Platonia

Platonia is remarkable or simply platonia (Platonia insignis) is a representative of deciduous trees of the genus Platonia, which belong to the Clusiev family. Interestingly, there are many other names for this plant, including Bacury, Bacuri, Pacuri, Pakouri, Pakuri, Pakoeri, Packoeri, Naranjillo, Maniballi and Bacurizeiro. Based on the fact that most of such numerous names are characterized by a common phonetic root, it can be concluded that platonium is widespread in many Latin American countries.

In general, the range of growth of platonia is the rainforests of Brazil, Colombia, Guyana and Paraguay, which are characterized by increased humidity. However, due to the fact that the fruits of platonia deteriorate quickly enough, almost nothing is known to the inhabitants of Russia about this plant. Nevertheless, in local South American markets, platonium can be purchased quite often during a mass harvest.

From the point of view of botany, platonia is a deciduous tree, the height of which can reach twenty-five meters. It is distinguished by a pyramidal crown and a yellow bark, which contains quite a lot of latex. Platonia leaves are oblong or elliptical in shape, up to fifteen centimeters long, wavy at the edges. Large five-petalled platonia flowers are colored pink and have a large number of stamens.

After the flowering period ends, the fruits of platonia begin to tie on the tree, which eventually take on a round or oval shape. Yellow-brown fruits, up to twelve centimeters in diameter, are covered with a thick fleshy peel, which, similar to the bark of the plant, contains an abundance of valuable latex. It is worth noting that in appearance the fruits of platonia are very similar to papaya, however, this is where the similarity ends.

Beneath the thick peel inside the platonia fruit is white flesh, which is unusually fragrant, and one to four large black-brown oblong-shaped seeds. The flesh of the platonia fruit tastes sour-sweet - quite often it can be consumed fresh, and also processed using marmalade, jelly and sherbet in the process of preparation.

In addition, the value of platonic fruits lies in their chemical composition - this exotic fruit is rich in such mineral salts as iron and phosphorus, as well as vitamin C. As you know, there is a lot of valuable oil in platonic seeds, which is used in traditional medicine in the treatment of skin diseases.

The wood of the plant is also of important economic importance - usually furniture, carpentry, souvenirs and much more are produced from it. In addition, latex, widely used for the manufacture of natural rubber, is extracted from platonia, but, unfortunately, today this technology has lost its relevance.