Dacriodes edible
Edible dacryodes (lat. Dacryodes edulis) is a woody plant from the Burzer family, growing in tropical Africa in the humid equatorial forests. This plant is often called the African pear.
Description
Dacriodes edible is an evergreen tree with a very dense crown and a rather short trunk. On plantations its height usually does not exceed twelve meters, but in the forest Dacryodes edible can grow up to eighteen to forty meters in height. And the color of the crowns of trees growing on plantations is usually not so rich, and their trunks are usually half as long. And on the surface of the rough, pale gray bark of Dacryodes edibles you can see many small droplets of resin.
The compound leaves of the plant are formed by five to eight pairs of individual leaves. The yellow and very fragrant flowers of Dacryodes edible reach a diameter of about 5 mm. And the fruits of the plant are ellipsoidal drupes with blue, greenish or blue flesh, growing in length from four to twelve centimeters. The appearance of the fruit is somewhat reminiscent of eggplant, and its taste is similar to that of pears.
Where does it grow
In addition to the fact that edible dacryodes is cultivated, it can often be found in the wild. Its distribution range covers the territory from Uganda in the east to Sierra Leone in the west, and from Niger in the north to Angola in the south. Dacryodes edible is also quite actively cultivated in Malaysia.
For countries that grow this crop, Dacryodes edible is of great economic importance. The incredible satiety and nutritional value of these fruits, as well as the fairly high fertility of the crop as a whole, help protect numerous African peoples from hunger. Scientists have been able to establish that active cultivation of Dacryodes edible can save Africa from hunger.
Application
The fruits of Dacryodes edible are equally good both raw and fried or boiled. By the way, the structure of boiled fruits is very similar to butter, moreover, such fruits are very rich in vitamins and contain up to 48% fat. Boiled fruits are characterized by a very high calorie content, so anyone who fears for their figure is better off opting for raw fruits.
The flowers of Dacryodes edibles invariably attract bees, and the fruit kernels are an excellent fodder for sheep and goats.
In these fruits you can find a truly incredible amount of vitamins and other beneficial substances. Almost half of each fruit consists of beta-carotenes, triglycerides, fatty acids and amino acids. From one hectare of Dacryodes edible plantations you can get from seven to nine tons of valuable oil. By the way, it is extracted not only from fruits, but also from some other parts of plants.
The rich vitamin composition of Dacryodes edible fruits makes them very beneficial for human health.
Growing
Dacryodes edible is propagated using seeds. But this crop begins to bear fruit only in the fifth or seventh year after planting.
