Annona Species Monograph.pdf - Crops for the Future

Chapter 7. Uses
also be extracted from seeds and used as an insecticide (Hernández and
Angel, 1997). The seeds of sugar apple yield an oil suitable for soap making,
and the cake can be used as a manure (Mishra et al., 1979, Salunkhe and
Desai, 1984).
Wild soursop bark can be used to produce a yellow or brown dye (in Uganda)
and its wood is used for making tool handles (FAO, 1983). As is the case
with many woody species in areas of subsistence agriculture, the plant is
multi-purpose. The leaves and young shoots are used as vegetables, the
flower buds are used to flavour foods and the bark is used for rope making.
Sugar apple prunings are valuable for thatch in India because they are not
attacked by white ants (Singh, 1992).
In general, the annonas offer potential for agroforestry, although this
potential is seldom exploited. The presence of annonine in the leaves, stems
and other parts make the plants bitter to goats or cattle. Aiyelaagbe (1994)
reported on a system that improved the productivity in a cashew-coconut
system in Kenya and which could also be adopted for annona production.
However, care should be taken for annona production as the plants do not
perform well under low light intensity conditions, which may be created with
combined planting.
Lastly, various species can be used as rootstocks to which other desirable
species can be grafted. Since A. reticulata can withstand diverse ecological
conditions and survive long dry periods, it is very useful as a vigorous
rootstock. A. diversifolia also has a similar ecological amplitude, but has
been less widely tested.
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