Common Trees of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands

38. Corazbn, custard-apple
CorazBn or custard-apple is a cultivated and escaped
fruit tree distinguished by : (1) shorkpetiolecl
lance-shnped to oblong leaves. Slh-8 lnclles
long and 1-2 inches wide, long-pointed at apex
and short-pointed at base, alternate and in 2 rows;
(2) light green narrow flowers x-1 inch long, with
3 narrowly oblong fleshy petals not opening
widely, l~sually n few together in n droop~~ig lateral
cluster; and (3) rounded or heart-shaped
smooth reddish-brown fruit 3-5 inches in diameter,
with a network of lines on surface, and with
sweet, pale yellow, tallomlike. edible pulp.
A small decirlnous tree to 25 feet tall and to 1
foot. in trunk diameter, with s very spreading
crown. The gray or brown bark is smoothish,
becoming shallowly furrowed. Inner bark is light
brown, fibrous, and almost tasteless. Twigs are
green ancl finely hairy when young, becoming
brawn or ,rgra;y,
Petioles ale x-v8 inch long. The blades, not
toothed at edges, are thin, dull green above and
sligl~lltly paler or gray green beneath, finely hairy
when young.
Flower cll~sters arise from a very short. lateral
twig bnt not :it. base of a leaf, the slender flower
stalks about 1 inch long. Flowers have n strong
fragrance. There are 3 broad, pointed, brownish
hairy sepals less than Y8 inch long; 3 narrow fleshy
petals q&-1 inch long, less than 1/4 inch wide, and
I,& inch thick, minutely hairy, light peen, the
inside keeled :uld pale yellow with purplish or red-
dish spot, at. base, turning brown and fulling, and
9 inner petals 21s minute pointed scales less than
% inch long; very many t.iny narrow ~vhitish stalnens
less than Wo inch long crowded together;
and numerous tiny separate pistils l/lu inch long
wit11 hairy greenish ovaries and pale yellow
?;ligl~tly sticky stigmas in n conical central mass.
The base of the fri~it is sunken nest to the stout
stalk. The aggregate fruit, formed from many
pistils, has a coarse network of rhomboidnl or hex-
:~go~itll markin~q wl~llich show the individual ovaries.
The soft sweet is11 edible pulp adheres closely
to the seeds. There are many oblong shiny dark
bron7n seeds itbout 1, inch long. Recorded in
ANNONA FAMILY (ANNONACEAE)
Annona reticulata L*
flower from June to September and in fruit from
Se tember to April.
~apwood is light brown. The lightweight weak
wood is little used in Puerto Rico. Elsewhere ox
yokes hrlve been made from it.
I\llough this species is wyidely cultivated as a
fruit tree, other minor uses have been recorded.
The pulp is used in home remedies. The powdered
seeds serve as an insecticide to kill lice. A strong
fiber can be obtained from the bark. The leaves
i~nd branches reportedly yield a blue or black dye
tlnd have been employed in tanning.
Estensively planted around houses and spreading
in rowdsicles, pastures, and forests, commonest
in the coastal regions of Puerto Rico. Also in
Yieques, St. Croix, St. Thomas, St. John, and
Tortola. It is not known whether this species is
native here.
PU~LIC ~on~s~s.-,4guirre, Boquerdn, Cambalache,
Gunjatacn, GuSnicn, Luquillo, Rio Abajo,
San Juan, Susila.
MUNICIIBALITIES WHERE EBPECIALLY COMMON.-
11,88.
RAXGE.--Native of tropical America, apparently
in West Indies and Central America, the botani-
c:ll type specimen from Jamaica. Now widely cul-
tivated as a fruit tree north to southern Florida
and spreading or llatumlized over tropical Amer-
ica through West Indies and from Mexico to Peru
and Brazil. Introducecl in the Old World tropics
and becoming naturalized there.
OTHER COlI3ION NADZES.--CO~%Z~~ (Spanish
it1arn6n (Dominican Republic) ; mam6n (Cuba
nnonn (Centrnl America) ; unonillo, anona colo-
r:tda (Guatemala) ; anona coloradn (El Salva-
dor) ; anona de redecilla (Honduras, Nicaragua) ;
sncin, ailonillo (Costa Rica) ; an6n (Panama
:1n6n pel611 (Colombia) ; chirimoys (Venezuela
custard-apple, bulloclr-heart (United States, Eng-
lish) ; coeur cle boeuf (Jamaica) ; caclliman coeur
boeuf (Haiti) ; cacllirntln coeur-de-boeuf (Guade-
lonpe) ; knsjoenia custard-a ple (Dutch West In-
dies) ; comqito de boi (nraxi P ).
Colrirr~on names in different languages describe
the hcl~rt-shaped fruit.