Comments on Patric Chocolate: Cacao Fruit: The Mystery Continues

Well, if there were, then it is likely that we wou...

2008-09-25T16:44:00.000-05:00

Well, if there were, then it is likely that we would have found them by now in the scientific papers in which we have been scouring, and that the professional botanists that have been consulted would have been able to find them too.

That is really the raison d'etre of this post, though I haven't really stated as much, i.e., that ironically, there seems not to be any consistent convention within the literature for the fruit of the cacao tree, even though one of our favorite foods wouldn't exist without it.

That said, I feel that cacao still has hope. It is my understanding that botanists are still far from naming everything that has been identified. Maybe the more that interest builds in the back story of chocolate, the better the chance will be that some botanist will take it seriously enough to bring it to the attention of his/her colleagues.

Best,

Alan

I meant on the fruit/berry/seed/drupe/etc. confusi...

2008-09-25T15:44:00.000-05:00

I meant on the fruit/berry/seed/drupe/etc. confusion--the parts of the plant.

Cacao nomenclature is:Family: SterculiaceaeGenus: ...

2008-09-19T09:34:00.000-05:00

Cacao nomenclature is:

Family: Sterculiaceae
Genus: Theobroma
Species: cacao

It was named Theobroma cacao by Carolus Linnaeus, and has been used ever since.

Very interesting. Are there any consistent conven...

2008-09-08T15:31:00.000-05:00

Very interesting. Are there any consistent conventions of cacao nomenclature among professional botanists (e.g., in academic journals)?