THE TAJIN TOTONAC PART 1 — KELLY AND PALERM 



143 



to start bearing after 3 years. The fruit is eaten 

 with a tortilla but is not considered tasty. The 

 particular virtue of this avocado lies in its leaf, 

 which is regarded as highly medicinal and is espe- 

 cially prominent in magical cures. 



Another tree described as similar to the avocado 

 is known as the pagua spaw ; considered Totonac) . 

 Only one example is known to us in Taj in and it 

 is immature; but several bearing trees occur in 

 nearby San Antonio, where Totonac from as far 

 away as Plan de Hidalgo go to buy. There is a 

 firm belief that one who plants the pagua will die — 

 according to some, when the tree blossoms, accord- 

 ing to others, when it first bears fruit. 65 The 

 fruit is described as "very large" and of distinc- 

 tive flavor. It is said that the green-skinned form 

 contains little fiber, while the black-skinned is 

 generously endowed. 



We have seen relatively few guava trees 

 (giucyabo, Psidium guajava L., No. 326). One 

 informant says that the tree occurs both wild and 

 cultivated; another, that it is not planted but 

 appears as a volunteer, as the result of bird drop- 

 pings. At best, it may be considered semiculti- 

 vated. The fruit is eaten raw or cooked with 

 sugar. The leaf is thought to be medicinal. 



Passing mention may be made of the anona 

 (No. 57), whose fruit sometimes is eaten. The 

 tree is said not to be planted and again volunteers 

 are attributed to bird droppings. 



The calabash tree (zacual, Crescentia cujete L., 

 No. 300) is grown in the yard, either from seed 

 or from cuttings; it does not occur wild. There 

 are two kinds, one bearing a large globular fruit, 

 the other an equally large, but elongated fruit. 

 Both are used extensively as household receptacles. 



INTRODUCED FRUIT TREES 



The mango (mango, Mangifera indica L., No. 

 282) is planted from seed. The fruit is green- 

 skinned, not yellow, and the entire supply is 

 consumed locally. 



Citrus fruits include oranges, limas, and limes. 

 We know only two citron trees in Taj in, although 

 all four fruits are reported in the late sixteenth 

 century for a number of Totonac settlements (re- 



" This notion may be widespread, for Angel Palerm notes a 

 similar belief, associated with the avocado, in Villa Guerrero, 

 between Toluca and Ixtapan de la Sal, in the State of Mexico. 



lactones geogrdficas of Misantla, Hueytlalpan, 

 "Matlatlan" and Chila). 



The sweet orange is called smugly naranjo 

 criollo (native orange; we recorded on Totonac 

 name). It produces "about All Souls' Day," and 

 is planted at that time, in the milpa or the yard. 

 The bitter orange (naranjo de cucha) is said to 

 grow unsolicited. The fruit is eaten fresh or is 

 squeezed into water to make a refreshing drink. 

 Both leaf and juice are considered mildly medic- 

 inal. A sweet orange grafted to the bitter is said 

 to be immune to attack by arriera ants. As noted 

 above, the Totonac do not know how to graft, but 

 Juan Castro, a local resident originally from Pa- 

 pantla, performs the operation upon request. 

 Recently grafted trees are surrounded by a circle 

 of ash, to discourage the ants, and for the same 

 reason a wad of cotton is tied around the branch 

 just below the graft. 



Most oranges are distinguished merely as bit- 

 ter or sweet, but one Tajin merchant with more 

 outside contact than average boasts, by his own 

 account, one tree of each of the following oranges : 

 China, Japonesa, Washington, nave (navel?), and 

 sangre (blood), as well as naranjo de cucha. 



Out of 38 families, 5 have no orange trees, but 

 the others claim from 1 to 30 trees apiece. How- 

 ever, a good many are young trees which still are 

 not bearing. Not many sell. One man, the owner 

 of 22 trees, sold 300 oranges in 1946, for a total 

 of $10.50 pesos. Other sales appear to be even 

 smaller. 



The lima is not the equivalent of our lime, al- 

 though the name suggests it. We collected no 

 specimen, but Martinez (1937, p. 279) lists the 

 lima dulce as Citrus limetta Risso. The fruit is 

 not prized locally and trees are not plentiful. Of 

 38 families, 26 have one or more lima trees, but 

 with one exception, of 10 trees, no family has more 

 than 4. The lima is sold on small scale by a limited 

 number of families, generally those definitely in 

 need of funds. The price may be as little as $1.00 

 peso a hundred. 



The occurrence of the lime (limon; limiinAS, 

 considered Totonac; Citrus aurantifolia (Christ- 

 mann) Swingle, No. 332) is negligible. Of the 

 same 38 families mentioned previously, 2 have each 

 a single tree. 



Except for the orange, the introduced fruits 

 mentioned above are grown in a very desultory 



