CHERIMOYA

(species Annona cherimola), tree of the custard apple family (Annonaceae), of the order Magnoliales. It is native to frost-free, higher elevations throughout tropical America and is widely cultivated in the Old World tropics for its pulpy, edible fruits weighing about 0.5 kg (1 pound). The tree grows up to 9 m (30 feet) tall but in cultivation is kept pruned to about 5 m with a 6-metre spread to permit hand pollination of the 2.5-centimetre (1-inch), fleshy, white, fragrant flowers. Cherimoya trees have long and elliptically shaped, light green and velvety leaves. The large, globose, pale green fruits are smooth or have round protrusions, and the flesh is white and pulpy, with a sweet, acid flavour. A few black, bean-size seeds are embedded in the pulp. The crushed seeds are used as insecticides in Mexico and Guatemala, as are the seeds of the sugar apple, or sweetsop (A. squamosa). A hybrid, A. atemoya, produced by crossing a cherimoya with a sweetsop, tastes like the cherimoya, ships better than either parent, and is less likely to split than the sugar apple. See also custard apple.