Kawista (Limonia acidissima)

Kawista (Limonia acidissima) is a species within the Rutaceae family. It is a medium-sized tree that can reach a height of up to 9 meters, featuring rough, thorny bark. Its leaves are compound and pinnate, consisting of 5–7 leaflets. Each leaflet measures 25–35 mm in length and 10–20 mm in width, and emits a distinct citrus-like aroma when crushed.

The flowers are white and possess five petals. The fruit is a berry, 5–12 cm in diameter, with a flavor that can range from sweet to sour. The fruit’s shell is exceptionally hard—as tough as stone—and up to 6 mm thick, requiring it to be broken open to access the interior. The outer surface is greenish-brown, while the inside contains a sticky, brown-colored pulp and small, white seeds.

The pulp can be eaten directly, mixed with coconut milk to create a beverage, frozen into ice cream, used in desserts, or processed into jam. In Indonesia, it is commonly consumed as part of breakfast by mixing the fruit with honey.

A 100-gram serving of the ripe fruit contains 140 calories, consisting of 72.30 grams of water, 2.20 grams of ash, 0.01 grams of fat, 4.30 grams of protein, 15.10 grams of crude fiber, and 6.00 grams of carbohydrates. The fruit helps lower uric acid levels, reduces inflammation, alleviates joint pain, and provides protection against the negative effects of free radicals.

TAXON

Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Subphylum: Angiospermae
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Sapindales
Family: Rutaceae
Subfamily: Aurantioideae
Genus: Limonia L. in Sp. Pl., ed. 2.: 554 (1762)
Species: Limonia acidissima L. in Sp. Pl., ed. 2.: 554 (1762)

HOMOTYPIC SYNONYMS

Anisifolium limonia Kuntze in Revis. Gen. Pl. 1: 98 (1891)
Hesperethusa acidissima (L.) M.Roem. in Fam. Nat. Syn. Monogr. 1: 38 (1846)

HETEROTYPIC SYNONYMS

Schinus limonia L. in Sp. Pl.: 389 (1753)
Crateva balangas K.D.Koenig ex Corrêa in Trans. Linn. Soc. London 5: 224 (1800)
Crateva vallanga K.D.Koenig ex Wight & Arn. in Prodr. Fl. Ind. Orient. 1: 96 (1834)
Anisifolium curvispina (Miq.) Kuntze (1891)
Anisifolium spectabile (Miq.) Kuntze (1891)
Feronia balanghas (K.D.Koenig) Steud. in Nomencl. Bot., ed. 2. 1: 627 (1840)
Feronia elephantum Corrêa (1800)
Feronia limonia (L.) Swingle in J. Wash. Acad. Sci. 4: 328 (1914)
Hesperethusa ambigua M.Roem. (1846)
Limonia ambigua DC. in Prodr. 1: 536 (1824)
Limonia curvispina Miq. in Fl. Ned. Ind., Eerste Bijv.: 500 (1861)
Limonia dulcis J.F.Gmel. in Syst. Nat., ed. 13[bis].: 684 (1791)
Limonia elephantum (Corrêa) Panigrahi in Taxon 26: 577 (1977)
Limonia engleriana Perkins in Fragm. Fl. Philipp.: 163 (1905)
Limonia pinnatifolia Houtt. in Nat. Hist. 2(2): 441 (1774)
Limonia spectabilis Miq. (1861)
Murraya odorata Blanco in Fl. Filip., ed. 2.: 256 (1845)

PUBLICATIONS

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

Dassanayake (ed.) (1985). A Revised Handbook to the Flora of Ceylon 5: 1-476. Oxford & IBH Publishing Co. PVT. LTD., New Delhi, Calcutta.

Dy Phon, P. (2000). Dictionnaire des plantes utilisées au Cambodge: 1-915. Chez l'auteur, Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

Kress, W.J., DeFilipps, R.A., Farr, E. & Kyi, D.Y.Y. (2003). A Checklist of the Trees, Shrubs, Herbs and Climbers of Myanmar. Contributions from the United States National Herbarium 45: 1-590. Smithsonian Institution.

Leti, M., Hul, S., Fouché, J.-G., Cheng, S.K. & David, B. (2013). Flore photographique du Cambodge: 1-589. Éditions Privat, Toulouse.

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

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

Meena, S.L. (2012). A checklist of the vascular plants of Banaskantha district, Gujarat, India. Nelumbo 54: 39-91.

Nasir, E. & Ali, S.I. (eds.) (1970-1995). Flora of West Pakistan 1-131.

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.

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.

Pasha, M.K. & Uddin, S.B. (2013). Dictionary of plant names of Bangladesh, Vasc. Pl.: 1-434. Janokalyan Prokashani, Chittagong, Bangladesh.

Smith, A.C. (1985). Flora Vitiensis Nova. A new flora for Fiji (Spermatophytes only) 3: 1-758. Pacific Tropical Botanical Garden, Lawai.

VERNACULAR NAME

Bali: Kusta
Bengali: কাঠবেল - কেইটা Katbel, Keyta
Burmese: သီဘင် Thibin
Chinese (simplified): 象橘
Chinese (traditional): 象橘
Danish: Elefantæble
English: Kawista, Wood-apple, Elephant-apple, Monkey fruit
French: Pomme d'éléphant, Pommier à coque
Gujarati: Kotha
Hindi: कैथ Kaith
Indonesia: Kawista, Kajer
Java: Kawis
Kannada: Bela, Belavala, Balavala, Baloola
Khmer: ក្រសាំង Kramsang
Lao: ມາຟິດ Mafit
Maharashtra: कवठ
Malaysia: Belinggai, Gelinggai
Marathi: Kavath, Kovit
Sanskrit: Kapittha, Kapitthaka
Sinhala: දිවුල්
Slovak: Limónia kyslá
Tamil: விலம் பார்ஹம் Vilam Parham
Telugu: Velaga
Thai: มะขวิด
Vietnam: Câ thng

Aryo Bandoro
Dlium TheDlium
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