Tropicals > Theobroma > Theobroma cacao > Theobroma cacao
Theobroma cacao
Cacao Tree, Cocoa Tree
| Family |
| Malvaceae (Sterculiaceae) |
| Genus |
| Theobroma |
| Species |
| cacao |
| Category |
| Tropicals |
| Type |
| Tree (evergreen) |
| Height |
| 4-8 m |
Photographs
Cultivars
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Description and Growing Information
Flowering Period
| Landscape |
| It is an understory tree, growing best with some overhead shade. |
| Cultivation |
| It requires a humid climate with regular rainfall and good soil. |
| Habitat |
| Deep tropical region of the Americas |
| Leaf Description |
| The leaves are alternate, entire, unlobed, 10–40 cm long and 5–20 cm broad. Poisonous and inedible, they are filled with a creamy, milky liquid and taste spicy and unpleasant. |
| Flower Description |
| The flowers are produced in clusters directly on the trunk and older branches; they are small, 1–2 cm diameter, with pink calyx. |
| Fruit Description |
| The fruit, called a cacao pod, is ovoid, 15–30 cm long and 8–10 cm wide, ripening yellow to orange, and weighs about 500 g (1 lb) when ripe. The pod contains 20 to 60 seeds, usually called "beans", embedded in a white pulp. |
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