From Neglected crops: 1492 from a different perspective
by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Custard Apple Varieties
Annona reticulata
The most attractive aspects of this species are: its
pleasant-tasting fruit, which is generally sweet and creamy; the
relatively small volume taken up by the skin and seed; and the plant's
modest soil requirements. The flesh varies from juicy and very aromatic
to hard with a repulsive taste. A. reticulata
grows between 0 and 1500 m in the areas of Central America that have
alternating seasons, and has spread to South America. In Florida
superior cultivars have been selected especially from Belize and
Guatemala. Some cultivars include:
'Tikal' is of excellent quality and medium yield; its flesh is bright-red, except in the white areas surrounding the seeds.
Har Mahdeem, popular horticultural circuit speaker and authority on Annonaceae, described this variety as improductive.
'Canul'
has a medium fruit with a waxy, shiny dark-red surface and purplish red
flesh; it is very aromatic and deliciously sweet with few concretions
of hard cells.
'Sartenaya'
has a medium fruit with a waxy, shiny red surface and pink flesh with a
magnificent taste and texture. Although the fruit is not
as attractive in appearance as that of the previous two cultivars. the
tree is sturdier. Mr. Mahdeem recommends this variety for being above
average quality and not gritty.
 |  | | 'Fernandez' | 'Fernandez' |
'San Pablo'
has a long, large fruit with an opaque, light-red surface. The flesh is
dark-pink with a good aroma and taste. It is a vigorous, productive
cultivar. Mr. Mahdeem also recommends this variety as being above
average quality and not gritty.
'Benque'
has a big conical fruit with a dark-red surface and very tasty
dark-pink flesh. Mr. Mahdeem said this variety is no longer available.
'Caledonia'
has a small fruit with a dark surface. The flesh is pink and has an
excellent taste.
'Chonox' has a medium fruit with a red skin
and juicy, very tasty pink flesh; it is very productive and, for this
reason, often has low-quality fruit. It produces abundant flowers in
groups of up to 16.
 |  |  | | 'San Pablo' | 'San Pablo' | 'San Pablo' on the right and
'Fernandez' on the left |
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Bibliography
Mahdeem, H. "Custard Apples." Neglected crops: 1492 from a different perspective, 85-92, FAO Plant
Production and Protection Series, no.26, Food and Agriculture
Organization of the United Nations, Rome, 1994, FAO, fao.org.
Accessed 8 Feb. 2016.
Photographs
Maguire, Ian. "Annona reticulata." Tropical Fruit Photography Picture Archive, 2003, trec.ifas.ufl.edu. Accessed 30 Dec. 2014.
Published 30 Dec. 2014 LR. Last update 26 May 2018 LR
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