CUSTARD APPLE

any of various Annona species of shrubs or small trees of the Annonaceae family, native to the New World tropics and Florida, or their fruits. The fruit of the common custard apple (A. reticulata), or bullock's heart of the West Indies, is dark brown in colour and marked with depressions giving it a quilted appearance; its pulp is reddish yellow, sweetish, and very soft (hence the common name); the kernels of the seeds are said to be poisonous. The soursop is the fruit of A. muricata, native to the West Indies. The sweetsop (q.v.) is produced by A. squamosa, a native of tropical America and widely cultivated in the tropics. A. cherimola yields the cherimoya, a much-esteemed fruit of superior flavour. Alligator apple, or corkwood (A. glabra), a native of South America and the West Indies, is valued for its wood, which serves the same purposes as cork; the fruit, commonly known as the alligator apple or pond apple, is not eaten fresh but is sometimes used for making jellies.