From the book
Fruits of Warm Climates
by Julia F. Morton
Mamoncillo
Melicoccus bijugatus Jacq.
Melicocca bijuga L.
SAPINDACEAE
One of the minor fruits of the family Sapindaceae, the mamoncillo (Melicoccus bijugatus Jacq., syn. Melicocca bijuga L.) has, nevertheless acquired an assortment of regional names, such as: ackee (Barbados only; not to be confused with Blighia sapida,
q.v.); genip, ginep, ginepe, guenepa, guinep (Barbados, Jamaica,
Bahamas, Puerto Rico, Trinidad and Tobago); grosella de miel (Mexico);
guayo (Mexico); honeyberry (Guyana); Jamaica bullace plum, kanappy
(Puerto Rico); kenet (French Guiana); knepa (Surinam); knepe (French
West Indies); knippa (Surinam); limoncillo (Dominican Republic); macao
(Colombia, Venezuela); maco (Venezuela); mamon (Colombia, Venezuela, El
Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Argentina); mamon de Cartagena
(Costa Rica); marmalade box (Guyana); mauco (Venezuela); muco
(Colombia, Venezuela); quenepa (Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico,
Colombia); quenepe (Haiti); quenett (French Guiana); sensiboom
(Surinam); Spanish lime (Florida); tapaljocote (El Salvador).
Fig. 75: The mamoncillo (Melicoccus bijugatus), with its large seeds and thin layer of adhering flesh, provides little but juice.
Description
The mamoncillo
tree is slow-growing, erect, stately, attractive; to 85 ft (25 m) high,
with trunk to 5 1/2 ft (1.7 m) thick; smooth, gray bark, and spreading
branches. Young branchlets are reddish. The leaves are briefly
deciduous, alternate, compound, having 4 opposite, elliptic,
sharp-pointed leaflets 2 to 5 in (5-12.5 cm) long and 1 1/4 to 2 1/2 in
(3.25-6.25 cm) wide, the rachis frequently conspicuously winged as is
that of the related soapberry (Sapindus saponaria
L.). The flowers, in slender racemes 2 1/3 to 4 in (6-10 cm) long,
often clustered in terminal panicles, are fragrant, white, 1/5 to 1/3
in (5-8 mm) wide, with 4 petals and 8 stamens. Male and female are
usually borne on separate trees but some trees are partly polygamous.
The fruit clusters are branched, compact and heavy with nearly round,
green fruits tipped with a small protrusion, and suggesting at first
glance small unripe limes, but there the resemblance ends. The skin is
smooth, thin but leathery and brittle. The glistening pulp (aril) is
salmon-colored or yellowish, translucent, gelatinous, juicy but very
scant and somewhat fibrous, usually clinging tenaciously to the seed.
When fully ripe, the pulp is pleasantly acid-sweet but if unripe
acidity predominates. In most fruits there is a single, large,
yellowish-white, hard-shelled seed, while some have 2 hemispherical
seeds. The kernel is white, crisp, starchy, and astringent.
Origin and
Distribution
The
mamoncillo is native to Colombia, Venezuela, and the island of
Margarita, also French Guiana, Guyana and Surinam. It is commonly
cultivated and spontaneous in those countries, also in coastal Ecuador,
the lowlands of Central America, the West Indies and in the Bahamas. In
Florida, it is occasionally grown as far north as Ft. Myers on the West
Coast and Palm Beach on the east; is much more plentiful in Key West,
especially as a street tree. There are some specimens in California and
in botanical gardens in the Philippines, Zanzibar, Hawaii and
elsewhere. According to Britton, there was a tree about 30 ft (9 m)
tall in Bermuda in 1914 but it had never bloomed. There are a few trees
in Israel but none has flowered before 10 years of age.
Varieties
Little
horticultural attention has been given this fruit. In the 1950's, a
large-fruited, sweet type was found in Key West. Air-layers and
inarchings were made in order to permit trial of this type on the
mainland. In the 1960's, horticulturist George Jackson evaluated the
fruits of 54 trees in southern Puerto Rico. Fruits with less than 45%
edible pulp and 20% total sugars were disregarded. He rated 9 trees as
meriting further testing. Of these, 4 were selected as having the most
desirable qualities. Their main characters were listed as follows:
'Puerto Rico #1'–round,
of medium size, 28 to the lb (62/kg); flesh firm, semi-dry, separating
easily from the seed; sweet, with 26.0% sugars.
'Puerto Rico #2'–round,
of medium size, 27 to the pound (60/kg); rind medium-thick; flesh firm,
semi-dry, separating easily from seed; sweet, 24.1% total sugars.
'Puerto Rico #3'–round
-oblong, small, 49 to the pound (108/kg); rind thin, pliable; flesh
firm, semi-dry, separating easily from the seed; very sweet, 24.1%
total sugars.
'Puerto Rico #4'–round,
medium-small, 40 to the lb (88/kg); rind medium-thin, flesh firm,
semi-dry, separating easily from seed; agreeably acid and slightly
sweet; 22.7% total sugar.
The percentage of edible matter by fruit-weight ranged from 46.6% to 48.6%.
In
1976, Dr. Carl Campbell of the University of Florida's Agricultural
Research and Education Center in Homestead, Florida, reported on his
comparison of 3 selections made by interested individuals and an
ordinary seedling growing at the Center. The latter, labeled 'No. 1',
was graded as: small, 49.1% pulp, but of only fair flavor, and poor
annual yield.
'No. 2', or 'Queen', brought by W.F. Whitman from Key West; large, 55.6% pulp, only fair in flavor, and medium in yield.
'No. 3', brought by R.G. Newcomb from Key West; of good size, 48.2% pulp; of good flavor and borne heavily in most years.
'No. 4', or 'Montgomery',
from the Montgomery (later, Jennings) Estate in Coral Gables; large,
with sometimes 18% of crop having 2 seeds; 51.5% pulp; of good flavor,
and borne heavily in most years.
Pollination
Generally,
the presence of a male tree is necessary to pollinate the flowers of
trees that are predominantly female (or hermaphrodite functioning as
female). However, in Cuba, some trees have sufficient numbers of
flowers of both sexes to yield regularly large crops without
interplanting.
Climate
The mamoncillo is
not strictly tropical, for it ascends up to 3,300 ft (1,000 m) above
sea-level in South America. It can stand several degrees of frost in
Florida. Nevertheless, it is too tender to fruit in California though
it has been planted there on various occasions. It is well adapted to
areas of low rainfall. That of Key West ranges from 30 to 50 in (75-125
cm) annually. The tree can tolerate long periods of drought.
Soil
In Cuba, the tree is
said to flourish in nearly all types of terrain but particularly in
deep, rich soil of calcareous origin. It seems perfectly at home in the
oolitic-limestone of southern Florida and the Florida Keys. In
Colombia, it has been observed to grow on such poor soils that it has
been adopted for planting in soil reclamation efforts. It is
spontaneous especially in dry, coastal districts.
Propagation
The mamoncillo
is usually grown from seed but superior types should be vegetatively
reproduced. Air-layering of fairly large branches, at least 2 in (5 cm)
in diameter, is successful in the summer and there will be adequate
root development in 5 to 6 weeks. Approach-grafting is feasible
provided the rootstocks are raised in a lightweight medium, in plastic
bags to facilitate attachment to the selected tree. Attempts to
veneer-graft or chip-bud have generally failed.
Culture
Ordinarily, the
mamoncillo, tree is given no care except for watering and fertilizing
when first planted. Vegetatively propagated trees bear earlier than
seedlings.
Season and
Harvesting
In Florida, the fruits ripen from June to
September. In the Bahamas, the season extends from July to October.
Ladders and picking poles equipped with cutters are necessary in
harvesting fruits from tall trees. The entire cluster is clipped from
the branch when sampling indicates that the fruits are fully ripe. At
this stage, the rind becomes brittle but does not change color. If
picked prematurely, the rind turns blackish, a sign of deterioration.
Keeping Quality
Because of
the leathery skin, the fruit remains fresh for a long time and ships
and markets well. The tropical horticulturist, David Sturrock, related
that horsemen in Cuba often hung branches of mamoncillos on the saddle
horn to enjoy and relieve thirst during long rides.
Pests and
Diseases
The tree is a host of the Citrus black fly, Aleurocanthus woglumi. There are several parasites (Prospaltella spp., Eretmocerus serius, and Amitus hesperidium) which provide effective control of this pest. In Florida, Armillariella (Clitocybe) tabescens causes mushroom root rot; Fusarium and Phyllosticta cause leaf spot; and Cephaleuros virescens, algal leaf spot and green scurf.
Food Uses
For eating
out-of-hand, the rind is merely torn open at the stem end and the
pulp-coated seed is squeezed into the mouth, the juice being sucked
from the pulp until there is nothing left of it but the fiber. With
fruits that have non-adherent pulp, the latter may be scraped from the
seed and utilized to make pie-filling, jam, marmalade or jelly, but
this entails much work for the small amount of edible material
realized. More commonly, the peeled fruits are boiled and the resulting
juice is prized for cold drinks. In Colombia, the juice is canned
commercially.
The seeds are eaten after roasting. Indians of the Orinoco consume the cooked seeds as a substitute for cassava.
| Food
Value Per
100 g of Edible Portion* |
| Calories
|
58.11-73 |
| Moisture
|
68.8-82.5 g |
| Protein |
0.50-1.0 g |
| Fat | 0.08-0.2 g | | Carbohydrates | 13.5-19.2 g | | Fiber | 0.07-2.60 g |
| Ash |
0.34-0.74g |
| Calcium | 3.4-15 mg | | Phosphorus | 9.8-23.9 mg | | Iron | 0.47-1.19 mg | | Carotene | 0.02-0.44 mg (70 I.U.) |
| Thiamine |
0.03-0.21 mg |
| Riboflavin |
0.01-0.20 mg |
| Niacin |
0.15-0.90 mg |
| Tannin |
1.88 g |
| Amino Acids
(mg per g of nitrogen [N 6.25]) |
| Tryptophan |
14 mg |
| Methionine |
0 mg |
| Lysine |
17 mg |
| *According
to analyses made in Cuba, Central America and Colombia. |
|
Seed Hazard
It has been said
that the pulp fibers coat the lining of the stomach, adversely
affecting the health, but this has been denied by the Government
Chemist of the Department of Science and Agriculture in Jamaica who
declares that fatalities in children are the result of choking on the
seed. When coated with pulp, it is very slippery, is accidentally
swallowed and, because of its size, lodges in the throat, causing
suffocation or strangulation.
Other Uses
Juice: A dye has been experimentally made from the juice of the raw fruit which makes an indelible stain.
Flowers:
The flowers are rich in nectar and highly appealing to hummingbirds and
honeybees. The honey is somewhat dark in color but of agreeable flavor.
The tree is esteemed by Jamaican beekeepers though the flowering season
(March/April) is short.
Leaves:
In Panama, the leaves are scattered in houses where there are many
fleas. It is claimed that the fleas are attracted to the leaves and are
cast out with the swept-up foliage. Some believe that the leaves
actually kill the fleas.
Wood:
The heartwood is yellow with dark lines, compact, hard, heavy,
fine-grained; inclined to decay out of doors, but valued for rafters,
indoor framing, and cabinetwork.
Medicinal Uses:
In Venezuela, the astringent roasted seed kernels are pulverized, mixed
with honey and given to halt diarrhea. The astringent leaf decoction is
given as an enema for intestinal complaints.
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