Lucumito, Durland pouteria
Pouteria durlandii

Family: Sapotaceae

What it is like

A tree. It grows 25 m high. It can have buttresses 2 m high. The bark is grey brown or reddish-brown. The leaves are 7.5-20 cm long. There are 7-14 pairs of secondary veins. The flowers are greenish-white. The fruit is 2-2.5 cm long. The fruit become yellow or orange when ripe. There are 1-2 seeds. The seed is 1.6-2.3 cm long.

There are about 150-320 Pouteria species. They grow in the tropics.

Where it is found

A tropical plant. It occurs on wetter slopes. It grows in wet lowland rainforest. It can occur up to 850 m altitude.

Countries/locations it is found in

Amazon, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Central America, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, North America, Panama, Peru, South America (country/location of origin), Venezuela

How it is used for food

The fruit are sweet and are eaten.

Edible parts

Fruit

How it is grown

Plants are grown from seeds. The seeds are collected from ripe fruit that have been stored in a pike for a few days to allow them to partly decompose then washed out in running water. Seeds need to be planted fresh and in light shade. Seedlings emerge in 100-120 days.

Plants grow slowly.

Its other names

Local names

Abiu-mirim, Asipokoballi, Bapeba, Beyinca, Cauje, Couje, Huico, Kandawarumira, Maju'y, Mammey cedera, Menimo, Sacha aviyu, Tao po'so, Yaas, Yana aviyu, Zapotillo blanco, Typical chiapas pouteria

Synonyms

Lucuma durlandii Standley; Pouteria suffulta Baehni; Paralabatia durlandii (Standley) Aubreville; Pouteria potosina Lundell; Peteniodendron potosinum (Lundell) Lundell; Peteniodendron durlandii (Standley) Lundell; Peteniodendron belizense Lundell; Paralabatia belizensis (Lundell) Lundell; Paralabatia potosina (Lundell) Lundell;