190 MANUAL OF TROPICAL AND SUBTROPICAL FRUITS 



petals linear-oblong in form, the inner petals minute. The fruit 

 is conical, oval, or round in form, the largest specimens weighing 

 about H pounds. The surface is rough, with the carpel- 

 lary areas indicated by deeply incised lines; from each of 

 the areoles thus formed rises a short thick protuberance. 

 Sometimes these protuberances are suppressed, the fruit then 

 being almost smooth. The color varies from pale green to 

 magenta-pink. An appearance of whiteness is given by the 

 presence of a thick bloom over the entire surface. In the pale 

 green varieties the flesh is white ; in the pink kinds it is tinged 

 with rose-pink. The flavor is sweet, very similar to that of the 

 sugar-apple in the green varieties ; in the pink it is more acid, 

 resembling that of the cherimoya. The seeds are about as 

 numerous as in the latter species but larger in size. The fruits 

 are used fresh, like those of the sugar-apple. 



The ilama is indigenous in the mountains and foothills of 

 southwestern Mexico, Guatemala, and Salvador, but is not 

 known to occur at elevations greater than 2000 feet. It is 

 found in the gardens of many Mexican and Central American 

 towns, notably in Tapachula, Chiapas, where it is one of the 

 principal cultivated fruit-trees. In Colima and Acapulco, 

 Mexico, it is called ilama (the ilamatzapotl or "old women's 

 zapote" of Hernandez), while from Tehuantepec to the Guate- 

 malan border it is known as papauce. In Guatemala and 

 Salvador it is named anona blanca. 



The climatic requirements of the ilama are similar to those 



of the sugar-apple and the custard-apple. The species is found 



only at relatively low elevations, indicating that it prefers a 



i hot climate. The amount of cold it will withstand has not yet 



ff been determined. The regions where it occurs most abundantly 



/ are dry during several consecutive months and subject to 



/ abundant rainfall the remainder of the year. In Guatemala it 



I sometimes appears in places where there is little rainfall. The 



same is true as regards Tehuantepec, but in this region the trees 



