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Chrysobalanus icaco

Chrysobalanus icaco, the cocoplum, paradise plum, abajeru or icaco is a low shrub or bushy tree found near sea beaches and inland throughout tropical Africa, tropical Americas and the Caribbean, and in southern Florida and the Bahamas. An evergreen, it is also found as an exotic species on other tropical islands, where it has become a problematic invasive. Although taxonomists disagree on whether Chrysobalanus icaco has multiple subspecies or varieties, it is recognized as having two ecotypes, described as an inland, much less salt-tolerant, and more upright C. icaco var. pellocarpus and a coastal C. icaco var. icaco. Both the ripe fruit of C. icaco, and the seed inside the ridged shell it contains, are considered edible.

Description
Chrysobalanus icaco is a shrub , or bushy tree , rarely to . It has evergreen broad-oval to nearly round somewhat leathery leaves (3 to 10 cm long and 2.5 to 7 cm wide). Leaf colors range from green to light red. The bark is greyish or reddish brown, with white specks. The clustered flowers are small, greenish-white, and appear intermittently throughout the year but more abundantly in late spring. The fruit that follows (a drupe) is variable, with that of the coastal form being round, up to 5 cm in diameter, white, pale-yellow with a rose blush or dark-purple in color, while that of the inland form is oval, up to 2.5 cm long, and dark-purple. The fruit is edible, with an almost tasteless to mildly sweet flavor, and is sometimes used for jam. It contains a five- or six-ridged brown stone with an edible white seed. The common name for this fruit in Dominica, Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, and other Caribbean islands is "fat pork". The seed's kernel is used ground into a powder and dried, as a spice (variously called gbafilo, itsekiri, umilo,emilo or omilo) as part of West African Pepper Soup Mix. Chrysobalanus icaco is unable to survive a hard frost, but is planted as an ornamental shrub in subtropical regions due to its appearance, easily manageable size, and tolerance of shallow and variable soils (for example, as alkaline as pH 8.4 ==Gallery==
Gallery
File:Starr 031108-2013 Chrysobalanus icaco.jpg|Fruit of the coastal form File:Starr 031108-2137 Chrysobalanus icaco.jpg|Red leaves on the inland form File:Oleta River State Park - Chrysobalanus icaco - Cocoplum fruit 03.jpg|Fruit and branches of cocoplum growing in Oleta River State Park on Biscayne Bay in North Miami, Florida - File:Oleta River State Park - Chrysobalanus icaco - Cocoplum leaves 01.jpg|Detail of branches File:Oleta River State Park - Chrysobalanus icaco - Cocoplum fruit 01.jpg|Mature and immature fruits Chrysobalanus icaco in seasonally wet pineyard - Abaco National Park - April 2026.jpg|In seasonally wet pineyard, Abaco National Park ==References==
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