Beef apple, Bull apple
Micropholis rugosa

Family: Sapotaceae

What it is like

A tree. It grows 17 m high. The young shoots have fine hairs. The bark becomes greyish-brown and cracked and scaly. The leaves are spaced and alternate. They are 9-17.2 cm long by 4-7.4 cm wide. They are broadly oval. The leaf stalk is 0.8-1.8 cm long. There is a slight channel in the upper surface. The flowers are of one sex. They occur in tufts of 3-10 flowers in the axils of leaves. The fruit are 3.5-6 cm long. The fruit become yellow or orange when mature. The fruit is edible. There are several seeds. They are 2-2.8 cm long. They have a hard, smooth, shiny coat.

Where it is found

A tropical plant. It grows in both forests and in open places on limestone between 150-900 m altitude in Jamaica.

Countries/locations it is found in

Bolivia, Caribbean, Central America, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Jamaica, Panama, West Indies

How it is used for food

The pulp of the fruit is eaten raw.

Edible parts

Fruit

How it is grown

Its other names

Local names

Synonyms

Chrysophyllum rugosum Swartz.; Sideroxylon rugosum (Swartz.) Roemer & Schultes; Chrysophyllum pomiforme Bertero ex Sprengel; Sideroxylon rugosa (Swartz.) Grisebach; Micropholis rugosa var. harrisii Pierre; Pouteria rugosa (Swartz.) Baehni;