Grias cauliflora

Anchovy pear
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
(unranked): Angiosperms
(unranked): Eudicots
(unranked): Asterids
Order: Ericales
Family: Lecythidaceae
Genus: Grias
Species: G. cauliflora
Binomial name
Grias cauliflora
L.
Synonyms[1]
  • Grias fendleri Seem.
  • Grias zamorensis Linden
  • Gustavia integrifolia Standl.
  • Grias integrifolia (Standl.) R.Knuth
  • Grias pittieri R.Knuth
  • Grias gentlei Lundell
  • Grias dariensis Dwyer
  • Grias dukei Dwyer
  • Grias sternii Dwyer

The anchovy pear (Grias cauliflora)[2][3][4] (also called the river pear) is a fruit native to Jamaica, Central America, and Colombia. It is often found near rivers or marshes in large colonies. It grows on the evergreen tree Grias cauliflora of the Lecythidaceae (Brazil nut) family.[1]

The edible nuts grow clumped together in large, round, woody and extremely hard seed pods the size of a large grapefruit. The meat of the seed (the “nut”) is very rich in oil and grows from 7 to 9 cm long and 2 to 4 cm in diameter. The tree has fragrant yellow flowers about 5 cm across and grows to a height of about 15 m (50 feet). The anchovy pear tree bears spear-shaped, glossy leaves produced in palm-like tufts that reach an average length of 90 cm. The edible, brown, berrylike fruits for which it is cultivated for pickling are not related to the common pear. The fruit has a taste similar to that of the mango.[5][6][7][8]

References

  1. 1 2 "World Checklist of Selected Plant Families: Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew". kew.org.
  2. ↑ "anchovy pear" in The New Encyclopaedia Britannica. Chicago: Encyclopaedia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 378.
  3. ↑ Linnaeus, Carl von. 1759. Systema Naturae, Editio Decima 2: 1075 in Latin
  4. ↑ Tropicos, Grias cauliflora L.
  5. ↑ Nelson Sutherland, C.H. (2008). Catálogo de las plantes vasculares de Honduras. Espermatofitas: 1-1576. SERNA/Guaymuras, Tegucigalpa, Honduras.
  6. ↑ Davidse, G. & al. (eds.) (2009). Flora Mesoamericana 4(1): 1-855. Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, México, D.F..
  7. ↑ Idárraga-Piedrahita, A., Ortiz, R.D.C., Callejas Posada, R. & Merello, M. (eds.) (2011). Flora de Antioquia: Catálogo de las Plantas Vasculares 2: 1-939. Universidad de Antioquia, Medellín.
  8. ↑ Acevedo-Rodríguez, P. & Strong, M.T. (2012). Catalogue of seed plants of the West Indies. Smithsonian Contributions to Botany 98: 1-1192.
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