The Tropical Fruit Forum

Looks more like an Inga brachyptera to me...

Maybe the tasteless ones are a poor cultivar or have been picked early. But I find it hard to imagine how an unripe Lucuma would taste like. No lucuma had a "green" taste, if you know what I mean. The texture was a little creamier in some of the Lucumas what didn't appear to be a difference in ripeness.

I've been travelling through South America for some time, passing also through Peru, Ecuador and Colombia.
In Peru and Ecuador I've eaten Lucuma several times without knowing anything about the two types ("lowland" and "highland"). I've had good ones and bad ones. The fruit that was most similar in taste to me was the macauba or bocaiuva palm fruit (Acrocomia aculeata) while being totally different in texture.

When arriving at the hot and moist tropical coast of Colombia I got to know the "Zapote costeņo", the Mamey Sapote. There I heard that people graft Lucuma scions to Mamey Sapote rootstock to adapt it to the hot and moist climate. Does anyone have experience with that?

Actually there is quite a lot of tropical fruit wich have some salt tolerance. I've seen Cashews growing directly on the seafront. There is Ximenia americana, a little plum-like fruit, which I've seen growing on the beach. And there will be lots more...

I bought Bromelia karatas fruit on the side of the street when I was in Colombia. I collected a few seeds and brought them home (Germany). Three of them sprouted but a pidgeon ate two of the little plants and I only could save one. The plant is now 1,5 years old and I'm wondering if I will need a second plant to have the chance of it bearing fruit one day.

Do you guys know if it is self-fertile (I know normally only cultivated plants are)?
Is there male and female plants? Or is one plant both male and female?

Thanks!