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Soursop (Annona muricata)

Dlium Soursop (Annona muricata)

Soursop (Annona muricata) is a plant species in Annonaceae, a small tree, growing upright to a height of 10 m, stem diameter of 10-30 cm and young branches are hairy, evergreen, edible fruit and have a sour or sweet taste to some varieties.

A. muricata has long to oval leaves, 8-16 cm long and 3-7 cm wide, dark green and shiny without hair on the upper side, paler and hairless on the lower side. Petiole has a length of 4-13 mm and without hair.



The flower stalks are 2-5 mm long and woody, appear opposite to the leaves or in addition to near the petioles, each with one or two flowers each. The stems of each flower are woody, smooth or hairless and 15-20 mm long with small bractlets closer to the base of thick hairy.

The fruit is pseudo, has a dark green outer shell but is yellowish green and glossy when ripe, the surface is rough and thorny, ovoid and can reach 30 cm with a rather hard texture. Flesh runny, sour or sweet, whitish, fibrous, strong-scented and edible.

Each fruit contains 20-70 seeds, flat, blackish brown and hard, blunt tip, smooth and shiny surface, 16.8 mm long and 9.6 mm wide. Soursop is easy to grow in warm and humid tropical climates, altitudes up to 1200 m, temperatures 22-28C and rainfall 1500-2500 mm/year.

TAXON

Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Subphylum: Angiospermae
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Magnoliales
Family: Annonaceae
Subfamily: Annonoideae
Tribe: Annoneae
Genus: Annona L. in Sp. Pl.: 537 (1753)
Species: Annona muricata L. in Sp. Pl.: 536 (1753)

HOMOTYPIC SYNONYMS

Guanabanus muricata (L.) M.Gómez in Fl. Habanera: 114 (1897)

HETEROTYPIC SYNONYMS

Annona bonplandiana Kunth in F.W.H.von Humboldt, A.J.A.Bonpland & C.S.Kunth, Nov. Gen. Sp. 5: 58 (1821)
Annona cearaensis Barb.Rodr. in Pl. Jard. Rio de Janeiro 6: 3 (1898)
Annona muricata var. borinquensis Morales in Fl. Arbor. Cuba: 60 (1887)
Annona muricata f. mirabilis R.E.Fr. in Ark. Bot. 21A(9): 11 (1927)

PUBLICATIONS

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Akoègninou, A., van der Burg, W.J. & van der Maesen, L.J.G. (eds.) (2006). Flore Analytique du Bénin: 1-1034. Backhuys Publishers.

Balick, M. J., M. H. Nee & D.E. Atha (2000). Checklist of the vascular plants of Belize. Memoirs of the New York Botanical Garden 85: 1-246.

Barooah, C. & Ahmed, I. (2014). Plant diversity of Assam. A checklist of Angiosperms and Gymnosperms: 1-599. Assam science technology and environment council, India.

Barry, J. P. & Celles, J.S. (1991). Flore de Mauritanie 1: 1-359. Centre Regional de Documentation Pedagogique, Nice.

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Berendsohn, W.G., Gruber, A.K. & Monterrosa Salomón, J. (2009). Nova silva cusatlantica. Árboles nativos e introduciados de El Salvador. Parte 1: Angiospermae - Familias A a L. Englera 29-1: 1-438.

Berhaut, J. (1971). Flore illustrée du Sénégal 1: 1-626. Gouvernement du Sénégal, Ministère du développement rural direction des eaux et forêta, Dakar.

Boggan, J. Funck, V. & Kelloff, C. (1997). Checklist of the Plants of the Guianas (Guyana, Surinam, Franch Guiana) ed. 2: 1-238. University of Guyana, Georgetown.

Bosser, J., Cadet, T., Julien, H.R. & Marais, W. (eds.) (1980). Flore des Mascareignes 31-50: 1. IRD Éditions, MSIRI, RBG-Kew, Paris.

Boulvert, Y. (1977). Catalogue de la Flore de Centrafrique 3: 1-89. ORSTROM, Bangui.

Catarino, L., Sampaio Martins, E., Pinto-Basto, M.F. & Diniz, M.A. (2006). Plantas Vasculares e Briófitos da Guiné-Bissau: 1-298. Instituto de investigação científica tropical, Instituto Português de apoio ao desenvolvimento.

Figueiredo, E., Paiva, J., Stévart, T., Oliveira, F. & Smith, G.F. (2011). Annotated catalogue of the flowering plants of São Tomé and Príncipe. Bothalia, A Journal of Botanical Research 41: 41-82.

Fosberg, F.R., Sachet, M.-H., Oliver, R. (1979). A geographical checklist of the Micronesian Dicotyledonae. Micronesica; Journal of the College of Guam 15: 41-295.

Garcia-Mendoza, A.J. & Meave, J.A. (eds.) (2012). Diversidad florística de Oaxaca: de musgos a angiospermas (colecciones y listas de especies), ed. 2: 1-351. Instituto de Biología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México.

George, A.S., Orchard, A.E. & Hewson, H.J. (eds.) (1993). Oceanic islands 2. Flora of Australia 50: 1-606. Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra.

Gonzalez, F., Nelson Diaz, J. & Lowry, P. (1995). Flora Illustrada de San Andrés y Providencia: 1-281. Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Instituto de Ciencias Naturales, Colombia.

Gosline, G., Bidault, E., van der Burgt, X., Cahen, D., Challen, G., Condé, N., Couch, C., Couvreur, T.L.P., Dagallier, L.M.J., Darbyshire, I., Dawson, S., Doré, T.S., Goyder, D., Grall, A., Haba, P., Haba, P., Harris, D., Hind, D.J.N., Jongkind, & al. (2023). A Taxonomically-verified and Vouchered Checklist of the Vascular Plants of the Republic of Guinea. Nature, scientific data 10, Article number: 327: [1]-[12].

Govaerts, R. (1995). World Checklist of Seed Plants 1(1, 2): 1-483, 529. MIM, Deurne.

Idárraga-Piedrahita, A., Ortiz, R.D.C., Callejas Posada, R. & Merello, M. (eds.) (2011). Flora de Antioquia: Catálogo de las Plantas Vasculares 2: 1-939. Universidad de Antioquia, Medellín.

Johnson, D.M. & Murray, N.A. (eds.) (2022). Flora of Thailand 16(1): 1-332. The Forest Herbarium, Royal Forest Department.

Lisowski, S. (2009). Flore (Angiospermes) de la République de Guinée. Scripta Botanica Belgica 41: 1-517.

Lorence, D.H. & Wagnwe, W.L. (2020). Flora of the Marquesas Islands 2: 413-1135. National Tropical Botanic Garden, Smithsonian, DRPF.

Lê, T.C. (2003). Danh lục các loài thực vật Việt Nam 2: 1-1203. Hà Nội : Nhà xuất bản Nông nghiệp.

López Patiño, E.J., Szeszko, D.R., Rascala Pérez, J. & Beltrán Retis, A.S. (2012). The flora of the Tenacingo-Malinalco-Zumpahuacán protected natural area, state of Mexico, Mexico. Harvard Papers in Botany 17: 65-167.

Mao, A.A. & Dash, S.S. (2020). Flowering Plants of India an Annotated Checklist (Dicotyledons) 1: 1-970. Botanical Survey of India.

Newman, M., Ketphanh, S., Svengsuksa, B., Thomas, P., Sengdala, K., Lamxay, V. & Armstrong, K. (2007). A checklist of the vascular plants of Lao PDR: 1-394. Royal Botanic Gardens, Edinburgh.

Nurtjahya, E. & al. (2026). Flowering Plants of Bangka Island: Native and Introduced. Acta Botanica Hungarica 68: 127-156.

Onana, J.M. (2011). The vascular plants of Cameroon a taxonomic checklist with IUCN assessments: 1-195. National herbarium of Cameroon, Yaoundé.

Pandey, R.P. & Dilwakar, P.G. (2008). An integrated check-list flora of Andaman and Nicobar islands, India. Journal of Economic and Taxonomic Botany 32: 403-500.

Plunkett, G.M., Ranker, T.A., Sam, C. & Balick, M.J. (2022). Towards a checklist of the vascular flora of Vanuatu. Candollea 77: 105-118.

Sarder, N.U. & Hassan, M.A. (eds.) (2018). Vascular flora of Chittagong and the Chittagong Hill Tracts 2: 1-1060. Bangladesh National Herbarium, Dhaka.

Sykes, W.R. (1970). Contributions to the flora of Niue. Bulletin, New Zealand Department of Scientific and Industrial Research 200: 1-321.

Sykes, W.R. (2016). Flora of the Cook Islands: 1-973. National Tropical Botanical Garden, Hawaii.

Velayos, M., Barberá, P., Cabezas, F.J., de la Estrella, M., Fero, M. & Aedo, C. (2014). Checklist of the vascular plants of Annobón (Equatorial Guinea). Phytotaxa 171: 1-78.

Wilson, A.J.G. (ed.) (2007). Flora of Australia 2: 1-486. Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra.

Wu, Z. & Raven, P.H. (eds.) (2011). Flora of China 19: 1-884. Science Press (Beijing) & Missouri Botanical Garden Press (St. Louis).

VERNACULAR NAME

Aceh: Boh lôna
Afrikaans: Suursak
Bali: Srikaya jawa
Bantoanon: Banabana
Chamorro: Laguanå
Chinese (simplified): 刺果番荔枝 - 酸释迦
Chinese (traditional): 刺果番荔枝 - 酸釋迦
Czech: Anona ostnitá
Danish: Pigget annona
Dutch: Zuurzak
English: Soursop, Guanabana
Filipino: Guyabano
Finnish: Oka-annoona
French: Corossolier
German: Stachel-Annone
Guaymí: Soron
Gujarati: Lakshman Phal
Hebrew: אנונה מסוקסת
Hindi: हनुमान फल Hanuman Phal
Hong Kong: 刺果番荔枝
Indonesian: Sirsak
Japanese: トゲバンレイシ
Java: Sirsat, Nangka sabrang, Nangka walanda, Muris
Kadazan: Lampun
Kannada: Hanumana Phala, Mullu Ram Phal, Lakshman Phal
Lampung: Jambu landa
Macao: 刺果番荔枝
Madura: Nangka buris, Nangkèlan, Nangka ènglan
Malayalam: Cancer chekka, Mullanjakka, Mulluathi
Malaysia: Durian belanda
Marathi: Mansphal
Minangkabau: Durian betawi
New Zealand: Soursop
Nias: Durio ulondro
Palauan: Sausab
Palembang: Nangko belando
Polish: Flaszowiec miękkociernisty
Portuguese: Graviola, Gravioleira, Jaca-de-pobre
Russian: Аннона колючая p Сметанное яблоко
Sinhala: කටු අනෝදා
Slovak: Anona mäkkoostnatá
Spanish: Anona, Guanábana
Sunda: Nangka walanda, Sirsak
Tagalog: Guyabano
Taiwan: 刺果番荔枝
Thai: ทุเรียนเทศ

Aryo Bandoro
Dlium TheDlium
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Dlium

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