TORE CW BA, BE Var, W 13 
and culture have recently been undertaken in several experimental plant-breeding 
stations in Brazil, and it is believed that this already very ornamental and useful fruit 
tree will soon be grown to a much greater degree of perfection and that its fruit will be- 
come a most valuable addition to our desserts. 
The tree may be described as one of the most beautiful and unique plants in the 
tropics. It attracts the attention of all travelers. Few trees have such beautiful 
leaves, flowers and fruit as the rose apple. The crown generally develops into a beauti- 
ful pyramidal head with numerous relatively small branches forming a dense growth of 
small branches, twigs and very shiny, dark green leaves that are lance-shaped and very 
long acuminate. They are from one to two inches wide and from five to eight inches 
long, and are so numerous that they do not allow any sunlight to pass through the crown 
to the ground below. 
The flowers are more or less showy and are attached close to the branches. The 
stamens are very numerous and white, and the other parts of the floral envelope range 
from green to white and sometimes quite pinkish in color. The fruit of the best known 
varieties is only about two inches long and is distinctly pear-shaped and yellowish white, 
tinged with a bright rose color. In general appearance it resembles the pomegranate or 
granada apple to which it is closely allied botanically. It is a very attractive fruit to 
look at, but it is not so pleasant to the taste as its delicate odor would at first lead one to 
think. The pulp contains about 12% of sugar, and it is believed that by proper culti- 
vation and forcing, the tree could be made to produce a far superior fruit both as to size 
and percentage of sugar content. When this is accomplished there will probably be no 
other tree that will yield so good a fruit for making jelly, preserves and cooling beverages. 
The Genip or Mamoncillo 
The genip is an uncommonly interesting tree, especially from the time its abundant 
clusters of fruits begin to appear in the early spring until they drop in late summer. 
No other fruit tree in the American tropics is better known by children, who are very 
fond of the honey berries, as they are generally called in the English-speaking regions of 
its range of growth. The tree produces grape-like clusters of fruits which in size and shape 
compare favorably with small plums; they are at first green, then yellow, and have a 
very agreeable sub-acid flavor, and are sometimes called Spanish lime. 
The botanical generic name is Melicocca, which was derived from the two Latin 
words meli, honey, and coccos, berry, having reference to the sweet taste of the berries. 
The specific name is bijuga, which relates to the two-jointed character of the leaf, which 
bears two pairs of leaflets. Some of the popular names in use for the tree and fruits 
are bullace plum, keneppy tree, kenip, kenepier, guenepe, guenette, guenettier. The 
German name is honigbeere, and in Venezuela it is called cotopriz and mico. The Indian 
name in the same region is cuspiritu. In Cuba it appears to be known only under the 
name of mamoncillo de Cuba. In Curacao the Spaniards call the tree monos. 
The tree is remarkably hardy and thrives well under almost all conditions except 
in very dry barren soil. Trees will thrive in a mixture of loam and peat, or in a light 
loamy soil; the ripened cuttings will strike root in sand. While the genip is said to be 
native to the Guianas, it is now flourishing throughout the West Indies, and has been 
introduced also into the East Indies. It has been planted and grows successfully in 
southern California, and also in Florida, where it is said to bear fruit as far north as 
Cape Canaveral. 
There are few tropical trees that bear fruit in such large quantities as the genip 
tree, and although its fruits are highly prized by all children, surprisingly little use has 
been made of these plum-like berries for domestic purpose. This is due partly to the 
fact that the edible pulp between the outer thin leathery skin and the relatively large 
seed within is rather scant. When ripe this pulpy matter is transformed into a semi- 
translucent juicy substance which has a vinous flavor and is very bright yellow in color; 
the coloring principle in these ripe fruits dyes cotton a fast yellow. This color substance 
