Melicoccus
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Melicoccus |
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Melicoccus bijugatus fruit
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Scientific classification | ||||||||||||
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Melicoccus is a genus of two species of flowering plants in the family Sapindaceae, native to tropical regions of western South America.
They are evergreen trees growing to 30 m tall, with alternate pinnate leaves with 4 or 6 opposite leaflets (no terminal leaflet). The fruit is a drupe.
- Species
- Melicoccus bijugatus Jacq. – Mamoncillo. Colombia, Venezuela.
- Melicoccus lepidopetalus Radlk. – Motoyoé or Yva Povo. Bolivia, Paraguay.
The fruit is edible, and both species are widely cultivated in their native areas and elsewhere in Central America and the Caribbean.
Some species of the related genus Talisia are sometimes included in Melicoccus.