2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Sonkoya (lat. Annona purpurea) - a fruit tree belonging to the Annona family, called in science Annona purple.
Description
Sonkoya is a small deciduous tree, the height of which can reach from six to ten meters. The trunks of the trees are short, and the oblong leaves of the sonkoy are characterized by a two-row arrangement. The width of the leaves ranges from ten to fourteen centimeters, and the length is from twenty to thirty centimeters. And the rust-colored sonkoy twigs are covered with tiny hairs. However, miniature reddish-brownish hairs cover the leaves on both sides.
The fragrant flowers of this plant are rather large in size and grow singly from young leaf axils of trees. The flower corollas are formed by three thin inner creamy white petals and three outer yellow fleshy petals.
Sonkoya fruits are characterized by an almost round or oblong shape, and their diameter can vary from fifteen to twenty centimeters. Outside, all fruits are covered with conical and rather hard growths. The fibrous and highly aromatic sonkoy flesh is colored orange or yellow and includes many oblong dark brown seeds. And the sweet and sour taste of the fruit is somewhat reminiscent of the taste of mango.
Where grows
The coastal lowlands of Venezuela, Colombia and Central America are considered to be the homeland of Sonkoya. In these countries, this crop is grown in private gardens. True, these fruits, alas, are not particularly popular - and their overly hard outer parts are to blame. Nevertheless, in the Philippines (it is worth noting that this plant got there relatively recently) and in Thailand, sonkoya managed to gain unprecedented popularity - in local markets during the season, these bizarre fruits can be seen literally everywhere. But in Costa Rica and Guatemala, sonkoya is considered "unhealthy" and bad fruit.
Application
Sonkoyi fruit pulp is eaten fresh, and various non-alcoholic and alcoholic drinks are prepared on its basis, or juice is squeezed out of it. This juice is an excellent remedy for colds and fevers. Sonkoya seed extract is an excellent remedy for getting rid of fleas (by the way, the seeds of this plant are poisonous), and a decoction of the bark of this plant is drunk for dysentery, as it has disinfecting and astringent properties. If you make tea from the inner part of the sonkoy bark, you can quickly get rid of the edema.
Sufficiently high content of minerals and vitamins in sonkoy fruits determines its excellent antimicrobial and antiviral properties.
Sonkoya cannot boast of a high calorie content - 100 g of fruit contains only 47 kcal.
Contraindications
There are no special contraindications to the use of sonkoy, however, sometimes individual intolerance is possible. And it is not recommended to use sonkoya in case of diabetes mellitus, since the fruits contain a lot of sugar.
When using soncoia, you must try to avoid ingestion of its seeds - they contain toxins that can seriously harm health.
Growing
Sonkoya is a very thermophilic culture, so it can grow exclusively in the tropical zone. By the way, you can often see it growing up to 1200 meters above sea level. A warm and fairly humid climate is the best conditions for the full development of Sonkoya.
Before planting the sonkoy, its seeds are soaked for a day or two, after which they are planted in a moderately moist and well-drained soil mixture. And seeds are germinated in a small greenhouse or in a bag at a temperature of twenty-four to twenty-six degrees.
