Guettarda viburnoides

Family: Rubiaceae

What it is like

A tree. It grows 4-7 m tall. The crown can be rounded or pyramid shape. The trunk is short. It is 15-25 cm across. The bark is thin and fairly smooth. The leaves are simple and opposite in 2 directions. There are hairs upper surface and a white coating underneath. Leaves are 11-16 cm long and 7-11 cm wide. The leaf stalk is 1-6 cm long. The flowers are on long stalks. There are 10-30 cream or white flowers. The fruit is round and has a wrinkled surface. It is 1.7 cm across. There is only one seed.

There are about 80-100 Guettarda species. They are mostly in tropical America.

Where it is found

A tropical plant. It grows in semi-deciduous forest in hills in Brazil.

Countries/locations it is found in

Bolivia, Brazil, Guyana, South America

How it is used for food

Edible parts

Fruit

How it is grown

Plants are grown from seed. Seed often take a long time to germinate. Ripe fruit are harvested and put in a plastic bag to soften to make it easier to remove the seeds. They are washed under running water and planted fresh. Seeds germinate in 5-6 weeks.

Its other names

Local names

Angada, Angico, Arariba, Pereira, Veludinho, Veludo, Veludo-branco

Synonyms

Guettarda platyphylla Müll.Arg.; Guettarda viburnoides var. rhombifolia Müll.Arg.; Guettarda viburnoides f. intermedia Chodat & Hassl.; Matthiola platyphylla (Müll.Arg.) Kuntze; Matthiola viburnoides (Cham. & Schltdl.) Kuntze;