Popenoe: The Jaboticaba 



323 



naturally enough, varies considerably 

 with the species or variety, and one not 

 infrequently finds a jaboticaba which 

 has the disagreeable resinous twang 

 common to several of the myrtaceous 

 fruits; this may be due, in many 

 instances, to the condition of the fruit 

 at the time of eating and not to the 

 variety itself. A good jaboticaba is so 

 thoroughly agreeable as to tempt one to 

 keep on picking and eating the fruits 

 indefinitely, — a temptation to which, it 

 must be confessed, Brazilians often yield. 

 The boys, especially, will spend hours 

 searching out and eating the fruits, and 

 their only complaint is that it is im- 

 possible to satisfy one's appetite with 

 jaboticabas. 



The seeds vary from one to four in 

 number, and are not easily separated 

 from the pulp. In form they are oval 

 to almost round, somewhat compressed 

 laterally, one-fourth to three-eighths of 

 an inch in length. The seed coats are 

 thin and membranous. 



species and varieties. 



A niimber of named varieties are known 

 to the Brazilians, some of which are 

 probably true species, others horti- 

 ciiltural forms originating through seed- 

 ling variation. The name jaboticaba, 

 without any qualifying word, is con- 

 sidered to be properly applied only to 

 M. cauliflora. In actual practice, how- 

 ever, this is not closel}^ adhered to, 

 since the natives of the lower classes use 

 the word to designate the fruit of M. 

 jaboticaba as well, although this latter is 

 also known as jaboticaba de Sao Paulo, 

 jaboticaba de cabinho, and jaboticaba 

 do matto. Tavares mentions another 

 species, M. tenella Berg, whose fruit 

 is known as jaboticaba macia. The 

 variety coroa, which is one of the com- 

 monest named forms recognized in Rio 

 de Janeiro and Minas Geraes, can prob- 

 ably be referred to M. cauliflora. An- 

 other variety, murta, is equally well 

 known, and has smaller leaves than 

 coroa. No definite information con- 

 cerning it is available, and as I have not 

 seen it in fruit it is impossible for me 

 to do more than venture a guess that it 

 is another horticultural form of M. 

 cauliflora. The native will often tell 



one that he has these two varieties in 

 his garden, but when asked to define the 

 difference between the two he is usually 

 at a loss to name any distinguishing 

 characteristic other than the size of the 

 leaves. The variety branca is listed 

 by one of the nurserymen in Rio de 

 Janeiro, but no information concerning 

 it is available other than that it is a 

 small fruited variety . The name branca, 

 meaning white, wovdd indicate some 

 difference in color from the common 

 forms. Roxa, or red, is also applied to 

 some jaboticabas as a varietal name, 

 because of the fruit being lighter in 

 color than usual. 



The fruiting habits of the jaboticaba 

 are worthy of more than passing notice. 

 When heavily laden the tree is a curious 

 sight. Not only is the trunk covered 

 with clusters and masses of glistening 

 jaboticabas, but the fruiting extends to 

 the ends of the small branches, which all 

 produce their share of the crop. When 

 one stops to consider the small size of 

 the fruits, and their abundance all over 

 the tree, it is apparent that the number 

 produced by a tree of large size must be 

 enormous. 



CAUSE OF CAULIFLORY. 



Cauliflory — the producing of flowers 

 upon the old wood — is not rare in 

 tropical plants. It is difficult to see, 

 however, of what advantage the char- 

 acteristic can be to the jaboticaba, and 

 what have been the reasons for its 

 developing. Pollination has entered 

 into the question, some authors having 

 considered that the production of sessile 

 flowers upon the old wood resulted in 

 pollination by slugs. In the jaboticaba, 

 however, this reason would not seem 

 sufficient, since flowers are not only pro- 

 duced upon the trunk and large branches 

 but upon the small branches and twigs 

 as well. Neither is there any room for 

 the argument that the fruits are too 

 large and heavy to be borne upon the 

 small branches and hence must be pro- 

 duced on the trunk, an explanation 

 which has been offered to account for 

 cauliflory in the jaca {Artocarpus in- 

 tegrifolia L., the jak of the Indo- 

 Malayan region), whose fruits sometimes 

 weigh as much as 40 pounds. Possibly 



