trefle.io · Taken Oct 15, 2022 by Makoto Makoto (cc-by-sa)
Fabaceae
Ice-cream-bean
Inga edulis
Also known as Feuilleea scabriuscula, Inga vera, Inga complanata, Guaba
Tropical Plants · Edibles & Herbs · Flowering Plants · Native Plants · Trees & Shrubs · Tropical · Edible Fruit · Fast Growing · Inga · Shade Tree · Food Forest · Tropical Fruit · South American · Agroforestry · Nitrogen Fixing
Ice-cream bean is a fast-growing tropical tree from South America, prized for its sweet, cotton-candy-flavored edible pulp surrounding the seeds inside long pods. It thrives in full sun to part shade in warm, frost-free climates (USDA zones 10–12) with regular moisture and rich, well-draining soil. Provide ample space as mature trees can spread 30 feet wide, and protect from frost as even light freezes can cause significant damage.
Growing conditions
The details behind the basics
- Daily light
- 7 hours
- Watering
- Water deeply and keep soil consistently moist but not waterlogged; reduce frequency during dry cooler periods · Every 5-7 days
- Maintenance
- Moderate
- Soil
- loam
- Soil pH
- 6–8.5
- Temperature
- 50°F to 95°F
- Cycle
- Perennial
- Propagation
- Seed
Hardiness
USDA 10a-12b
Form & growth
Mature size and habit
- Mature height
- 20 ft – 40 ft
- Spread
- 20 ft
- Spacing
- 240 in apart
- Growth rate
- Fast
- Root depth
- Deep
- Flowers
- Mixed
- Foliage
- Green · Medium
Ecology & origin
Where it belongs and what it brings
- Native to
- Angola, Argentina Northwest, Bolivia, Brazil North, Brazil Northeast, Brazil South, Brazil Southeast, Brazil West-Central, Colombia, Cook Is., Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, French Guiana, Gabon, GaláPagos, Guatemala, Gulf Of Guinea Is., Guyana, Honduras
- Attracts
- Bees, Hummingbirds, Birds
Sources: trefle
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