Pouteria guianensis

Aublet

Guianas pouteria

Sapotaceae Edible: Fruit 14 iNaturalist observations

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Summary

Medium-rate evergreen tree reaching 25 m tall and 20 m wide. Hardy to UK zone 10. Tolerates light sandy, medium loamy, and heavy clay soils with well-drained preference. Grows in mildly acid to basic soils. Requires full sun and prefers moist soil.

Description

A tree. It grows 35 m tall. The trunk can be 30-90 cm across. It has narrow buttresses. The twigs are stout and covered with flattened brown hairs when young. The leaves are alternate and leathery. They are narrowly oval and 13-25 cm long by 5-10 cm wide. The flowers are in tufts in the axils of leaves. There are about 6 flowers. The stalks are 0.3 cm long and have brown hairs. The fruit occur as 1 or 2 together. The fruit is a round or oval berry. It is 5 cm long by 5 cm wide. It is dark green or yellow. It has a coating when young. The pulp is firm, sweet and edible. There are 2 seeds. They are about 2 cm long by 1.5 cm wide.

Edible Uses

The fruit is eaten raw. Its pulp is firm and sweet-tasting. Each fruit is 45–50mm long and 40–53mm wide.

Medicinal Uses

None known.

Distribution

A tropical plant. It grows in non flooded rainforest. It can grow up to 2,500 m above sea level.

Where It Grows

Amazon, Bolivia, Brazil, Central America, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guianas, Guyana, Panama, Peru, South America, Suriname, Trinidad, Venezuela,

Cultivation

Plants are grown by seeds.

Propagation

Grow from seed.

Other Uses

The heartwood ranges from light to dark brown, with pale brown sapwood. The grain is straight with no distinctive taste or aroma. The wood is very hard, strong, and durable, resisting attack by fungi and insects. Its high silica content makes it difficult to saw and causes significant blunting of cutting tools, though planing is moderately easy. The wood is used for construction and furniture-making.

Production

In Guyana it flowers from October to December and from April to June and fruits in March and April. Sometimes it only fruits every few years.

Other Information

A highly esteemed fruit.

Notes

There are about 150-320 Pouteria species. They grow in the tropics.

Synonyms

Chaetocarpus pouteria J. F. Gmel.Krugella hartii PierreLabatia pedunculata WilldenowLabatia tovarensis Engl.Lucuma hartii Hemsl.Lucuma psammophilla var. macrophylla Raunk. ex Warm.Pouteria caimito var. strigosa Monach.Pouteria cuatrecasasii Aubrev.Pouteria demerarae SandwithPouteria glazioviana DubardPouteria hartii (Hemsl.) DubardPouteria obidensis HuberPouteria pedunculata (Willd.) Poir.Pouteria tovarensis Engl.

Also Known As

Asepoko, Balata, Broad leaf asepoko, Caimo, Esseboko, Jansnijder, Marapasmukri, Pepeboiti, Poyak, Redijamboka, Red tree

References (14)

Bendezu, Y. F., 2018, Arboles nativos de lad Region Ucayali. Instituto Nacional de Innovacion Agraria. p 303
Fouqué, A., 1972, Espèces fruitières d'Amérique tropicale. Institut français de recherches fruitierès outre-mer (ifac)
Grandtner, M. M. & Chevrette, J., 2013, Dictionary of Trees, Volume 2: South America: Nomenclature, Taxonomy and Ecology. Academic Press p 526
Hist. pl. Guiane 1:86, t. 33. 1775
Johnson, M. and Colquhoun, A., 1996, Preliminary Ethnobotanical Survey of Kurupukari: An Amerindian Settlement of Central Guyana. Economic Botany, Vol. 50, No. 2, pp. 182-194

Show all 14 references

Kermath, B. M., et al, 2014, Food Plants in the Americas: A survey of the domesticated, cultivated and wild plants used for Human food in North, Central and South America and the Caribbean. On line draft. p 691
Lopez-Diago, D. & Garcia, N., 2021, Wild edible fruits of Colombia. Biota ColomBiana 22 (2) p 51
Maas, P.J. M., Non-timber forest products of the North-West District of Guyana. Part 1. Nationaal Herbarium Nederland, Universiteit Utrecht.
Maas, P.J. M., Non-Timber Forest Products of the North-West District of Guyana Part 2. The 85 most important NTFP species. p 188
Pennington, T.D., 1990, Sapotaceae in Flora Neotropica Monograph 52. New York Botanical Gardens. p 472
Polak, A. M., 1992, Major Timber Trees of Guyana. A Field Guide. Tropenbos Series 2. Wageningen. p 155
Roa, J. A. G. & Boada, D. S. G., 2018, Fundación para el Fortalecimiento de la Fruticultura y Plantas Alimenticias no Convencionales en Colombia.
van Roosmalen, M.G.M., 1985, Fruits of the Guianan Flora. Utrecht Univ. & Wageningen Univ. p 410
Van Roosmalen, M.G.M., & Garcia, O. M., 2000, Fruits of the Amazonian Forest. Part 2: Sapotaceae. Acta Amazonica 30(2): 187-290