Guapeva, Bapeva
Pouteria psammophila

Family: Sapotaceae

What it is like

A tree. It loses many of its leaves during the year. It grows 4-12 m tall. The crown is round. The trunk is grooved and 20-30 cm across. The bark is thin and brown and flakes off in thin strips. The leaves are near the ends of branches. The leaves are widely oval 8-16 cm long by 4-7 cm wide. The flowers are in groups near the axils of leaves.

Where it is found

It is a tropical plant. It grows in humid forests on rocky slopes near the Atlantic in Brazil.

Countries/locations it is found in

Asia, Brazil (country/location of origin), Chile, East Timor, Ecuador, South America, Timor-Leste

How it is used for food

The pulp of the fruit is eaten raw.

Edible parts

Fruit

How it is grown

Plants are grown from seeds. The seeds are collected from ripe that have fallen and the fruit are partly decomposed in a pile to make seed removal easier. The seeds are cleaned under running water. Seeds need to be planted fresh. They should be in light shade. Seedlings emerge in 70-80 days.

Plant growth in the field is slow.

Its other names

Local names

Synonyms

Achras ferruginea Casar.; Guapeba nitida (A. DC.) Pierre; Guapeba psammophila (Mart.) Pierre; Labatia psammophila Mart.; Lucuma nitida A. DC.; Lucuma psammophila (Mart.) A. DC.; Pouteria crassinervia Engl.; Pouteria nitida (A. DC.) Radlk.; Pseudolabatia psammophila (Mart.) Aubrev.; Sapota ferruginea (Casar.) Walp.; Xantolis psammophila (Mart.) Baehni;