THE ANNONACEOUS FRUITS 165 



From its habitat in South America, the cherimoya early spread 

 northward into Mexico; much later it passed into the West 

 Indies, the southern part of South America, and across the seas 

 to the islands near the African coast, to the Mediterranean 

 region, and to India, Polynesia, and Africa. 



At present it is naturalized in many parts of Mexico and 

 Central America. Throughout this region it occurs most 

 abundantly at elevations of 3000 to 6000 feet, occasionally 

 ascending (in Guatemala) to 8000 feet. On the seacoast it is 

 not successful as a fruit-tree, and is rarely grown. The regions 

 which produce the finest cherimoyas in Mexico lie at elevations 

 of 5000 to 6000 feet and are characterized by comparatively 

 dry cool climates. Excellent cherimoyas are grown at Queretaro 

 and in the vicinity of Guadalajara. The fruit is highly esteemed 

 in the markets of Mexico City, where it sells at high prices. 

 While not grown commercially on a scale comparable with 

 the avocado, its culture in certain regions is important, and 

 regular shipments are made to the principal markets of the 

 country. 



In Jamaica, where the cherimoya was introduced by Hinton 

 East in 1785, there are now many trees in the mountainous 

 parts of the island. The fruit is highly esteemed in the markets 

 of Kingston. In Cuba it is almost unknown. There are a 

 few trees in Oriente Province and perhaps elsewhere, but the 

 markets of Habana are not familiar with it. It may be men- 

 tioned that Annona reticulata is often called cherimoya in 

 Cuba, which has led some writers to assume wrongly that the 

 true cherimoya is commonly cultivated in the island. 



In Argentina, cherimoya culture is conducted commercially 

 in several places, notably the Campo Santo district in the prov- 

 ince of Salta. The fruit is shipped to Buenos Aires, where it is 

 marketed at very profitable prices. In Brazil it is not com- 

 monly grown; in fact it is not known in most parts of the 

 Republic. 



