Also known as paradise plum, abajeru and icaco, this evergreen shrub or small tree is native to sea beaches and inland in tropical areas of west Africa and from Brazil to southern Florida, where it grows in swamps, coastal dunes and hammocks. It is a member of the Chrysobalanaceae, a small plant family of tropical trees and shrubs. The plant may be a small bushy tree or a low thicket-forming shrub. The multi-branched trunk has grayish or reddish brown stems with white specks and carry broadly ovate to round, leathery leaves that are 1-3″ long and bright green above often with reddish tints, lighter green beneath. Clusters 1-2″ long of small greenish white flowers appear throughout the year but with a peak from winter to spring. The fruit is a round to oval, edible drupe 1-2″ wide and may be white, pale-yellow with a rose blush, or dark-purple. Cocoplum provides food and cover for birds, insects, and small mammals, and is valued for use as a hedge, dune stabilization, and erosion control. Two ecotypes are recognized: C. icaco var pellocarpus, an inland plant that tends to be upright and not salt-tolerant, and C. icaco var. icaco that is low growing, forms thickets, and is considerably salt tolerant. The genus name, Chrysobalanus, is from the Greek words khrysos meaning gold, and the balanos, meaning acorn, and refers to the fruit. The specific epithet, icaco is from the Spanish word for the plant.
Type: Evergreen shrub or small tree
Outstanding Feature: Flowers, fruits, foliage, hurricane resistance
Form: Rounded crown
Growth Rate: Slow
Bloom: Clusters of small greenish white flowers through out the years but with peak winter to spring
Size: 10-30′ H x 10-20′ W
Light: Full sun to light shade
Soil: Sand-clay, moist to dry, well drained; tolerant of drought once established, and occasional inundation of brackish water
Hardiness: Zones 10-11
Care: Low maintenance
Pests and Diseases: None of significance
Propagation: Seed, hardwood cuttings, layering
Outstanding Selection:
Red Tip’ (inland ecotype; pink new growth)
‘Green Tip’ (inland ecotype, green new growth)
‘Horizontal’ (coastal ecotype; creeping branches root when touching the ground; high salt tolerance
Photo Credit: Hans Hillewaert Wikimedia Commons