ANNONA 



ANNONA 



293 



prismatic style about J^in. long: fr. large, spheroid or 

 broadly ovoid, sometimes 6-8 in. diam., covered with 

 a brownish felt-like indumentum and bearing numerous 

 pyramidal protuberances, grooved longitudinally on 

 the ventral side and usually terminating in a hook 

 directed toward the peduncle; seeds large, obovate, 

 more or less flattened and marginate, sometimes exceed- 

 ing an inch in length by >-%in. broad; pulp fleshy, 

 fibrous, very fragrant, edible, with a flavor somewhat 

 like that of a mango. Mex. to Panama and perhaps N. 

 S. Amer. It is abundant on the Isthmus of Tehuantepec 

 and is sold in the markets of Veracruz. The frs. differ 

 considerably in flavor. Some of those on the Isthmus 

 of Panama are reputed to be excellent, though here, as 

 elsewhere, they are supposed to induce chills and fever. 

 Intro, into S. Calif., but imperfectly known in cult. 

 Like its congeners, it is undoubtedly capable of improve- 

 ment by careful selection. 



BB. Exterior and interior petals both valvate or edge-to- 

 edge and usually acute. 



4. glabra, Linn. (A. palustris, Linn. A. laurifdlia, 

 Dunal). POND-APPLE. ALLIGATOR-APPLE. MONKEY- 

 APPLE. MANGROVE-ANNONA. MAMIN. MAMAIN. 

 CACHIMAN-COCHON. CATUL. CAYDRES. CORK-WOOD. 

 PALO .BOBO. BOIS-FLOT. CORCHO. CORTISSO. 

 ARATICU DO BREJO. Fig. 211. Small to medium-sized 

 tree, sometimes reaching a height of 45 ft., growing in 

 swampy places and along the banks of streams; young 

 growth smooth: Ivs. smooth and laurel-like, glossy green 

 above, paler beneath, evergreen, ovate to oblong or 

 ellipt ic, usually acute or acuminate but sometimes blunt- 

 ish at the apex and rounded or tapering at the base: 

 fls. fragrant, varying considerably in size, those of trees 

 growing in favorable situations larger than those grow- 

 ing in crowded mangrove swamps; outer petals cream- 

 colored or pale greenish yellow when fresh, usually 

 marked within by a 

 deep red spot near the 

 base; inner ones some- 

 what shorter and nar- 

 rower, whitish or dull 

 greenish outside, usu- 

 ally blood-red within 

 or spotted with red or 

 wine-color near the 

 base: fr. the size of a 

 bellflower apple with 

 a smooth leathery skin, 

 green at first, at length 

 yellowish, its surface 

 covered with 

 indistinctly 

 outlined are- 

 oles, but these 

 never elevated 

 or squamose; 

 pulp cream- 

 colored when 

 ripe, not edi- 

 ble except by 

 iguanas and 

 other ani- 

 mals. Ever- 

 glades of Fla. 

 and banks of 

 the Indian 

 and Caloosa- 



hatchee Rivers; also the tropical shores of Amer., W. 

 Indies, west coast of Afr., and the Galapagos Isls. State- 

 ments that the fr. is sold in the markets of Mex. and that 

 the tree is cult, for its fr. are based upon the confusion 

 of other species of annona having smooth frs. with this. 

 This species is essentially tropical and swamp-loving. 

 Its light spongy roots are used as a substitute for cork 

 and for floats of fishing-nets; hence its name cork- wood. 



212. Annona diversifolia. (XK) 



AA. Petals (exterior) linear or oblong, the inner ones 

 minute and scale-like. 



B. Peduncles with broad persistent If. -like bracts at the 

 base. 



J5. diversifdlia, Safford. ILAMA. ILAMATZAPOTL. 

 Fig. 212. Small tree with brownish-gray, aromatic, 

 longitudinally furrowed bark; young growth glabrous, 

 with prominent lf.- 

 scars bordered with 

 a margin of pale 

 rufous hairs: Ivs. 

 thin, membranace- 

 ous, glabrous, vari- 

 able in form, those 

 near the base of the 

 branchlets broadly 

 elliptical and 

 rounded at the base, 

 those higher up ob- 1 

 lanceolate, rounded 

 at the apex and 

 acute or cuneate at 

 the base, the largest 

 4-5 % inches long 

 and l}^-2 inches 

 broad with petioles 

 exceeding J^inch in 

 length: peduncles 

 long and slender, 

 recurved, glabrous, 

 issuing from 2 sub- 

 orbicular, If. - like, 



amplexicaul bracts at the base of the branchlets; 

 fl.-buds obpyriform, calyx-divisions broadly ovate or 

 triangular, terminating at the points in a tuft of fer- 

 rugineous hairs; outer petals linear-oblong, swollen at 

 the base and concave within, sparsely rusty-pubescent 

 on the outside; inner petals minute, pubescent on 

 the back and bearing 2 rudimentary pollen-sacs; car- 

 pels distinct, glabrous near the base, rufous hirtellous 

 above, at length growing together into a compound 

 fr. or syncarpium: fr. large, conoid or broadly ovoid 

 with an axis of about 6 in. and a diam. of 5 in., 

 clothed with dense grayish felt-like tomentum and 

 when mature usually bearing stout thick protuberances 

 directed toward the apex, but these sometimes sup- 

 pressed; pulp edible, cream-colored or rose-tinted; 

 seeds hard, smooth and nutlike, golden brown or tan- 

 colored. Mts. and foot-hills west coast of Mex. to Salva- 

 dor. The fr. is offered for sale in the markets of Colima 

 and Acapulco. It is described by American Consul 

 Marion Letcher, stationed at Acapulco, as shaped like 

 a pineapple cheese, with delicious pink-tinted pulp; 

 and Samuel E. Magill, American Consul at Guada- 

 lajara, states that the frs. grown on the side of the 

 volcanos of Colima and Cerro Grande are of unusually 

 fine quality. This species has been intro. into S. Fla. 



BB. Peduncles devoid of If. -like bracts at the base. 

 c. Lvs. velvety beneath. 



6. Cherim&la, Mill. (A. tripetala, Ait.). CHIRIMOYA. 

 CHERIMOYA. CHERIMOYER. CHERIMOLLA. Tree, 15- 

 25 ft. high, with young growth fulvous tomentose: 

 Ivs. persistently velvety-tomentose beneath, sparsely 

 pubescent above, ovate to ovate-lanceolate or obo- 

 vate, sometimes elliptical, obtuse at the apex or ob- 

 tusely acuminate, usually rounded at the base: fls. fra- 

 grant, extra-axillary, often opposite a If. at the base 

 of a branchlet, usually solitary but sometimes 2 or 3 

 on short nodding tomentose peduncles, the exterior pet- 

 als oblong-linear, not exceeding 1J4 in. length, keeled 

 on the inside and excavated at the base, greenish yellow 

 or rufous on the outside and clothed with velvety tomen- 

 tum, pale yellow or whitish within and marked with a 

 purple spot at the base; inner petals very small, squa- 



