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Annona diuersifolia (Annonaceae) , 46781. Papauce. From 

 Mexico. Seeds collected by Mr. Wilson Popenoe and pre- 

 sented through Dr. H. J. Webber, Director, Citrus Experi- 

 ment Station, University of California. "Among the 

 lesser known fruits of Mexico the papauce impresses me 

 as one of the most meritorious. It seems strange that 

 it should still be included among the lesser known 

 species, for it is considerably superior in quality 

 to some of its congeners whose cultivation is wide- 

 spread. For example, it is a vastly better fruit 

 than the custard-apple ( A. reticulata) , and because of its 

 larger size and more sprightly flavor , it is preferable 

 to the sugar-apple (A. squamosct) ,- yet both these species 

 are much more widely grown than the papauce. I consider 

 a good papauce almost equal to a good cherimoya. Its 

 larger seeds are slightly against it, but the color and 

 texture of the flesh, and the rich, subacid flavor 

 entitle it to a place among the very best of the ano- 

 nas. I first saw the papauce on the border between 

 Guatemala and Honduras, in April, 1918. I did not find 

 ripe fruit at the time, however, and had never had an 

 opportunity to test the quality of this interesting 

 species until I reached Tapachula. Here the fruit is 

 abundant, and though the season is not yet at its height, 

 papauces are to be seen in the market practically every 

 day. I believe they will be abundant from now (June 24) 

 until the middle of August. The season, unfortunately 

 is not long. In Guatemala the common name for this spe- 

 cies is anona blanca (white anona) ; so far, here in Mexico 

 I have heard it called nothing but papauce. Safford, I 

 believe, says it is called ilama in this country, but I 

 have only heard this name applied to A. pur pur ea, which 

 is common in the state of Vera Cruz. The papauce tree 

 grows to an ultimate height of about 25 feet in this 

 region. It is slender in habit, the trunk not more 

 than 10 inches thick, often branching from the ground 

 to form 3to6 divisions , each 2 or 3 inches thick . Some 

 trees form an erect, slender crown; others are broad 

 and spreading in habit. The foliage somewhat resembles 

 that of A. squamosa, but is larger, with the leaf -blades 

 commonly oblanceolate in outline, obtuse to subacute 

 at the apex. A distinguishing character of this species 

 is the presence of orbicular, leaf-like bracts at the 

 base of many of the smaller branchlets. There is a 

 great amount of variation in the productiveness of the 

 trees. About two-fifths of those I have examined here 

 are not carrying any fruit. If they had produced any 

 this year at least part of the crop would still be on 



