Characteristics
A shrub. It grows 2-4 m tall. It has thorns about 1 cm long. The trunk is grey and branched. It is 6 cm across. The tree loses its leaves. The leaves are opposite and papery. They are oval and 6-11 cm long by 3-5 cm wide. The base is wedge shaped and there is a coating on the upper surface. The male flowers are in groups of 4-6 and female flowers as 1 or 2 together. The fruit are oblong and yellow or back when ripe. There is a coffee coloured layer over the flat seeds.
| Life form |
perennial
|
| Growth form |
|
| Growth support |
-
|
| Foliage retention |
-
|
| Sexuality |
dioecy
|
| Pollination |
-
|
| Spread |
-
|
| Mature width (meter) |
0.06
|
| Mature height (meter) |
2.0 - 4.0
|
| Root system |
-
|
| Rooting depth (meter) |
-
|
| Root diameter (meter) |
-
|
| Flower color |
-
|
| Blooming months |
-
|
| Fruit color |
|
| Fruiting months |
-
|
| Nitrogen fixer |
-
|
| Photosynthetic pathway |
-
|
Environment
It is a tropical plant. It grows in the rainforest in the Amazon. It is recorded up to 1,000 m above sea level. It grows in acid soils.
| Light |
-
|
| Soil humidity |
-
|
| Soil texture |
-
|
| Soil acidity |
-
|
| Soil nutriment |
-
|
| Hardiness (USDA) |
|
Usage
Fruit have a chocolate or coffee flavour.
Cultivation
Plants can be grown from seeds. Seeds germinate after 35-85 days. Plants can be put in a nursery and then transplanted. A spacing of 3-4 m is suitable.
| Mode |
seedlings
|
| Germination duration (days) |
-
|
| Germination temperacture (C°) |
-
|
| Germination luminosity |
-
|
| Germination treatment |
-
|
| Minimum temperature (C°) |
-
|
| Optimum temperature (C°) |
-
|
| Size |
-
|
| Vigor |
-
|
| Productivity |
-
|
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