Annona cherimola Mill.

Annona species are evergreen to deciduous trees. Bark dark brown, fissured. Leaves simple, alternate, exstipulate, coriaceous, glabrous, glaucous or slightly pubescent beneath. Flowers bisexual, terminal or leaf opposed, solitary or in fascicles, Sepals 3, valvate, Petals 3 or 6, valvate, much larger than the sepals, outer whorl fleshy and triquetrous above with a thinner concave base, inner whorl if present very small, strap shaped. Stamens numerous, anthers narrow, ovoid, dorsal at the top of connectives. Carpels many, subconnate, ovule 1 basal, erect, style oblong, carpels partly free in flower, later confluent into large syncarpous fleshy fruit, 1 ovuled, Seed with fleshy albumen.

Annona species flowers are complete, bisexual, i.e., with functional male (androecium) and female (gynoecium), including stamens, carpels and ovary. Pollination is entomophilous i.e., by insects. Flowering/Fruiting: June-July/November-January.

Seeds dispersed by barochory i.e., gravitational dispersal, zoochory i.e., dispersal by birds or animals, anthropochory i.e., dispersal by humans.

Trees about 5-8 m tall. Bark dark brown, fissured and fibrous, branchlets fulvous tomentose. Leaves simple, alternate, ovate, ovate-lanceolate to oblanceolate, 10-20 x 3-8 cm across, base obtuse or rounded, margin entire, apex obtusely acute, coriaceous, dark green, subglabrous above, paler whitish velvety pubescent beneath, lateral veins 9-16 on either side of the midrib, almost parallel, impressed above, prominent on the veins and midrib beneath, reticulate veinlets fine and close, petiole pubescent, about 0.5-1.5 cm long. Inflorescence very short raceme consisting of 1-3 flowers, leaf opposed or extra axillary. Flowers bisexual, subcapitate, about 2.5-3 cm across, pedicels slender, tomentose, about 1-1.5 mm long. Sepals 3, ovate, apex acute or connate into a 3 angled shallow cup, brown tomentose outside and glabrous inside, about 2-3 x 5 mm long. Petals 6, subequal, ovate, apex obtuse, tomentose, purple spots near the base, reddish or greenish yellow outside, glabrous inside, about 1.5 x 3 cm across, inner petals if present minute, squamose, triangular or ovate, keeled outwards, reddish or purple. Stamens many, about 1.5 mm long, with straight hairs. Carpels numerous linear oblong, with straight hairs, about 1.5 mm long, stigma sessile, spathulate. Ripe carpels, broadly subglobose or ovoid in fruit, slightly arolate with white pulp, about 10-20 cm in diameter, puberulous, stalk stout, about about 2 cm long, Seeds many, dark brown or blackish, oval-oblong, slightly flattened.

Susceptible to insect pests and moulds.

Notes: Western Ghats & Eastern Ghats, High Altitude , Cultivated, Native of Tropical America

Cultivated in horticultural gardens, Native of South America.

Fruits are used for making juice, cool drinks, desserts and used in traditional medicine. Extracts have proven potential in phytochemical and pharmacological properties, widely cultivated for fruits.