a nutty flavor when stewed and browned in butter; but it must be taken at exactly the right stage, since it is poisonous when immature and when over-ripe. The seeds and any pink or purple-tinged parts near the seed should be discarded as dangerous; it is safest to leave the Akee alone. Soapberry family. 15 Nephelium lappaceum RAMBUTAN This fruit of tropical Asia, closely related to the Litchi and with the same general characters, is usually much larger with a more brittle rind or shell, beset with long soft spines. The single seed, an inch or more in length, is covered as in the Litchi with a whitish, semi-transparent, juicy pulp, sweet-acid in taste and of very agree- able flavor. A very similar fruit covered with large blunt-pointed tubercles instead of soft spines is the Malayan Kapulasan or Palasau, called Bulala in the Philippines. Soapberry family. 16 *>4fcp LITCHI This is the fruit of a medium-sized tree which is native in the humid regions of south- ern China, where it has been grown for several thousand years. The trees are very often prolific, and thousands of tons of the dried fruit are exported for the use of Chinese living abroad. In the western world they are known as Chinese Litchi nuts. They are cultivated in places in the American subtropics. The ovoid or globose fruit, about an inch in diameter, is produced in loose bunches of about two to twenty. Its warty shell is thin and parchment-like, bright red on the tree, light brown when dried. The fleshy pulp inclosing a single seed is translucent or snow-white and juicy in the fresh state, with a flavor reminiscent of Tokay grapes; it is dark-brown when dried and then of an agreeable sweet-acid taste with a faint flavor of muscat. Soapberry family. 17 Zizyphus Jujuba JUJUBE The jujube is the fruit of a small, thorny, slender-branched tree of the Buckthorn family. It has been well known in the Mediter- ranean region for at least 2,000 years and may have been brought originally from India. The fruit is smooth and ovoid, yellowish or reddish brown at maturity, of the size of an olive, with a thin skin covering a whitish or yellow sweet pulp and a hard oblong kernel containing two seeds. It is esteemed as a dessert fruit and eaten fresh, dried, or boiled in sugar. The jujube is native in southern Asia and is an important fruit in China. Superior Chinese varieties, found by the plant explorer Meyer, have been introduced into the United States for cultivation in the Southwestern states. Related wild species producing edible fruit are the Lotus of Libya, the Joazeiro of the arid northeast of Brazil/and the Chichiboa and Cana of Venezuela. Buckthorn family. Olijf, Bedera (D.), Jujube (Ft.), Azufaifa (Sp.), Jujuba (P.). 18 Durio zibelhinus DURIAN This fruit tree of the Indian archipelago is commonly planted in the East Indies for its large globose pendulous fruits. These weigh from five to six pounds and are famous for their combination of deli- cious flavor and disagreeable odor of decayed onions. The fruit has a thick fibrous rind beset with coarse pyramidal spines. Internally it is 4-celled, with from two to six large seeds in each division, covered with a whitish, buttery, and aromatic flesh or pulp which is the edible part of the fruit. Silk-cotton family. 19 Pillenia indica HONDAPARA This ornamental tree of tropical Asia is cultivated in India, Ceylon, and the Malay region for its thick foliage, large white flowers, and remarkable fruits. After flowering the petals drop, while the persistent calyx again closes and grows to form a thick protective covering for the developing fruit, till at maturity the whole reaches the dimensions of a small or medium-sized grapefruit. The bulk of it then consists of the thick fibrous calyx within which the true fruit surrounded by brown stamens appears like a pale green tomato surmounted by the persistent many-rayed stigma. The fruit is aromatic but very acid and requires cooking. Dillenia family. Wampara (Ceylon), Simpor (Java). 20 larcinia Mangostana MANGOSTEEN The mangosteen has long had the reputation of being the most delicious of tropical fruits. It is produced by a small tree, rarely over thirty feet high, native in the Malay Peninsula and cultivated in the warm and humid parts of the Old World tropics. The flowers are about the size of a wild rose and dull red in color. The rind of the fruit is thick and tough, dark red to dark purplish outside and pale violet within, and contains a bitter yellow juice. The edible part is the snow-white juicy pulp (aril) of exquisite flavor surrounding the four to six seeds. Attempts to establish this tree in the American tropics have met with but scant success. Gamboge family. 21 Punica granalum POMEGRANATE This fruit grows wild in eastern Asia and in places forms veritable woods with wild apples and pears. It was well known to the ancient Egyptians and was naturalized throughout the eastern Mediter- ranean region as well as eastward to China and southward to Zanzi- bar and India. The trees are usually shrublike, with slender branches, small crowded leaves, and showy flowers. The fruit has a tough, leathery rind and very many seeds in four two-storied compartments. Each seed is covered by juicy red pulp (aril), which is the edible portion of the fruit. Pomegranate family. Granaatappel (D.), Grenade (Fr.), Granada (Sp.), Roma (Port.) from Ruman (Arab.). 22 Syzygium Jambos (Eugenia Jambos) ROSE-APPLE A small garden tree introduced from Indo-China or Java and grown for the sake of its rose-flavored fruits, one to two inches in diameter, usually whitish or ivory-colored with crisp thin flesh and generally hollow with a single large spherical seed, or sometimes two or three, within the seed cavity. It may be eaten fresh, and makes a rose-flavored preserve. Myrtle family. Pommero8e (D.), Pomme-rose, Jamrose (Fr.), Pomarosa, Pomarrosa (Sp.)f Jambo cheiroso (P.). 23 Syzygium malaccensis {Eugenia malaccensis) MALAY-APPLE This Malayan tree has been introduced into the Hawaiian Islands, Dutch Guiana, and Brazil, where it drops most of its leaves at flowering time. The bark of the trunk and naked branches then becomes covered with clusters of bright red, many-stamened flowers that last but a short time, then cover the ground under the trees with a rose-colored litter of fallen petals. In season the pear- shaped fruits are conspicuous in tropical markets. They are white or rose-colored, with somewhat dry and insipid white flesh of rose odor. The fruit may be eaten fresh, but it is used chiefly for desserts and jellies. Myrtle family. Pommerak (D.G.), Jambo, Jambo rouge (Fr.G.) Pomagds (Venez.), Jambo de Malacca (Brazil). 24 Pommarrosa de Malacca, Syzygium javanica (Eugenia javanica) CURACAO-APPLE This is a small ornamental Malayan tree producing clusters of pretty rose-pink or purplish-white waxy-looking pear-shaped fruit. The pulp is pleasantly sour-sweet but is usually too fluffy or pithy to be agreeable if eaten fresh. Myrtle family. Jambosa, Wax jambo (B.E.I. ), Macopa (Philipp.). The Water Rose-apple (S. aquea) is a smaller tree producing similar but smaller fruit, white or pinkish red, easily distinguished from the above by its constricted stem and expanded apex. Jambo ayer (F.), Pommerak (D.G.). 25 Syzygium Cuminii (Eugenia Cuminii) JAVA-PLUM This is a medium sized to large tree of Java, introduced into many near and remote places, including some in the Western hemisphere. Its plum-like fruits are produced in clusters from the wood of the whitish branches. The fruit is variable in size and shape and ranges in color from a purplish red to deep blackish violet. It has a thin skin, juicy, acid, slightly tinted flesh, enclosing an oblong seed. Superior varieties yield fruit of agreeable flavor. Myrtle family. Black plum (B.W.I.), Jambolan, Jamelong, Jamblang, etc. 26 Dio8pyros Kaki JAPANESE PERSIMMON Closely related to our American wild persimmon, the so-called Japanese persimmon, or Kaki, is a subtropical tree of Chinese origin that has been cultivated for several hundred years in Japan. In the East Indies the fruit is known as Chinese plum; when dried it is called Chinese fig. There are hundreds of varieties, some of which produce seedless fruit. Some of the best varieties have been intro- duced into the United States where the fruit for the most part is still considered exotic. Until perfectly ripened for some time after picking the persimmon fruit is apt to be very astringent. The black sapote of Mexico is a related species with blackish sweet pulp. The persimmons belong to the Ebony family. Kaki plum, Kaki fig, Keg fig, Chinese date plum. 27 Carissa grandiflora NATAL-PLUM A subtropical spiny shrub or small tree with green stems, glossy foliage, and jasmine-scented white flowers. The oval or elliptical fruits, one and a half to two inches long, are smooth and thin-skinned when ripe, with few small seeds and sweet, juicy, pink flesh of cran- berry-like flavor. Introduced into the United States about forty years ago, it is now grown freely in southern Florida. With its long sharp-pointed spines it makes an effective hedge plant. Oleander family. 28 TROPICAL AND SUBTROPICAL FRUITS OF NEW WORLD ORIGIN Ananas comosus (A. sativus) ? l(tl(rr.-"/S '//f///i . . ■