From the Handbook of Energy Crops, unpublished
by James A. Duke
Inga edulis Mart.
Mimosaceae
Ice-cream bean, Guava machete, Inga cipo, Guavo-bejuco, Guava
Uses
Folk
Medicine
Chemistry
Description
Germplasm
Ecology
Cultivation
Harvesting
Yields
and Economics
Energy
Biotic
Factors
References
Uses
Plants
cultivated for the edible white pulp of the fruits, eaten out of hand
or used in flavoring various desserts. Trees extensively used in
Central and South America for shade for cacao, coffee, tea and vanilla,
especially at lower altitudes, and for parks, avenues, and watershed
preservation. Allen and Allen (1981) note that Inga
species have been associated with cacao and coffee since pre-Colombian
times, their desirability enhanced by their: (1) rapid growth for quick
shade, (2) ability to withstand drastic pruning, (3) usefulness in
maintaining soil fertility, and (4) effectiveness in preventing
erosion. Colombian Indians prepare an alcoholic beverage from the aril.
The beverage, called cachiri, is consumed at a festival of the same
name. Choco Indians of Panama use this or related species for making
their upright house beams, believing they do not rot in contact with
the soil (Duke, 1970). Nearly half the Choco houses have this tree
cultivated nearby.
Folk Medicine
According to Garcia-Barriga (1975), nearly all Colombian species of Inga
are used in popular medicine. Decoctions of the leaves and bark are
used as astringent in diarrhea, as a lotion for arthritis and
rheumatism. The root decoction is used for diarrhea or dysentery,
considered more effective if mixed with the rind of pomegranate. Bark
and fruit are used for dropsy and irritations of the raucous lining of
the intestines. Cuna Indians used the plant as a nervine for headaches
(Duke, 1975).
Chemistry
Seeds of Inga edulis,
eaten as vegetables, are reported to contain per 100 g, 118 calories,
63.3% moisture, 10.7 g protein, 0.7 g fat, 24.0 g total carbohydrate,
1.6 g fiber, 1.3 g ash. Pulp of Inga
spp. contains per 100 g, 60 calories, 83.0% moisture, 1.0 g protein,
0.1 g fat, 15.5 g total carbohydrate, 1.2 g fiber, 0.4 g ash. Dried
seeds of Inga spp. contain
per 100 g, 339 calories, 12.6% moisture, 18.9 g protein, 2.1 g fat,
62.9 g total carbohydrate, 3.4 g fiber, 3.5 g ash. Seeds of the genus Inga are reported to contain trypsin inhibitors and chymotrypsin inhibitors.
Description
Small
trees up to 17 m tall, with broad spreading crown, almost flat; bark
gray; trunk usually contorted, cylindrical, 30 cm or more in diameter
and branching 1–2 m from base; leaves simply pinnate, 10–30 cm long,
with 4–6 pairs of large oval leaflets, each pair separated by a winged
rachis, the smallest pair below, the terminal leaflet 1.5 cm long and
half as broad, membranous, minutely pubescent on both surfaces; flowers
fragrant, sessile, solitary, arranged in crowded heads at tips of
stems, peduncles 2–4 cm long, or flowers may be solitary in upper axils
and fasciculate and subcorymbose below; calyx puberulent, striate, 5–8
mm long; corolla silky-villous, 14–20 mm long; bractlets
oblong-lanceolate, about 5 mm long, caduous by full anthesis; pods with
very thickened sulcate margins, 4-angled, up to 2 m long, 1–3 cm in
diameter, flat or twisted, with white sweet pulp surrounding the seeds.
Fl. Feb.–May; fr. several months later.
Germplasm
Assigned
to the Middle America Center of Diversity, ice-cream bean, or cultivars
thereof, is reported to exhibit tolerance to heavy soil, slope, and
waterlogging. (2n = 26).
Ecology
Abundant
along margins of large rivers; common in thickets usually below the
high-water mark, and in wooded swamps. Also in ravines, upland woods at
edge of rivers and adjacent rainforests. Requires a tropical climate
with plenty of moisture. Found from sea level to 2,200 m where there is
no frost. Ranging from Subtropical Dry to Moist through Tropical Dry to
Wet Forest Life Zone, ice-cream bean is reported to tolerate annual
precipitation of 6.4 to 40.0 dm (mean of 9 cases = 16.9 dm), annual
mean temperature of 21.3 to 27.3°C (mean of 9 cases = 25.1°C), and pH
of 5.0 to 8.0 (mean of 7 cases = 6.6).
Cultivation
Propagates
naturally by seeds in the forest. Planted from seedlings grown in
nursery and then arranged so as to give maximum shade to coffee, tea or
cacao plants grown beneath.
Harvesting
Fruits
are harvested when ripe for the pulp, as needed. No great amount of
fruit is harvested at once. Once established, trees provide shade, for
many years over the undercrop of coffee, tea or cacao.
Yields and Economics
Fruits
are produced periodically, and nearly continuously. Plants cultivated
locally for the fruits in various tropical countries, as in South
America, Hawaii, West Indies, and East Africa. Trees also extensively
used for shade of coffee, tea, and cacao, especially in Central
America.
Energy
Cuttings from Inga trees, which need constant pruning, furnish fuel. I estimate that the prunings from Inga
as a coffee shade tree might add up to 5 MT/ha/yr, the pods, to 2 m
long, might contribute significant biomass, and the aril can be
fermented to make alcohol. Yield figures are not available. The species
is reported to have N-fixing nodules. Inga jinicuil has been reported to fix 35 kg N/ha.
Biotic Factors
The following fungi are reported: Bitzea, ingae, Catacauma, ingae, Fusarium semitectum var. majus, Perisporium truncatum, Peziotrichum saccardinum, Phyllosticta ingae-edulis, Ravenelia ingae, Rhizoctonia solani, and Uredo, ingae. Trees are also affected by a mosaic virus and witches broom.
References
Allen, O.N. and Allen, E.K. 1981. The Leguminosae. The University of Wisconsin Press. 812 p.
Duke, J.A. 1970. Ethnobotanical observations on the Choco Indians. Econ. Bot. 24(3):344–366.
Duke, J.A. 1975. Ethnobotanical observations on the Cuna Indians. Econ. Bot. 29:278–293.
Garcia-Barriga, H. 1975. Flora medicinal de Colombia. Botanica Medica. Talleres Editoriales de la Imprenta Nacional. Bogota.
Last update Wednesday, January 7, 1998 by aw
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