170 TREES 



tile trees the fruits mature into great melons, sometimes 

 as large as a man's head; but these are the cultivated 

 varieties. Wild papaws rarely exceed four inches long, 

 and usually they are smaller. When full grown the fruit 

 turns to bright orange-yellow. The succulent pulp 

 separates easily from the round seeds. 



In the W^est Indies, the trees often branch and attain 

 much greater size than in Florida, where fifteen feet is 

 the maximum, in the wilds. 



The leaves of this papaw contain, in their abundant 

 sap, a solvent, 'papain, which has the property of destroy- 

 ing the connective tissue in meats. They are bruised by 

 the natives and tough meat, wrapped closely in them, 

 becomes tender in a few hours. The fruits are eaten raw 

 and made into preserves. Negroes use the leaves also as a 

 substitute for soap in the washing of clothes. 



THE POND APPLES 



The pond apple (Anona glabra, Linn.) is our only rep- 

 resentative of its genus that reaches tree form and size, 

 and it is the second of our native custard-apples. It 

 comes to us via the West Indies, and reaches no farther 

 north than the swamps of southern Florida. It is a 

 familiar tree on the Bahama Islands. Thirty to forty 

 feet high, the broad head rises from a short trunk, less 

 than two feet in diameter, but very thick compared with 

 the wide-spreading, contorted branches and slender branch- 

 lets. It is often buttressed at the base. The leaves 

 are oval and pointed, rarely more than four inches long, 

 bright green, leathery, paler on the lower surface, plain- 



