Synonyms: Annona australis, Annona chrysocarpa, Annona peruviana
Common names: Pond apple, bullock’s heart
Dhivehi name: Kalhuthumeyvaa
Status: Common in home gardens. It has also become wild and naturalized along the border of open wetlands as in Fuvamulah Island.
Description: A semi-deciduous tree about 10 to 15 m tall. Normally with a single trunk but seedlings can grow in clumps giving the appearance of a multi-stemmed tree. Bark is grey, thin and fissured with prominent lenticels (involved in gas exchange and appear as raised spots). Mature trees have slightly buttressed roots. Leaves are leathery,simple, alternate in arrangement along the branches and oblong-elliptical in shape;upper surface of the leaf is dark green and underneath is pale. Foliage contains yellow leaves during the summer. Flowers are single, large, 2 to 5 cm in diameter, pale yellow to cream-white in colour and attractive with three leathery outer petals and three smaller inner petals with a red inner base. Fruit is mostly spherical in shape and lookslike smooth-skinned sweetsop and mango in shape; some fruits look like bullock’s heart. Fruit is green in colour when young but after falling from trees turn yellow and then black. Pulp is fleshy, pinkish-orange or orange, aromatic and pungent. Each fruit contains about 100 light brown coloured seeds, which are about 1 cm in length.
Uses: Fruits are delicious and eaten raw. They are also used in the preparation of asweet drink. There is heavy demand for ripened fruit during the Ramzan season.Softwood and roots are used as fish floats. Bark is an excellent home for orchids and other air plants. Seedling can be used as a rootstock for custard apple and sweetsop.
Ecology, propagation and management: Pond apple requires ample soil moisture and sunlight. It can tolerate prolonged freshwater flooding but is intolerant to permanent inundation. Propagation is by seeds and stem cuttings. Both fruit and seeds can float and remain viable in fresh, brackish and seawater for many months.Once seeds settle in fresh or saline wet soil, they germinate quickly and growth is rapid initially. This species is suitable for coastal agroforestry because both seedlings and adult trees can tolerate high salinity and can survive root immersion by high tide. However, it can be an aggressive invader in open and disturbed wetlands where moisture and sunlight are plentiful.