Meet the Jabuticabeira Tree or Brazilian Grape - Plinia cauliflora

The Jabuticabeira Tree or Brazilian Grape - Plinia cauliflora is a member of the Myraceae family and is native to Southeastern Brazil.  There are many species that are closely related and within the same family that are often referred to by the same common names.  Some of the most common names include Brazilian Grape Tree, Jabotica, Jaboticaba, Guapuru, Guaperu, Guarani, Hivapuru, Yvapura, and Sabara.

A slow growing evergreen that reaches 50 if left untrimmed.  It prefers moist and rich soils but is highly adaptable to varying locations if well tended to.  The flowers grow directly from the trunk in a cauliflorous form and are white in color.  In the wild they only flower and bear fruit once or twice annually, however when regularly irrigated and grown in tropical regions it flowers frequently and can bear fruit year round.  The bark of the tree is very similar to that of a Crepe Myrtle with a peeling appearence that reveals different shades/colors below.  The leaves begin a salmon color when the tree is young, changing to green with age.  

Image Citation:  Adamantiaf [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons.

This species is grown primarily for the fruit which is purple to black thick fleshed berry with white pulp.  The fruit is generally 3-4 cm in diameter with 1-4 embedded inside.  The fruits can be eaten raw or used to make jams, jellies, tarts, desserts, wines and juices.  The fruit has a very short shelf life and can begin to ferment within just a few days of being removed from the tree, hence the common use in jellies and wine making.  

Traditional Brazilian medicine has long included the use of the sun dried skins in the treatment of hemoptysis, asthma, diarrhea, and inflammation of the tonsils, an astringent compound is made from the skins and gargled or ingested.  Research has also found the presence of antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer compounds within the fruit, the most notable is Jaboticabin.  

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