''Spondias pinnata'', sometimes also known as hog plum, is a species of tree with edible sour fruits. It is native to the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

and

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

, but has been widely naturalized in

South Asia South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth descr ...

, Mainland Southeast Asia,

Southern China South China () is a geographical and cultural region that covers the southernmost part of China. Its precise meaning varies with context. A notable feature of South China in comparison to the rest of China is that most of its citizens are not n ...

, and the

Solomon Islands Solomon Islands is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania, to the east of Papua New Guinea and north-west of Vanuatu. It has a land area of , and a population of approx. 700,000. Its capit ...

. It belongs to the family

Anacardiaceae The Anacardiaceae, commonly known as the cashew family or sumac family, are a family of flowering plants, including about 83 genera with about 860 known species. Members of the Anacardiaceae bear fruits that are drupes and in some cases produce ...

. This species, among several others, has sometimes called the "wild (or forest) mango" in other languages and was once placed in the genus ''

Mangifera ''Mangifera'' is a genus of flowering plants in the cashew family, Anacardiaceae. It contains approximately 69 species, with the best-known being the Common Mango (''Mangifera indica''). The center of diversity of the genus is in the Malesian ...

''. It is found in lowlands and hill forests up to .

Description

''Spondias pinnata'' is a deciduous tree, tall (sometimes up to in height); branchlets yellowish brown and glabrous. The leaves are large, with pairs of leaflets (see illustration) on petioles that are and glabrous; leaf blades , imparipinnately compound with 5-11 opposite leaflets; leaflet petiolule ; leaflet blade ovate-oblong to elliptic-oblong, × , papery, glabrous on both sides, with margins that are serrate or entire; the apex is acuminate, lateral veins 12-25 pairs. The

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphology (biology), Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of sperma ...

is paniculate, terminal, and glabrous, with basal first order branches . The flowers are mostly

sessile Sessility, or sessile, may refer to: * Sessility (motility), organisms which are not able to move about * Sessility (botany), flowers or leaves that grow directly from the stem or peduncle of a plant * Sessility (medicine), tumors and polyps that ...

and small, white and glabrous; calyx lobes are triangular, approx. . Petals are ovate-oblong, approximately ;

stamens The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filame ...

are approximately . The fruit is a drupe ellipsoid to elliptic-ovoid, olive green becoming yellowish orange at maturity, × ; inner part of

endocarp Fruit anatomy is the plant anatomy of the internal structure of fruit. Fruits are the mature ovary or ovaries of one or more flowers. They are found in three main anatomical categories: aggregate fruits, multiple fruits, and simple fruits. Aggr ...

woody and grooved, outer part fibrous; mature fruit usually have 2 or 3 seeds. In China, it flowers from April–June and fruits from August–September.

Vernacular names

''Spondias pinnata'' may be called in: * (''hwei'' or ''gwei'') * Chinese: , * tl, ᜎᜒᜊᜐ᜔, italics=no, libas * Khmer /pɷːn siː pʰlaɛ/ () or /məkaʔ prẹj/ (), * Javanese (and Malay, Sundanese): ''kedondong'' (also for ''

Spondias dulcis ''Spondias dulcis'' ( syn. ''Spondias cytherea''), known commonly as () in Sri Lanka or June plum, is a tropical tree, with edible fruit containing a fibrous pit. In the English speaking Caribbean it is typically known as golden apple and els ...

''), ''kloncing'' *

Kannada Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...

: * Tamil: (meaning "sour fruit"); in Sri Lanka it is also called , although this more commonly refers to ''

'' * th, มะกอก, (eponym of the Thai capital

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populati ...

) * Tulu and Konkani: *

Vietnamese Vietnamese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia ** A citizen of Vietnam. See Demographics of Vietnam. * Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam ** Overse ...

: ('forest ango-type fruit) *

Assamese language Assamese (), also Asamiya ( ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken mainly in the north-east Indian state of Assam, where it is an official language, and it serves as a '' lingua franca'' of the wider region. The easternmost Indo-Iranian langua ...

: *

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (union territory), Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 2 ...

: *

Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...

: () * Odia: *Lhotshamkha (

Bhutan Bhutan (; dz, འབྲུག་ཡུལ་, Druk Yul ), officially the Kingdom of Bhutan,), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is situated in the Eastern Himalayas, between China in the north and India in the south. A mountainou ...

): ''Amara'' *

Nepali language Nepali (; , ) is an Indo-Aryan language native to the Himalayas region of South Asia. It is the official, and most widely spoken, language of Nepal, where it also serves as a '' lingua franca''. Nepali has official status in the Indian st ...

: ''Amara''

Uses

The fruits have a sour taste and can be eaten raw or made into jams, jellies, or juices. They can also be used as feed for pigs (hence the common name "hog plum"). In the Philippines, leaves and fruits are used as a souring agent in various native dishes like ''

sinigang ''Sinigang'' is a Filipino soup or stew characterized by its sour and savory taste. It is most often associated with tamarind ( Filipino: ''sampalok''), although it can use other sour fruits and leaves as the souring agent. It is one of the mor ...

'', '' sinanglay'', or '' laing''. In India, pickle is made using quartered fruits preserved in mustard oil, salt, and spices. Along with mango and chili pepper pickle, it is the most common type of pickle found in households in many parts of India.

Gallery

''Spondias pinnata'' specimens from

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

, India:

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q9395416 pinnata Flora of tropical Asia