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Soursop
Francisco Farriols Sarabia, CC BY 4.0, via iNaturalist

Custard-apple family: soursop

Soursop

Annona muricata L.

LC Least Concern

Names

EnglishSoursop
DutchZuurzak
SpanishGuanábana
Chinese刺果番荔枝
Sranan Tongosunsaka
Sranan Tongosursaka
Surinamese Dutchzuurzak
Scientific nameAnnona muricata L.

About this species

Soursop (also called graviola, guyabano, and in Hispanic America guanábana) is the fruit of Annona muricata, a broadleaf, flowering, evergreen tree. It is native to the tropical Americas and is widely propagated. It is in the same genus, Annona, as cherimoya and is in the Annonaceae family.

The soursop is adapted to areas of high humidity and relatively warm winters; temperatures below 5 °C (41 °F) will cause damage to leaves and small branches, and temperatures below 3 °C (37 °F) can be fatal. The fruit becomes dry and is no longer good for concentrate.

With an aroma similar to pineapple, the flavor of the fruit has been described as a combination of strawberries and apple with sour citrus flavor notes, contrasting with an underlying thick creamy texture reminiscent of banana.

Soursop is widely promoted (sometimes as graviola) as an alternative cancer treatment, but there is not enough reliable medical evidence that it is effective for treating cancer or any disease.

Read more on Wikipedia · Text: Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Classification

KingdomPlantae
PhylumTracheophyta
ClassMagnoliopsida
OrderMagnoliales
FamilyAnnonaceae
GenusAnnona

In Suriname

20Records in Suriname
6iNaturalist observations
1687First record
2019Latest record

Where it has been recorded

  • Sipaliwini4
  • Marowijne1
  • Paramaribo1

Districts with at least one record that has coordinates. Shaded districts have records.

Sources & credits

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