Common Name: Genipa

General Information

Genipa is an evergreen tree with a dense, spreading crown, handsome foliage and large showy flowers; it usually grows up to 20 metres tall, with occasional specimens to 30 metres[, ]. The bole is usually straight, 30 - 80cm in diameter[].
The edible fruit is harvested from the wild for local use, whilst the tree is also utilized for its good quality wood, medicinal purposes and various other uses. It is often cultivated for its fruit, and is commonly cultivated for its ornamental value and for the shade it can provide[].

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

Range

S. America - Argentina, Paraguay, Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, the Guyanas; C. America - Panama to Mexico; Caribbean.

Habitat

Moist, coastal limestone woodlands[]. Various types of forest on the damp floodplains[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Medicinal Rating
Other Uses Rating
Habit	Evergreen Tree
Height	20.00 m
Growth Rate	Medium
Pollinators	Bees
Cultivation Status	Ornamental, Wild

Cultivation Details

A plant of the moist, lowland tropics, where it is found at elevations up to 400 metres[]. It grows best in areas where annual daytime temperatures are within the range 24 - 31°c, but can tolerate 12 - 35°c[]. Mature plants can be killed by temperatures of -3°c or lower, but young growth will be severely damaged at -1°c[]. It prefers a mean annual rainfall in the range 1,200 - 1,700mm, but tolerates 900 - 2,000mm[]. It tolerates an annual rainfall of 1,200 - 4,000 mm[]. It tolerates dry periods of up to 6 months, but will then shed its leaves for a time[, ].
An easily grown plant, it prefers a rich, humid, well-drained soil in full sun to partial shade[]. Prefers a pH in the range 5.5 - 7, tolerating 5 - 8[]. The plant tolerates periods of flooding in its native range[].
Plants can begin to flower when 3 - 5 years old from seed[].

Edible Uses

Fruit - raw or cooked. Aromatic[, ]. Its main use is as a popular source of beverages - the pulp from mature fruits is cooked with sugar to produce a syrup used to make various beverages and deserts[]. An acid flavour[]. The fruit has a leathery skin that encloses a purplish, sour pulp[]. It can be eaten fresh, made into juices or used to make marmalade and preserves[]. The fruit needs to be allowed to soften before being eaten[]. The fruit is best eaten when somewhat over-ripe[]. The succulent, ovoid fruit is 9 - 15cm long and up to 8cm in diameter[, ].
The fruit is usually harvested before it is completely ripe and stored in a dark place until it ripens in order to avoid the ravages of fruit bats[].

Medicinal

The fruit is diuretic, laxative, tonic, vermifuge[, , ]. It is used in the treatment of anaemia and liver problems[]. The fruit juice is given as a diuretic while the fruit infusion is used as a cold remedy[]. The fruit is eaten as a remedy for jaundice and, when eaten in large quantities, acts as a vermifuge[].
The fruit is being tested for its antibiotic and antiseptic properties[].
The crushed green fruit and the bark decoction are applied on venereal sores and pharyngitis[].
The fruit and rasped bark are rubbed on black spots that sometimes develop on the skin[].

The bark is used to treat diarrhoea[].
A plaster made from the bark is used to treat ulcers[].
The bark exudes a whitish, sweetish gum when cut. This is diluted and used as an eyewash and is claimed to alleviate corneal opacities[].

A decoction of the root is strongly purgative[]. It is used in the treatment of gonorrhoea[].

The flower decoction and juice from the leaves is commonly given as a tonic and febrifuge[].

The pulverized seeds are emetic and caustic[].

The fruit and seed contain the terpene genipine as an active ingredient348].
The fruit contains malic acid, genipic acid and genipinic acid[].
The leaf contains geniposidinic acid, an iridoid glucoside[].
The seed contains caffeine[].

Agroforestry Uses:

The tree has a heavy leaf fall, which is important in improving the soil[].
It is occasionally planted as a live-hedge in grazing areas[].
The tree can be interplanted with temporary crops such as cassava or cotton in order to provide shade for the young trees[].

Other Uses

A juice from the unripe fruit turns blue-black on contact with the skin. It is used as an indelible blue dye and has long been used by native people for tattooing and as a body paint[, ]. The dye is indelible on the skin for 15 - 20
days[]. A reddish paint can also be made by mixing this plant with Humiria balsamifera floribunda, Protium heptaphyllum and possibly Arrabidaea chica[].
This was a very common use and probably the main reason for the wide distribution of the species[].
The dye is also said to have insect-repellent properties[].

The bark is a source of tannins[].

A fibre obtained from the bark is used in making rough clothing[].

The heartwood is a very light, yellowish-brown, occasionally with a slight pinkish or purplish-blue overcast; the thick band of sapwood is cream-coloured to nearly white. The texture is fine; the grain straight to irregular, with growth rings marked by narrow darker bands forming an attractive striped figure. The wood is very hard, heavy, strong, flexible, though not very durable, being very susceptible to attacks by termites and pin-hole borers. The rate of air-seasoning is slow, and amount of degrade is minor. Machining characteristics are as follows: planing, shaping, turning, boring, and mortising are excellent; sanding and resistance to screw splitting are good. The wood is easy to work, it takes an excellent polish. A good quality and attractive wood, it is used for light construction, tool handles, furniture, cabinetwork, ship building, carving etc[, , , ].
The wood is used for fuel[].

Propagation

Seed - it is not dormant and so pre-treatment is not necessary. However, soaking the seeds in running water for 1 - 2 days just prior to sowing will accelerate germination[]. Seed may be sown in light shade in a nursery seedbed. Germination rates are normally high with between 65 - 100% of the seed sprouting within 1 - 4 weeks. The seedlings are ready for pricking out about 20 days later[]. Initial growth rates are slow, taking about 12 months to attain a transplanting size of 20 - 40cm[]. Because of drought sensitivity the best way of establishment is to use containerised seedlings[].
Vegetative propagation by cuttings is also possible[].
Grafting is used for varieties with superior fruit quality[].

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