Plinia is a genus of flowering plants in the myrtle family (Myrtaceae), placed in the order Myrtales. It was described by Linnaeus in 1753 and contains around 67 species, all native to Central and South America and the West Indies.
The genus is best known for producing jabuticabas (also spelled jaboticabas), a group of tropical fruits celebrated for their striking appearance: small, round, purplish-black berries that grow directly on the trunk and main branches of the tree rather than at the branch tips. This unusual growth habit, known as cauliflory, makes Plinia trees instantly recognizable. The fruit has a thin, tough skin and sweet, white, grape-like pulp surrounding one to four seeds.
The most widely cultivated species, Plinia cauliflora, is commonly called the Brazilian grapetree. Its fruit is eaten fresh or processed into jams, jellies, juice, and wine. Other notable members of the genus include Plinia phitrantha (white jabuticaba), Plinia rivularis (bunched jabuticaba), and Plinia spirito-sanctensis (hairy cross jabuticaba), each named for distinctive fruit characteristics.
Plinia trees are slow-growing but long-lived. Seed-grown trees may take 10 to 20 years to first fruit, while grafted specimens can fruit in as few as five years. In cultivation they are valued both as fruiting trees and as ornamentals, tolerating a range of soil types but performing best in moist, well-drained conditions without salt exposure.
Etymology
The common name jabuticaba (also jaboticaba) derives from the Tupi words îaboti (tortoise) and kaba (place), giving the meaning "the place where tortoises are found." It has also been interpreted as "like turtle fat," a reference to the fruit's white pulp. The genus name Plinia was applied by Linnaeus in 1753.
Distribution
Plinia is native to Central and South America and the West Indies. The most economically important species, Plinia cauliflora, originates in the Brazilian states of Rio de Janeiro, Minas Gerais, Goiás, and São Paulo. Related species in the genus extend into Argentina, Paraguay, Peru, and Bolivia.
Cultivation
Jabuticaba trees have been cultivated in Brazil since pre-Columbian times and today are a commercial crop in the center and south of the country. Grafted plants may bear fruit in five years; seed-grown trees typically take 10 to 20 years. Trees are fairly adaptable, tolerating sandy or rich topsoil and mild drought, but are sensitive to salt and vulnerable to fungal diseases including rust (Austropuccinia psidii), canker, dieback, and fruit rot. Commercial cultivation outside Brazil is limited by slow growth and the very short shelf life of the harvested fruit.
Cultural Uses
Jabuticaba fruit is widely eaten fresh in Brazil and is also processed into jams, jellies, juice, and wine. The jabuticaba tree appears as a charge on the coat of arms of Contagem, Minas Gerais. In Brazilian political discourse the word "jabuticaba" has become colloquial slang for any rule, institution, or situation so peculiar it could only exist in Brazil — a tribute to the popular belief that the tree itself grows nowhere else.
