I recently compiled a dataset of Landolphia sp., and former Landolphia sp. often still referred to by the monicker. I'm wondering if any of you Landolphia growers have anything you'd like to add / correct? I only included species for which I could find evidence that people actually eat them
Less humid species:
Ancylobotrys:
* A. capensis (wild apricot, previously called Landolphia capensis): climbing shrub. Fruits rather large, "reasonably sour" but "very sour by the seeds")
* A. petersiana (previously called Landolphia petersiana) - Sweeter and tastier than L. kirkii, and somewhat reminiscent of guava. May eat the rind if fully mature.
Saba:
* S. comorensis (mabungo, gummiklifurjurt, previously called Landolphia comorensis and L. florida) - "small seed large fruit". Liana að 20m. Fruits "round or slightly pear shaped and about the size of grapefruits", "soft reddish pulp within which are embedded a few seeds", "succulent, smooth, and either sour or agreeably subacid pulp pulls away easily from the rind". Usually mixed with water and sugar.
* S. senegalensis ("Saba"; previously called Landolphia senegalensis) - Shrub or liana. Fruits the size of an orange, sour, with a flavour rather like a strange citrus. Full of seeds in sweet-sour flesh. Often mixed with water and sugar.
Landolphia:
* L. buchananii (Magi, Gebo...): Shrub 1-7m or liana 3-40m. 0,5-23cm trunk. Fruits eins largeir og appelsínur, 2,5-6cm. "Fruits edible, in Zimbabwe a conserve is made of it" (svo sour?). 40:60 flesh:seeds?
* L. eminiana (malophi, umabungo, mpiri, etc) - Liana or shrub 3-20m. Fruits 3-10cm, rind 0,15-0,5cm, 5-15 seeds x 7-10cm. "The fruits .. are eaten in Rwanda, Burundi and Malawi"
* L. gossweileri (Muhuni) - shrub, 0,15-70cm. Fruits 2-6cm, rind 0,1-0,7cm, 3-10 seeds x 7-14mm. Um 70:30 flesh:seeds? "The fruits .. are edible."
* L. kirkii (bira, bulundu, dabehm, etc, sand apricot, wild peach) - liana 1-30m long, to 20m tall, needs a 7m tree to be productive. "The almost round fruits are about the size of a mandarin (tangerine). The tough skin encloses a very sweet, stringy pulp with numerous seeds embedded in it." Leaves also edible. Fruits 3x8cm / tangerine-sized, rind 0,25-0,5cm, 10-30 seeds x 6-12mm. 80:20 flesh:seeds? "... their tartness can put off the uninitiated" "Pulp of the fruit ... is edible, used in Mozambique to brew a strong liquor. In Kenya the leaves are eaten as a vegetable. ... Its rubber is used for many purposes, for example as chewing-gum (Tanzania)..."
* L. lanceolata (malombo) - Shrub, 15-70cm. Fruits 0,2-2cm. "said to be delicious, easily obtanable and are often sold on markets"
* L. parvifolia - Scrambling shrub 1-10m, up to 15m long, 1,5sm bolur. Ávextir 2-5cm, hýði 0,09-0,4sm, 8-30 fræ x 4-9sm.
More humid species:
Landolphia:
* L. calabarica (Bonjema, Holei, etc) - Shrub or liana up to 20m. Fruits up to 10x12,5cm. 50:50 flesh:seeds?
* L. dulcis - used as a sweetener in Sierra Leone. Shrub 1-5m or liana 2-10m tall, 2-20m long. trunk 0,5-10cm. ~50% flesh/50% seeds? 2-8cm, rind 0,1-0,6cm, 5-50 seeds x 3-9mm. "Fruits ... are eaten."
* L. foretiana (ugbo nikwa, avon, n'lombo, etc) - 9-40m tall, up to 80m, 5-30cm trunk. Fruits 4-20cm, 1-3cm rind, 5-50 seeds x 9-25mm. "The pulp of the fruits and the seeds ... are said to be eaten."
* L. heudelotii (guinea rubber vine) - Liana 50+m. Trunk 40cm (starts out as a shrub). Fruits 2-5cm, rind 0,04-0,2cm, 1-10 seeds, 5-14mm. 90:10 flesh:seeds? Grows under the canopy. "Fruits edible"
* L. hirsuta (Eboi, Balwa, etc) - Liana 3-70m long, up to 40m tall. Fruits 3,5-9cm. Rind 0,5-2cm. 1-20 seeds, 7-14mm. "Fruits edible." "Very appreciated"; 32g flesh á ávexti. Confirmed significant levels of provitamin A.
* L. landolphioides (Aquatayan, Avom, Dinga...) - liana 5-30m. Trunk 30cm. Fruits 5,5-7cm. Rind 0,04-0,75cm. 11-21 seeds x 6-13mm. "The fruits are eaten in Cameroon"
* L. Ligustrifolia - Liana up to 30m, trunk up to 5cm. Fruits 3-16cm, rind 0,2-1,7cm, 5-100 seeds x 6-13mm. "The fruits are edible."
* L. macrantha (E-Lonk (Temne), Am-Fenke (Kunike Temne)) - Liana. Fruits 2,5-4cm, rind 0,2-0,5cm, 8-15 seeds x 6-11mm, "I find the taste so so at best. Subtle sweetness, light and refreshing taste. Quite a lot of seed, not much flesh." "The fruits and seeds .. are said to be edible"
* L. mannii (Yenese, Yanene, Anzoma... ) - Liana up to 40m tall / 100+m long. Trunk up to 30+cm. Fruits 7-20cm, rind 0,6-2,3cm, 15-130 seeds x 12-23mm. "The pulp of the fruit is abundant, very tasty and well appreciated."
* L. maxima - Liana, 5-20m, trunk 1cm. Fruits 4-12,5cm, "said to be edible."
* L. owariensis (Eta) - "... swallowing the seeds after swishing the fruit around for just a couple of seconds. Speed is needed because the aromatic sweetness soon turns sour and intensifies until almost unbearable. ... we found one eta fruit, however, that never turned sour. Eating it was a whole new experience .. planted the seeds at our experimental fruit farm in Congo." "Normally the pulp is merely dumped in water and left to soak a few minutes. Being highly acidic, it makes a lot of beverage. Sugar is added to taste."
* L. villosa (Abam, Acamba...) - Liana up to 40m tall og 7-100m+ long, trunk 2,5-55cm, fruits 4-15cm, "The fruit is edible."
General:
* "the landophias i have tried are rather sour."
* "the Cassamance race of Landophilia which is sweet" [Casamance = region in Senegal south of Gambia; species in the region: L. dulcis, L. heudelotii, L. hirsuta, L. incerta; L. owariensis]
* "I have heard many species of Landolphia initially seem sweet when you taste it and then the taste becomes almost overpoweringly sour."
* "landolphia is idd sweet and than sour"
* "Young Sab/Landolphia seedlings does well in full or shade while young willughbeia need to be in partial shade"
* Fragrant flowers
* Productivity generally said to be good, with interest in domestication of several species.
Useful references:
*
http://edepot.wur.nl/165202 *
https://books.google.is/books?id=O6RTAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA271&lpg=PA271&dq=%22landolphia%22+best+species+taste&source=bl&ots=2pYyNTZHoX&sig=YcxfYm4s7XAR5sqBNXzaFttHPjU&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjDjPj9y9rYAhUpD8AKHb33BpMQ6AEIOjAI#v=onepage&q=%22landolphia%22%20best%20species%20taste&f=false
Topic: Landolphia and Friends: a dataset (Read 1298 times)