Pomelo

Description

The pomelo tree can be 16 – tall, with a trunk, often rather crooked, that is 4 – thick, and low-hanging, irregular branches. The petioles (leaf stalks) are distinctly winged. The leaves are alternate, ovate or elliptic in shape, and 2 – long; they are leathery and dull green above, hairy beneath. The flowers — single or in clusters — are fragrant and yellow-white in color.

The fruit is large, 10 – in diameter, round or somewhat pear-shaped. Its weight varies by cultivar from 0.26 -. It has a thicker rind than a grapefruit, and is divided into 11 to 18 segments. The flesh is less acidic than that of the grapefruit.

The pomelo has at least sixty cultivars. The fruit generally contains a few, relatively large seeds, but some varieties have numerous seeds. The characteristics of pomelo vary widely across South Asia.

The pomelo is native to Southeast Asia and all of Malaysia. The tree may have been introduced to China around 100 BCE, and is now heavily cultivated in Southern China. Seeds of the tree were first brought to the Americas in the late 1600s.

File:Pomelo seedling.jpg|Seedling File:Pomelo flower.jpg|Flowers File:Bưởi.jpg|Tree File:Citrus grandis - Honey White.jpg|Fruit

History

Ancestral ''Citrus'' species

The pomelo is significant botanically as one of the three major wild ancestors of several cultivated hybrid Citrus species, including the bitter orange and the grapefruit; and less directly also of the lemon, the sweet orange, and some types of mandarin. The bitter orange is a naturally occurring hybrid between the pomelo and the mandarin. The grapefruit is a hybrid between a pomelo and a sweet orange, which is why 63% of the grapefruit's genome comes from the pomelo. The bitter orange is a hybrid of wild type mandarin and pomelo; in turn, the lemon is a hybrid of bitter orange and citron, i.e. cultivated lemons have some pomelo ancestry. In addition, there has been repeated introgression of pomelo genes into both early cultivated hybrid mandarins and later mandarin varieties, these last also involving hybridization with the sweet orange. Pomelo genes are thus included in many types of cultivated Citrus.

Etymology

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the etymology of the word 'pomelo' is uncertain. It may be derived from Dutch pompelmoes. The Dutch name in turn has uncertain etymology, but is possibly derived from Dutch pompel 'swollen' or pompoen 'pumpkin', combined with limoes 'lemon, citrus fruit', influenced by Portuguese limões with the same meaning. An alternative possibility is that the Dutch name derives from Portuguese pomos limões 'citrus fruit'. The specific name maxima is the female form of the Latin for 'biggest'.

One theory for the alternative English name 'shaddock' is that it was adopted after the plant's introduction into Barbados by a 'Captain Shaddock' of the East India Company (apparently Philip Chaddock, who visited the island in the late 1640s). From there the name spread to Jamaica in 1696.

Taxonomy

In his Herbarium Amboinense, published posthumously in 1741, Georg Eberhard Rumphius named it Limo decumanus. In 1753, Carl Linnaeus mentioned the plant as a subspecies, Citrus aurantium var grandis. In 1755, Johannes Burman validly described the species from the type specimen, giving it the name Aurantium maximum, now considered a basionym. In 1757, Pehr Osbeck named it Citrus grandis. Linnaeus revisited the taxonomy in 1767, renaming the species as Citrus decumana. In 1917, Elmer Drew Merrill revised and renamed it Citrus maxima. Aurantioideae remains as a subfamily.

As food

Nutrition

Raw pomelo flesh is 89% water, 10% carbohydrates, 1% protein, and contains negligible fat. A 100-gram reference amount provides 159 kJ of food energy, and is rich in vitamin C (68% of the Daily Value), with no other micronutrients in significant content (table).

Culinary

The flesh and juice are edible, and the peel may be candied. It is eaten as a dessert, or used in salads. In the Philippines, a pink beverage is made from pomelo and pineapple juice.

In East Asia, especially in Cantonese cuisine, braised pomelo pith is used to make dishes that are high in fibre and low in fat.

File:Pomelos for sale, Tapah.jpg|Ipoh pomelos on sale in Malaysia File:Tam som-o nam pu.JPG|Tam som-o nam pu: spicy Thai pomelo salad with crab extract

Drug interactions

Main article: Grapefruit–drug interactions

The pomelo, while not itself toxic, can cause adverse interactions similar to those caused by the grapefruit with a wide range of prescription drugs. These occur by the inhibition of cytochrome P450-mediated metabolism of prescription drugs including for example some anti-hypertensives, some anticoagulants, some anticancer agents, some anti-infective agents, some statins, and some immunosuppressants.

Cultivation

The seeds of the pomelo are monoembryonic, producing seedlings with genes from both parents, so they do not breed true to type. However, they are usually fairly similar to the tree they grow from and therefore in Asia, pomelos are typically grown from seed. Seeds can be stored for 80 days at a temperature of 41 F with moderate relative humidity. Pomelos can be propagated vegetatively by air-layering, by taking cuttings, by grafting, by shield budding, or by tissue culture.

File:Xiancun - pomelo orchards - DSCF4064.JPG|Pomelos in Pinghe County, Fujian File:Vườn bưởi.jpg|Orchard in Vietnam

In culture

The pomelo is used in cultural and spiritual festivals across Asia. In China, during the Lunar New Year festival, the fruit is offered to ancestors. Its name is similar to the word for "to have" (有, yǒu), making it a symbol of prosperity and family unity. In Thailand, pomelo is used in rituals such as the Songkran festival. In the Hindu festival of Chhath Puja, pomelo is used as an offering.

File:Chhat Puja with Pomelo.jpg|Chhat Puja with pomelo, India

References

References

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2. (2003). "The Chambers Dictionary". Chambers.
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20. Linnaeus, Carl. (1767). "Systema naturae per regna tria naturae".
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