From Plant
Resources of South-East Asia No 2: Edible fruits and nuts, PROSEA
Foundation
by L. P. A. Oyen
Taxon
Eugenia dombeyi (Sprengel) Skeels
Protologue
US Dept. Agr. Bur. Pl. Industr. Bull. 233: 51
(1912).
Family
MYRTACEAE
Chromosome
Numbers
2n = unknown
Synonyms
Eugenia
brasiliensis Lamk (1789), non Aublet (1775), Myrtus dombeyi
Sprengel (1825).
Vernacular
Names
Grumichama, Brazil cherry (En). Cerisier du Brésil, jambosier du Brésil
(Fr).
Origin and
Geographic Distribution
The grumichama occurs wild and cultivated in coastal southern Brazil
(Parana, Santa Catarina). It is also cultivated in Paraguay and the
United States (Florida, Hawaii) and occasionally planted elsewhere in
the tropics and subtropics.
Uses
The
fruit of the grumichama is appreciated more than that of several other,
more widely grown Eugenia
species. It is eaten fresh when ripe, or made into jams, pies or
preserves when half ripe. However, the persistent sepals ('rabbit
ears') and the modest flesh to seed ratio limit the appeal of the
fruit. Its dark, glossy leaves, reddish young shoots and shapely canopy
make the tree an attractive ornamental. An infusion of 10 g of leaves
or bark in 300 ml water is used as an aromatic, astringent diuretic and
as a treatment for rheumatism in Brazil.
Properties
The fruit has a thin and delicate skin, soft and melting pulp and a
mild subacid taste. The taste largely resides in the skin. Per 100 g
edible portion, the fruit contains: water 85 g, protein 0.6 g, fat 0.3
g, carbohydrates 13.4 g, fibre 0.6 g and ash 0.4 g. The bark and leaves
contain 1.5% of an essential oil and have an attractive aromatic smell.
Bark, wood and leaves contain large amounts of tannins, reportedly
among the highest found in plants (34% in the bark).
Botany
Small, evergreen tree, 7—10(—20) m tall; crown narrow, compact; trunk
short with grey bark, branches suberect. Leaves opposite, ovate to
obovate-elliptic, 10—12 cm x 5—6 cm, leathery, glossy, minutely pitted
on both surfaces, margin recurved; petiole 3—4 mm long; leaves persist
for 2 years, buds large with velvety scales, young shoots rosy. Flowers
solitary, axillary, 2.5 cm wide, white, slightly fragrant; pedicel 3
cm; sepals 4, 8 mm long, green; petals 4, 15 mm long, white; stamens
about 100, white. Fruit a globose to oblate berry, up to 3—5 cm in
diameter, with persistent sepals at apex, hanging on long, slender
pedicel, bright-red, dark purple to nearly black, or white; skin thin
and delicate; pulp red or white, juicy, soft, sweet. Seeds one to
several, globose to angular, about 1 cm in diameter, hard, light brown
to grey-green.
Three varieties have been distinguished, based on little more than
fruit colour:
— var. iocarpus
Berg (= var. dombeyi): fruits deep violet;
— var. erythrocarpus
Berg: fruits red;
— var. leucocarpus
Berg: fruits white, tallest trees; less common.
Ecology
The grumichama requires a humid, tropical to subtropical climate.
Mature trees tolerate frost to —3°C for short periods, but young shoots
are affected. Deep sandy loams with good fertility, but acid rather
than calcareous, are preferred.
Agronomy
The tree is commonly grown from seed, though propagation through
cutting, air layering and grafting is easy. Seeds lose their viability
in about 6 weeks. Seedlings initially grow slowly unless raised with
much care, and take 4—6 years to come into production. On light soils
applications of organic matter as manure or mulch are recommended.
Light shade and protection from strong winds are preferred. In the
subtropics the trees flower synchronously in spring. The fruit ripens
within one month and the harvest is over in a matter of days. In the
tropics flowering and fruiting extend over several months; in Rio de
Janeiro the trees flower from October to February. Little or no pruning
is required until the tree ages, as the canopy remains compact. Limb
dieback caused by an unknown pathogen has been reported from Florida.
The Mediterranean fruit fly can be a serious pest in Hawaii.
Genetic
Resources
No breeding work has been done. So little material has been introduced
in other countries that one would have to go to the region of origin
for germplasm collection and selection work.
Prospects
Although the taste of the fruit is favoured, grumichama is essentially
a plant for the home garden, where its ornamental value supplements the
usefulness of the fruit.
Literature
Berg, O., 1857. Myrtaceae. In: de Martius, C.F.P. (Editor): Flora
Brasiliensis 14(1). Leipzig. pp. 347—348.
Campos Viana, V.R., 1977. Contribuiço ao estudo das frutas silvestres
das matas do Rio de Janeiro [Contribution to the study of wild fruits
in the vegetation of Rio de Janeiro]. Leandra 6—7(7): 95—106.
Maxwell, L.S. & Maxwell, B.M., 1980. Florida fruit. Revised
edition.L.S. Maxwell, Tampa, Florida. p. 49.
Morton, J.F., 1987. Fruits of warm climates. Creative Resource Systems,
Winterville, N.C., USA. pp. 390—391.
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