Chandigarh Forests
Department of Forest & Wildlife
UT Administration
Chandigarh
Department of Forest & Wildlife
|
Division
|
Angiosperms |
|
Class
|
Dicotyledons |
|
Subclass |
Polypetalae |
|
Series |
Thalamiflorae |
|
Order |
Ranales |
|
Family
|
Annonaceae |
|
Genus
|
Annona |
|
Species
|
squamosa |
|
Etymology: |
Annona is a native Brazilian name for the genus. |
|
Botanical name
|
Annona squamosa Linn. |
|
Local/Trade names:
|
Sharifa, Custard Apple |
|
Conservation status:
|
Cultivated. |
|
Digonestic features:
|
Big aggregate edible fruits. |
|
Description: |
Shrub or small tree. Leaves 8 – 15 cm, oblong- lanceolate, acute to sub- acuminate, nearly glabrous. Flowers yellowish – green, 2-3 cm long, drooping. Fruits globose, tubercled. |
|
Phenology: |
Fl. Mar. – May. Frts. June – Sept. |
|
Distribution: |
Native West Indies. |
|
Where to see it: |
Nursery. |
|
Uses: |
Fruits edible with juicy white or cream-yellow delicately flavoured, sweet flesh. They can be made into drinks and fermented liquor. Roots purgative; seeds abortifacient also yield a fatty oil. |
