Sweet cotton
Brosimum gaudichaudii

Family: Moraceae

What it is like

A small to medium sized tree. The trunk is crooked. It grows 4-8 m tall. The trunk is 20-40 cm across. The leaves are alternate. They are oval and 8-10 cm long by 4-6 cm wide. The veins are easy to see. The male and female flowers are separate. There are several male flowers in a group and female flowers occur singly. The fruit are small. They tend to form on branches, side by side. They become shrunken and orange when ripe. There is one seed. The juice is chewed.

Where it is found

A tropical plant. It grows in savannah and scrub forest in Brazil. In Bolivia it grows up to 500 m altitude and in areas with rainfall of 1,000-1,500 mm per year.

Countries/locations it is found in

Amazon, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil (country/location of origin), South America, Paraguay

How it is used for food

The juice is sucked out of the fruit and chewed like gum.

The fruit are enjoyed in Central Brazil.

Edible parts

Fruit pulp, root - spice, sap

How it is grown

Plants are grown from seed. The ripe fruit are put in a plastic bag to allow them to soften then the seeds removed. Fresh seed are planted and they germinate in 30-40 days. Plants can be grown from root cuttings.

Plants grow slowly.

Its other names

Local names

Algodaizinho, Apinima, Apta, Chicle, Conduru, Fruta-de-cera, Inhare, Inharzinho, Irere, Mama-cadela, Mamica-de-cadela, Maminha-cadela, Murure arbusto

Synonyms

Alicastrum gaudichaudii (Trecul) Kuntze; Brosimum gaudichaudii f macrophyllum Hassl.; Brosimum pusillum Hassl.; Brosimum glaucifolium Ducke;