40 



0. P. W. Collection. PLATE XVIII 



Avcrrhoa Caraiiibola. 



This tree, which is said to have been named after Averrhoes, 

 an Arabian physician, is a native of Insular India, and is much 

 cuhivated in India and China. It is evergreen, witli dense foliage, 

 and grows to a height of from 15 to 20 feet. It is easily propa- 

 gated from seeds, and fruits in about three years. In Hawaii it 

 bears one crop annuall_y, the flowers appearing in July and the 

 fruit in November and December. The leaves are alternate, odd- 

 pinnate. The flowers, which are borne in clusters on the naked 

 stems and branches, are minute, fragrant, and in color shading 

 from a pale pink to a deep purplish-red. The fruit, varying in 

 size from a hen's egg to an orange, is ovate, and has five acutely- 

 angled longitudinal ribs. The fragrant, light-yellow skin is very 

 thin, and the pulp is watery ; it contains a number of flat, brown 

 seeds. This fruit is of two varieties : the sweet, which may be 

 eaten raw, and the acid which is delicious when preserved. A 

 very appetizing pickle may be made from the half- ripe fruit of 

 the acid variety. 



