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{{Taxobox
| color = lightgreen
| name = Acerola
| image = Malpighia glabra.jpg
| image_width = 240px
| regnum = [[Plant]]ae
| divisio = [[Magnoliophyta]]
| classis = [[Magnoliopsida]]
| ordo = [[Malpighiales]]
| familia = [[Malpighiaceae]]
| genus = ''[[Malpighia]]''
| species = '''''M. glabra'''''
| binomial = ''Malpighia glabra''
| binomial_authority = [[Carolus Linnaeus|L.]]
}}
'''Acerola''' (''Malpighia glabra''), also known as '''Barbados cherry''' or '''wild crapemyrtle''', is a tropical [[fruit]]-bearing [[shrub]] or small [[tree]] in the family [[Malpighiaceae]], native to the [[West Indies]] and northern [[South America]] and also cultivated in [[India]]. It grows to 3 m tall, with a dense, [[Spine (biology)|thorny]] crown. The [[leaf|leaves]] are [[evergreen]], simple ovate-lanceolate, 5-10 cm long, with an entire margin. The [[flower]]s are produced in umbels of 2-5 together, each flower 1-1.5 cm diameter, with five pink or red petals.
The [[fruit]] is bright red, 1.5-2 cm diameter, containing 2-3 hard [[seed]]s. It is juicy, often as much sour as sweet in flavor, and very high in [[vitamin C]] and other [[nutrient]]s.
===Cultivation and uses===
The fruit is edible and widely consumed in the species' native area, and is cultivated elsewhere for its high vitamin C content.
In the [[1950s]], a manufacturer of baby food decided that [[apple juice]] was milder for infants than [[orange juice]]. The company claimed that a drop of acerola juice in an 8 oz. can of apple juice provided the amount of [[vitamin C]] of an equal amount of orange juice. {{Fact|date=April 2007}}
In [[Puerto Rico]], the acerola is so prized that custom officials exercise considerable precaution to prevent exporting of acerola cuttings.
==External links==
*[http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/BODY_MG041 University of Florida: Acerola]
*[http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-acerola.html Columbia Encyclopedia entry on Acerola]
[[Category:Malpighiaceae]]
[[Category:fruit]]
| color = lightgreen
| name = Acerola
| image = Malpighia glabra.jpg
| image_width = 240px
| regnum = [[Plant]]ae
| divisio = [[Magnoliophyta]]
| classis = [[Magnoliopsida]]
| ordo = [[Malpighiales]]
| familia = [[Malpighiaceae]]
| genus = ''[[Malpighia]]''
| species = '''''M. glabra'''''
| binomial = ''Malpighia glabra''
| binomial_authority = [[Carolus Linnaeus|L.]]
}}
'''Acerola''' (''Malpighia glabra''), also known as '''Barbados cherry''' or '''wild crapemyrtle''', is a tropical [[fruit]]-bearing [[shrub]] or small [[tree]] in the family [[Malpighiaceae]], native to the [[West Indies]] and northern [[South America]] and also cultivated in [[India]]. It grows to 3 m tall, with a dense, [[Spine (biology)|thorny]] crown. The [[leaf|leaves]] are [[evergreen]], simple ovate-lanceolate, 5-10 cm long, with an entire margin. The [[flower]]s are produced in umbels of 2-5 together, each flower 1-1.5 cm diameter, with five pink or red petals.
The [[fruit]] is bright red, 1.5-2 cm diameter, containing 2-3 hard [[seed]]s. It is juicy, often as much sour as sweet in flavor, and very high in [[vitamin C]] and other [[nutrient]]s.
===Cultivation and uses===
The fruit is edible and widely consumed in the species' native area, and is cultivated elsewhere for its high vitamin C content.
In the [[1950s]], a manufacturer of baby food decided that [[apple juice]] was milder for infants than [[orange juice]]. The company claimed that a drop of acerola juice in an 8 oz. can of apple juice provided the amount of [[vitamin C]] of an equal amount of orange juice. {{Fact|date=April 2007}}
In [[Puerto Rico]], the acerola is so prized that custom officials exercise considerable precaution to prevent exporting of acerola cuttings.
==External links==
*[http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/BODY_MG041 University of Florida: Acerola]
*[http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-acerola.html Columbia Encyclopedia entry on Acerola]
[[Category:Malpighiaceae]]
[[Category:fruit]]
