Black balata, Chicle
Manilkara bidentata subsp. surinamensis

Family: Sapotaceae

What it is like

A shrub or small tree. It is sometimes 1-2 m high. In the rainforest it can grow 40 m high. It then often has buttresses. The bark is greyish brown and deeply cracked. The plant has lots of sticky white sap. The leaves are 7-21 cm long and usually sword shaped and rounded at the tip. The leaf stalk is 2.5 cm long. The tree loses its leaves for a short period of time just before flowering. The new leaves and flowers develop together. The flowers are greenish-white. The fruit ripens reddish-purple to black. The fruit are edible.

There are about 80 Manilkara species. There are 30 species in tropical America.

Where it is found

A tropical plant. It is native to the southern Caribbean. It grows from sea level to 1500 m altitude. It grows in lowland forests which are occasionally flooded. It can grow in dry forest in white sand. It suits hardiness zones 11-12.

Countries/locations it is found in

Amazon, Antilles, Bolivia, Brazil, Central America, Colombia, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guianas, Guyana, Haiti, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico, South America, Suriname, Trinidad, Venezuela, Virgin Islands, West Indies, Winward Islands

How it is used for food

The latex has been used as a source of chicle for chewing gum. The fruit is oily and eaten.

The fruit is eaten especially by children.

Edible parts

Fruit, latex

How it is grown

Its other names

Local names

Balata, Ausubo, Bullet wood, Caramuxy, Iwakush, Maparajuba, Massaranduba, Oopowe, Quinilla colorada

Synonyms

Achras nitida Sesse & Mocino; Manilkara amazonica (Huber) Chevalier; Manilkara balata var. domingensis (Pierre) Dubard; Manilkara longiciliata Ducke; Manilkara nitida (Sesse & Mocino) Dubard; Manilkara reidleana Pierre ex Baillon; Manilkara siqueiraei Ducke; Manilkara surinamensis (Miquel) Dubard; Mimusops amazonica Huber; Mimusops balata Pierre; Mimusops balata var. domingensis Pierre; Mimusops domingensis (Pierre) Moscoso; Mimusops maparajuba Huber; Mimusops nitida (Sesse & Mocino) Urban; Mimusops reidleana (Pierre ex Baillon) Dubard; Mimusops surinamensis Miquel;