Pourouma cecropiifolia

(Redirected from Amazon Grape)

Pourouma cecropiifolia (Amazon grape, Amazon tree-grape or uvilla; syn. P. multifida) is a species of Pourouma, native to tropical South America, in the western Amazon Basin in northern Bolivia, western Brazil, southeastern Colombia, eastern Ecuador, eastern Peru, and southern Venezuela.[2]

Pourouma cecropiifolia
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Rosales
Family: Urticaceae
Genus: Pourouma
Species:
P. cecropiifolia
Binomial name
Pourouma cecropiifolia

It is a medium-sized evergreen tree growing to 20 m tall. The leaves are palmately compound, with 9–11 leaflets 10–20 cm long and 2.5–4 cm broad, on a 20 cm petiole. The flowers are white, produced 20 or more together in a 10 cm long inflorescence; it is dioecious, with male and female flowers on separate trees. The fruit is ovoid, 1–2 cm long, purple when ripe, grape-like except for its wintergreen smell; the skin is rough, inedible but easily peeled.[3][4]

Agriculture

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The fruit is sweet and juicy, eaten fresh and made into jams. The skin is abrasive, and can cause injuries to the sensitive skin around the mouth. It should be peeled before eaten. The tree grows quickly, and grows well in poor upland soils. It is vulnerable to floods. The fruit is susceptible to fungal attacks and does not keep well, which limits its commercial viability.[4]

It is considered a wild edible plant, as most of the little cultivation is for domestic consumption.[5]

References

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  1. ^ Botanic Gardens Conservation International (BGCI).; IUCN SSC Global Tree Specialist Group (2019). "Pourouma cecropiifolia". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2019: e.T145590526A145683986. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-2.RLTS.T145590526A145683986.en. Retrieved 18 November 2021.
  2. ^ "Pourouma cecropiifolia". Germplasm Resources Information Network. Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 16 January 2018.
  3. ^ Huxley, A., ed. (1992). New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. Macmillan ISBN 0-333-47494-5.
  4. ^ a b "Pourouma cecropiifolia". Rainforest Conservation Fund. Archived from the original on 2007-02-28. Retrieved 2007-05-01.
  5. ^ Duarte-Casar, Rodrigo; González-Jaramillo, Nancy; Bailon-Moscoso, Natalia; Rojas-Le-Fort, Marlene; Romero-Benavides, Juan Carlos (January 2024). "Five Underutilized Ecuadorian Fruits and Their Bioactive Potential as Functional Foods and in Metabolic Syndrome: A Review". Molecules. 29 (12): 2904. doi:10.3390/molecules29122904. ISSN 1420-3049. PMC 11207112. PMID 38930969.
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