The recent passing of one of cinema’s best known comic actors, Bill Hoskins, reminded me of a scene in a “posh” London hotel. Asked by an obsequious waiter if he wants a drink, “A Bloody Mary is it, Sir?” he replies “No, a pot of tea, please.“Ah , lapsang suchong or Earl Grey? ”‘ says the waiter. “No, replies Hoskins tersely – “tea”. Apart being an example of British working class humor that echoes the social divide, this shows how a pedantic attitude towards names can obfuscate rather than clarify. A constant dilemma for the horticulturalist who wants to be precise about botanical labels, but who knows that they are often difficult to get one’s tongue around, let alone remember.
Take the manikara zapota. Despite its pretentious name, it is a fruiting tree that deserves more than a passing mention. If next to no-one knows this title, many of you out there will recognize it as the sapodilla. Talk, moreover, to your Thai partner about the lamut and she will nod in instant acknowledgement.
One of the most exotic tasting native fruits of Mexico and Central America, the sapodilla resembles a soft tan colored, somewhat elongated egg, about 7-10 cms long. But inside the skin – which is best peeled away with a knife – are segments of yellow or brown flesh, each with a shiny black seed. Worth a try? Well, a French botanist declared it smelt of “honey, jasmine and lily of the valley.’’ Some claim…. But it is very intriguing, with a slightly gritty texture like that of a pear and a flavor sometimes described as malty. If you come across a pile at your local fresh market, check to ensure that the fruit is not too soft; on the other hand, if the fruits are hard and greenish, leave for a day or two to ripen.
Introduced to Southeast Asia – rather like rubber- primarily as a cash crop, the sapodilla is unfortunately too large for the average garden, a slow-growing species that may reach 40 to 50 feet. A pity because it bears fruit fairly quickly, and from germination takes only six years to crop. Moreover, it yields fruit twice a year. In addition, the tree has a pleasant rounded shape with glossy green leaves. Besides those sweet, fragrant fruits, its boughs exude a latex-like substance called chicle formerly used in chewing gum. While that won’t persuade you to acquire a tree, its other virtues might – if you have the time and space to cultivate it.
Another strange fruit that periodically appears in Phuket’s wayside markets is the salak, referred to in these parts as the sala or rakum, or to botanists as the salacca. To westerners, it is known as the snake fruit on account of its scaly, reddish-brown skin. Shaped like a small, plump pear, the fruit’s rind is thin and brittle so it can be readily removed to reveal three or four segments of creamy flesh and one or more stones. The salacca has a high tannin content and when eaten unripe, can be, like the sapodilla, unpleasantly astringent. In this state, it is, in common with so many local fruits, (I am thinking mangoes, papayas, camias), popular in sour salads. When ripe it has, like the sapodilla, an exotic flavor that is hard to put into words , somewhat nutty with a hint of acidic sweetness.
Perhaps surprisingly, the salacca ‘s golf-ball sized fruits grow in clusters at the base of a palm tree. . Native to tropical Asia, it will make an interesting addition to your garden since this particular palm has a short stem and large pinnate (feathery) leaves which grow more upwards than outwards. Salacca magnifica, the doyen of the species, has huge undivided leaves up to six meters long, and offers a splendid ornamental presence. Were I planning a new garden, I would surely include one.
green galoshes 