271311 Mon Jul 19 15:25:03 -0700 2004 11 17 What's My Craving? 0 1429033 I bought this fruit the other day and can't remember the name of it. Can anyone help me out here? It looked like a tiny lime with a green leathery skin. You'd pop the skin between your teeth and remove it to reveal a peach colored flesh around a huge pit. Most of the fruit is the pit with a tiny amount of flesh that was a little sour and sweet. The fruit stand guy told me it was from South America and called it something like "kenapes" but when I started to look it up I couldn't find any more info on it. Has anyone else had these? Do you know what it's called? Mon Jul 19 15:25:03 -0700 2004 0 SillySam 1 1429036 The mamoncillo, also known as the quenepa or genip, is a fruit-bearing tree of the species Melicoccus bijugatus. The mamoncillo is indigenous to a wide swath of the Americas including Central America, Colombia and the Caribbean. This large tropical tree can grow up to 100 feet (30 meters) high. It is grown and cultivated for its ovoid, green fruit, which grow in bunches. The fruit ripen during the summer. The fruit is classified as a drupe. A mamoncillo fruit has a tight and thin but rigid layer of skin, traditionally cracked by the teeth. Below that is the tart, tangy yellow pulp of the fruit. Each mamoncillo fruit has a large pit inside, the same ovoid shape as the fruit itself. Mamoncillo pits can be roasted and eaten just like sunflower seeds. The mamoncillo has small, greenish-white, fragrant flowers in panicles. They begin to blossom from the branch tips when the rainy season begins. The mamoncillo is an example of a polygamous plant -- producing both bisexual flowers and flowers that are exclusively male or exclusively female. Occasionally, a bisexual flower will have a "dud" anther that is sterile -- an evolutionary guard against that will prevent developing too many fruits too often, unless cross-pollination occurs. This tree is popularly planted along roadsides as an ornamental. Being tropical, the mamoncillo prefers warmer temperatures. Its leaves can be damaged once the temperature hits freezing point, with serious damage occurring at 25° F (-6° C). Gardeners of mamoncillos should occasionally give their plants heavy watering during the summer and propagate via seeds (although grafting can be used for established plants). Mon Jul 19 18:41:59 -0700 2004 1429033 0 mammy 2 1429056 wow! Thank you! Thu Jul 22 11:53:30 -0700 2004 1429036 0 SillySam 3 1429735 They are called "Mamones" Mon Nov 01 14:31:17 -0800 2004 1429056 0 Tineo 2 1429057 great info, but for future reference, its safer for this site if you link info, rather than copying it in here. Link: http://www.fact-index.com/m/ma/mamoncillo.html Thu Jul 22 12:06:19 -0700 2004 1429036 0 jen kalb 3 1429077 Sorry, I didn't mean to steal from a free encyclopedia. If they didn't want it copied they shouldn't call it free and let me copy and paste it. I will not change the way I do things. If you don't like it just delete the post. Thu Jul 22 20:51:19 -0700 2004 1429057 0 mammy 4 1429078 the Wikipedia offers its content with a wide license for reuse, but not as wide as copying an article verbatim and republishing without attribution. You did a good deed providing the info - it would have been even better if you had done it right. Thu Jul 22 21:18:52 -0700 2004 1429077 0 jen kalb 5 1431523 I have some Mamoncillo seeds from Costa Rica, but I cannot get them to grow. Does anyone knowhow to plant them correctly? Sun Jun 19 18:16:21 -0700 2005 1429078 0 Cecily 1 1430789 I am from Colombia and we used to eat around and spit out the large pit. They grow in a cluster. They are called Mamoncillo Sat Mar 19 14:40:45 -0800 2005 1429033 0 Silvana Lipman 1 1769196 Where can I find these? I used to get them from the fruit stands around Columbus and 106, but I went yesterday and nobody had any on offer. Had to settle for a Tamarind Ice. If anyone knows a market or Stand I'd appreciate the info. Wed Jul 26 19:59:02 -0700 2006 1429033 20544 sjjn 2 1769422 This is a long way from Morningside heights, but the other day I saw a fruit stand guy on the corner of 6th Ave. and Spring who had them. Wed Jul 26 21:22:26 -0700 2006 1769196 19646 laguera 1 4084596 Silly Sam, Please tiil me where you found this fruit. when I was a young girl my father was stationed in panama and this fruit in tree all over and I love it. From time to time I have thought about but today I thought i would look it up an the internet and I found you. we as children always called it a ( genip ) not sure of the spelling. From time to time I would look for it in stores but have never found it. you can reach me at eglantine_60@hotmail.com I live in ga. Mon Oct 06 05:36:45 -0700 2008 1429033 230785 eglantine