Carica x pentagona

Heilborn

Babaco, Mountain papaya

Caricaceae Edible: Fruit

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Description

A hybrid between Carica pubescens and Carica stipulata. A small shrub about 2-3 m tall. It has a soft trunk and leaf scars along the trunk. It is self fertile. The leaves are large and spread out like fingers on a hand. The leaves are 45 cm wide. The veins are easily seen. Flowers develop on the trunk as the tree grows. Individual leaves last about 4-6 months and flowers are in the angles of leaves. Flowers are female. The fruit develop without pollination or setting seed. The fruit are seedless. Fruit can be 30 cm long by 20 cm wide. The fruit is five sided and turns yellow as it ripens. The fruit has a smooth thin skin. The flesh is soft. Fruit are normally seedless.

Edible Uses

The seedless fruit are eaten raw or cooked.

Traditional Uses

The fruit are eaten raw or cooked.

This uses section is brief — help expand it

Distribution

It grows in a cool subtropical climate. It needs to be frost free or it will lose its leaves. They need a sheltered position and prefer a sunny position. It needs a well drained soil. It is best with a soil pH of 6-6.5. It cannot tolerate salty water. It can tolerate light frosts. In the Andes it grows between 1,500-2,500 m above sea level. It suits hardiness zones 10-11.

Where It Grows

Andes, Australia, Colombia, Ecuador, Europe, Hawaii, Israel, Mediterranean, Middle East, New Zealand, North America, Pacific, South America, Spain, USA,

Cultivation

Plants can be grown from cuttings about 30 cm long taken from near the base of older maturing plants. A second shoot can be allowed to grow from the base of the trunk as the first trunk becomes more mature and fruit production declines. Sometimes seeds are produced and these can be used for planting.

Production

Fruit is produced about 15 months after planting cuttings. Ripe fruit can be stored for 4 weeks. Fruit can be stored with refrigeration.

Other Information

It is a cultivated food plant.

Notes

It is probably a cross between Carica pubescens and Carica stipulata - the chamburo. There are at least 22-40 species of Carica. A hybrid between Vasconcellea cundimarcensis and Vasconelllea stipulata,

Synonyms

Carica x chrysopetala HeilbornCarica x heilbornii var. pentagonaCarica x frutifragrans Garcia-Barr. & Fern. Cam.A seedless hybrid between Carica pubescens and Carica stipulataVasconcellea x heilbornii (V. M. Badillo) V. M. Badillo

References (19)

Bircher, A. G. & Bircher, W. H., 2000, Encyclopedia of Fruit Trees and Edible Flowering Plants in Egypt and the Subtropics. AUC Press. p 83 (As Carica peltata)
Castillo, R. O., 1995, Plant Genetic Resources in the Andes: Impact, Conservation, and Management. Crop Science 35:355-360
Darley, J.J., 1993, Know and Enjoy Tropical Fruit. P & S Publishers. p 90 (As Carica pentagona)
Gouldstone, S., 1983, Growing your own Food-bearing Plants in Australia. Macmillan p 76 (As Carica pentagona)
Heywood, V.H., Brummitt, R.K., Culham, A., and Seberg, O. 2007, Flowering Plant Families of the World. Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew. p 88 (As Carica pentagona)

Show all 19 references

Hibbert, M., 2002, The Aussie Plant Finder 2002, Florilegium. p 60 (As Carica pentagona)
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 904 (As Vasconcellea x heilbornii)
Kiple, K.F. & Ornelas, K.C., (eds), 2000, The Cambridge World History of Food. CUP p 1725 (As Carica pentagona)
Lyle, S., 2006, Discovering fruit and nuts. Land Links. p 99 (As Carica x heolbornii var. pentagona)
Martin, F. W., et al, 1987, Perennial Edible Fruits of the Tropics. USDA Handbook 642 p 90 (As Carica frutifragrans) (Also as Carica pentagona)
Morton, Julia F., 1987, Fruits of Warm Climates. Creative Resources Systems, Inc. . p. 346 (As Carica pentagona)
Roa, J. A. G. & Boada, D. S. G., 2018, Fundación para el Fortalecimiento de la Fruticultura y Plantas Alimenticias no Convencionales en Colombia.
Staples, G.W. and Herbst, D.R., 2005, A tropical Garden Flora. Bishop Museum Press, Honolulu, Hawaii. p 225
Tankard, G., 1990, Tropical fruit. An Australian Guide to Growing and using exotic fruit. Viking p 22 (As Carica pentagona)
Torre, de la, L., et al, 2008, Enciclopedia de las Plantas Útiles del Ecuador. Herbario QCA. Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador. p 276 (As Vasconcellea x heilbornii)
USDA, ARS, National Genetic Resources Program. Germplasm Resources Information Network - (GRIN). [Online Database] National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland. Available: www.ars-grin.gov/cgi-bin/npgs/html/econ.pl (10 April 2000)
Van den Eynden, V., et al, 2003, Wild Foods from South Ecuador. Economic Botany 57(4): 576-603 (As Carica x heilbornii)
Van den Eynden, V., et al, 2004, Regional and ecological variations of wild edible plants in southern Ecuador. Lyonia. 7(2) (As Vasconcellea x heilbornii)
Wiersema, J. H. & Leon, B., 2013, World Economic Plants. A Standard Reference CRC Press. 2nd Ed. p 712 (As Vasconcellea x heilbornii)