Massaranduba, Black massaranduba, Macaranduba-pre-ta
Manilkara salzmannii

Family: Sapotaceae

What it is like

A small to large tree. They are often 10 m high. They can be 30 m high in lowland rainforest. The bark is cracked. The young branches are pale grey. They are hairy are first but become smooth. The leaves are 4-13 cm long by 2-5.7 cm wide. They are often fattened and sword shaped. There are 10-16 pairs of veins. The leaf stalk is 0.5-2.1 cm long. It has a channel along it. The flowers occur as 3-10 in a tuft of branches arising from the one place. The flower stalk is 0.7-1.5 cm long. The flowers are white or cream and can have a scent. The fruit is 2-2.5 cm long by 1.7-2.5 cm wide. It is oval or round. It becomes reddish-orange to purple-black at maturity. There are 1 or 2 seeds. The seeds are 1.3-1.5 cm long by 0.8-0.9 cm wide and flattened. The seed coat is hard and smooth. The fruit is edible.

There are about 75 Manilkara species.

Where it is found

A tropical plant. Sea level to 200 m. It grows in the coastal region in Brazil. It grows in mangrove, sandy and rocky shores.

Countries/locations it is found in

Brazil (country/location of origin), South America

How it is used for food

The fruit are eaten fresh.

Edible parts

Fruit, latex

How it is grown

Plants are grown from seed. Ripe fruit are harvested and put into plastic bags to soften. The seeds are removed. Fresh seed are planted. They germinate in 4-60 days.

Plants grow at a moderate rate.

Its other names

Local names

Synonyms

Mimusops salzmanii A. de Candolle; Mimusops salzmannii var. mucronulata A. de Candolle;