Unusual Fruit - Sineguelas

Well, this fruit is unusual if you don't live in the Philippines, or for that matter Mexico, or other parts of Central America where they originated. It's unusual though that it's totally unknown in Malaysia and nearby Indonesia.

I was introduced to Sineguelas by Mee when she brought some to Malaysia from Northern Mindanao almost ten years ago. And it was only this year that I saw it again in the market in Pagadian City! It is a very popular fruit in the whole of the Philippines, I learn. Though it's quite sweet when fully ripe, the folks there love to eat it under-ripe and sour rubbed with salt. Just like they do green mangos, santol, and other fruits! Just thinking about it will make me salivate!

Sineguelas or sigwelas as they call it in Mindanao is known as Jocote in Spanish and Spanish Plum in English and has the botanical name Spondias purpurea belonging to the Anarcardiaceae family of plants. It originated from Central and South America and was introduced to the Philippines by the Spaniards centuries ago. I was told that it is usually propagated vegetatively by cuttings or marcotting as the seeds do not germinate. In the fruiting season the leaves drop off leaving bunches or panicles of ripening fruits on the bare branches. It must be a sight to behold, though, alas I have never seen it. All I saw this season were a few remaining fruits among the thick new leaves. (See my photo below)