Sugar apple / Anón
Scientific Name: Annona squamosa
Origin: North America
Botanical Family: Annonaceae
Annona squamosa, or custard apple, is a semi-deciduous tree native to the West Indies cultivated for its nutritious fruit.
Brief History and Description
Annona squamosa is a small, semi-deciduous tree with a height of 3 to 7 meters.1
The custard apple (Anón) is believed to be a native of the West Indies, but it was carried from Central America to Southern Mexico in the early days. It has long been cultivated and naturalized as far south as Peru and Brazil.2
Culinary Usage and Nutritional Properties
Anón is rich in fiber, vitamins, and minerals. This nutritious fruit includes kaurenoic acid, flavonoids, carotenoids, and vitamin C - they have strong antioxidant effects. It is rich in nutrients that help regulate blood pressure, such as potassium and magnesium.
It is often eaten with a spoon and served like cold custard. Cherimoya (Annona squamosa) has a sweet taste similar to other tropical fruits such as bananas and pineapples.3 Its flesh may be scooped from the skin and eaten or served with light cream and a sprinkling of sugar. It can also be pressed through a sieve and added to milkshakes, custards, or ice cream, or it can be used to make a delicious sauce for cakes and puddings by blending the seeded flesh with mashed banana and a little cream.4
Economic and Environmental aspects
Since the custard apple is an evergreen tree, it produces oxygen year-round. Fruits can be eaten fresh and used in cakes, purees, and drinks.5 This tree is of local importance in traditional medicine. Different species are grown commercially for their edible fruits.6 Also, the wood of this tree is brown and is used in the production of brown products. Therefore, this tree can be a good source of income for farmers.7
Annual Yield
A mature Anón tree can produce 5 to 24 kg of fruit per season.
Pharmacological Activities and Bio-active Properties
Supports immunity and reduces inflammation,
Promotes eye and heart health,8
The leaf decoction is used as a vermifuge,
Crushed leaves or a paste of the flesh may be poulticed on boils, abscesses, and ulcers,
The unripe fruit is rich in tannin; it is dried, pulverized, and employed against diarrhea and dysentery,
The bark is astringent, and the decoction is taken as a tonic remedy for diarrhea and dysentery. In severe cases, the leaves, bark, and green fruits are all boiled together for 5 minutes in a liter of water to make an exceedingly potent decoction,
Fragments of the root bark are packed around the gums to relieve toothache,
The root decoction is taken as a febrifuge.9
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