Manilkara zapota
Family: Sapotaceae

Native to the West Indies and Central America, sapodilla is most important commercially for the latex or chicle gum in its bark that is tapped like rubber. This provides the basis for chewing gum. It is cultivated for this purpose in several Central American countries, but is also grown for its fruit in many tropical countries. The fruit is chopped and used in sweet dishes, or served with lime juice and other salad vegetables. It is borne on slow-growing, evergreen trees that may be 5-15 m (16-50 ft) tall. The leaves are dark and leathery and the small, green and brown flowers are carried in clusters in the leaf axils. Trees begin bearing after about five years. Mature fruit is 5-8 cm (2-3 in) across and has a rough, corky, rusty brown skin when it is fully ripe. It must be fully ripe when eaten to avoid unpleasant tannins and milky juice. Ripe fruit has honey-coloured pulp that is translucent, sweet and fragrant. Hard, shiny seeds are in the fruit centre.

Cultivation

In frost-prone climates, grow as a young foliage plant in a warm greenhouse or conservatory, in pots of rich, sandy, soil-based potting compost. Outdoors, sapodillas tolerate poor soil, but will do best in well-drained soil that is rich in organic matter. Established trees tolerate dry conditions and are very wind-resistant, often being grown in fairly exposed coastal areas. They may be propagated from seed but do not come true to type, so seedlings are best used as stocks for grafting of reliable varieties.

Climate

Warmest parts of zone 10 to tropical.