Theobroma bernoullii Pittier

Tree 15-20 m. high; growth below jorquette; primary branches ternate, dichoto-mous, the terminal leafy, terete, dark brown, subappressed-tomentulose, whein older puberulous or glabrate; stipules linear-oblong, acute, pubescent. Leaves with a petiole thick, terete, 5-10 mm. long, densely and minutely tomentulose; blade elliptic-oblong, obtusely cuneate-attenuate and asymmetrical at base, narrowed toward the apex, ending in a long, linear acumen, entire or very slightly sinuate, 13-28 cm. long and 5-8 cm. broad, the acumen 1-3 cm. long, thin-coriaceous, trip-linerved; upper surface green and glabrous, the main nerves filiform and promi-nent, the others reticulate and slightly prominulous; lower surface pale-greenish-ochraceous or ashy, apparently glabrous but the tawny, shining veins with very sparsely minute, stellate hairs and the areolae covered with a very appressed, white tomentum of smaller, microscopic, entangled, stellate hairs, the midrib and 6-7 secondary nerves on each side very prominent. Inflorescences on the main trunk usually many-flowered, borne on short, tuberculate, woody branches; panicles corymbiform, 4-10 cm. long, the axes cymose-bifurcate in the upper third or rarely from the base, the branchlets rigid, erect at acute angle; peduncles capillary, 3- bracteolate at apex; bracteoles narrowly linear, 1-2 mm. long, very soon deciduous; pedicels thicker than the peduncles, minutely stellate-tomentellous like the branch-lets; buds ovoid, densely tomentose. Flowers with lanceolate-oblong sepals, these shortly united at base, rather acute at apex, 8-10 mm. long and 3 mm. wide, mod-erately thick, reddish and with sparse, slender, flexuous, sericeous hairs inside, fer-ruginous and stellate-tomentose outside, with thick, glandular hairs at the insertion at base; petal-hoods oblong-obovate, rounded-cucullate at apex, 4-5 mm. long and about 2 mm. wide, 0.6 mm. wide at base, red, hirtellous-pubescent outside, promi-nently 3-nerved inside; petal-laminae sessile, round or elliptic, shortly unguiculate-articulate, minutely crenulate, 2.5-4 mm. long and 3-4 mm. broad, moderately thick, crimson, rugulose, glabrous; staminodes sublanceolate-linear-subulate, 6-10 mm. long, thick, purplish-red, covered with minute, spreading, acute, conical hairs; fila-ments about 2.5 mm. long, glabrous, 2-antheriferous; ovary tomentose; styles ad-herent into a column but separable. Fruit ellipsoid-oblong, more or less obtusely 5-angulate, umbilicate at base, abruptly narrowed and subacute or subobtuse at apex, 15-20 (12-25) cm. long and 6-7.5 (5.2-8) cm. broad, the pericarp thick, dull brown, velvety-tomentose, coriaceous at maturity, shrinking in drying; pulp white, flavored, acidulous; seeds compressed-ovoid, 16-22 x 9-14 x 9-11 mm., the testa red-dish, papery; germination epigeous, the cotyledons white.

It is a tropical plant. It grows in evergreen rainforest. It can be in lowland swamps near the sea. It grows up to about 100 m above sea level. It is best where annual daytime temperatures are 20°-30°C and a rainfall between 2,000-8,000 mm. It needs continuous rain and dense shade.

The seeds can be used to make chocolate. The pulp around the fruit can be eaten or used for a drink.

Plants can be grown from fresh seeds.