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Trees of Zihuatanejo

Jacaratia mexicana

Jacaratia mexicana

Jacaratia Mexicana (Bonet or Ch'iich'puut) grows to about 40 feet high (12 m). It's a member of the Papaya Family, the Caricceae. The bole is very thick at the base, tapering upwards and dividing into a few heavy branches. Female trees produce oblong, angled and thickly ridged, green, papaya-like fruits. The edible fruit is sometimes gathered from the wild for local consumption. The reddish-yellow flesh of teh fruit has a sweet flavour. They can be eaten in salads, cooked, or can be made into sweetmeats of various kinds. Jacaratia mexicana is native to dry forests from southern Mexico to Nicaragua at low and moderate elevations, to 1500 m.

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