Wednesday, December 27, 2006

Guaraná Fruit (Paullinia cupana)

Most guaraná is produced in the States of Amazonas and Mato Grosso. To my knowledge this is not a commercial crop for the Santarém region. As a matter of fact, I may have some of the only guaraná plants around here. I came by a hand-full of seeds some years ago, given to me by a pilot who was returning from a guaraná producing area south of the Amazon River in Amazonas. I planted them at the Bosque around the old maloca (roundhouse), which is a forested area. Under these conditions, the plant becomes a vine, climbing up into nearby trees and it is difficult to get a good look at the fruits. Just a few days ago I was doing a tour in that area and found this beautiful bunch of fruit no more than 2 meters off the ground. In recent times I have planted other guaraná plants in sunny places around the museum. In this environment they will remain bush/small trees, making it much easier for visitors to see the fruit.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Very interesting. Great photo!