Jamaican Native Fruits
April 18, 2015
There are many varieties of fruits in Jamaica, however, only a few are indigenous to the island.
Native Fruits In Jamaica
1. Ugli—A hybrid of grapefruit,tangerine and orange
2. Grapefruit---grapefruit is said to have probably originated in Jamaica because the first written record of the term 'grapefruit' comes from Jamaica in 1814. Its name comes from that fact that it grows in clusters like grapes. The grapefruit is a hybrid of the sweet orange and a citrus plant named shaddock after the captain who first brought it to the West Indies from Polynesia in the 18th century.
3. Ortanique---The ortanique, a uniquely Jamaican fruit first propagated in Manchester, is as its name suggests, a cross between an orange and a tangerine.
Guava, cassava, cashew and cocoa are native to the West Indies. Guava is an Arawak word, and cassava, was widely used the by Tainos who called it yucca, meaning staff of life. Cashew thrives best in areas of low rainfall and at one time in Jamaica cashew nuts in their shells were used in several children's games. Cocoa, found in Jamaica from before the time of Columbus, rose in importance after 1847 when the manufacture of chocolate began.
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