Buchenavia tomentosa

Family: Combretaceae

What it is like

A tree. It grows 5-12 m tall. The trunk is short and 30-50 cm across. The leaves are simple and rough. They are 12-22 cm across and 5-9 cm wide. They can be rusty coloured underneath. The flowers are in clustered spikes at the ends of the stems. The fruit are oval and fleshy with a hard stone inside. They have fleshy sweet pulp when ripe. There is only one seed.

There are about 8 Buchenavia species.

Where it is found

It is a tropical plant. It grows in semi-deciduous forests in Brazil.

Countries/locations it is found in

Amazon, Bolivia, Brazil, Peru, South America

How it is used for food

The pulp of the ripe fruit is eaten raw.

Edible parts

Fruit

How it is grown

Plants can be grown from seed. The ripe fruit are harvested and put into a plastic bag until the fruit rot making it easier to remove the seeds. Seeds can only be stored for a short time. Fresh seed should be planted. The seed germinate in 15-20 days. The seedlings can be transplanted into the field when 5-6 months old.

Plants grow 2 m tall in 2 years.

Its other names

Local names

Cuirana, Fruta-de-veado, Pebanheira, Tarumarana, Yacushapana

Synonyms

Buchenavia corrugata Ducke; Buchenavia dapitata (Vahl.) Eichl.; Terminalia tomentosa Mart. ex Eichler; Terminalia tomentosa Wight & Arn.;