Guatteria citriodora
Guatteria citriodora
Safety & Hazards
None known
Cultivation Details
Succeeds in full sun and also in moderate shade[1]. Grows in the wild mainly in well-drained, low-fertility, sandy soils, but also found in clayey soils[1, 2]. Established plants are drought tolerant[1]. A slow-growing plant[1]. Plants can flower and produce fruit all year round[2].
Propagation
Seed - it has a hard seedcoat and may benefit from scarification before sowing to speed up germination. This can usually be done by pouring a small amount of nearly boiling water on the seeds (being careful not to cook them!) and then soaking them for 12 - 24 hours in warm water. By this time they should have imbibed moisture and swollen - if they have not, then carefully make a nick in the seedcoat (being careful not to damage the embryo) and soak for a further 12 hours before sowing. Sow the seed in a partially shaded position in a nursery seedbed. A low germination rate can be expected for untreated seeds, with the seed sprouting within 40 - 60 days[1]. Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2026-02-20. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Guatteria+citriodora>
Pollinators
Beetles
References
- [1]Brazilian Trees. Volume 2. 4th Edition. — Lorenzi. H. · Instituto Plantarum De Estudos Da Flora; Brazil. · 2002 · ISBN 85-86714-15-1 ↩︎Information on 350 species of Brazilian trees. Stunning photographs of each species, brief details on the plant, its uses and how to grow it from seed. A superb work, with the minor irritation that the translation from Portuguese is not of the best.
- [2]Confronting a morphological nightmare: Revision of the Neotropical genus Guatteria (Annonaceae) — Maas P.J.M et al · 2015 · http://dx.doi.org/10.3767/000651915X690341 ↩︎A comprehensive review of the genus Guatteria, recognizing 177 species. It can be downloaded from the Internet.