Atemoya

Annona × atemoya

Flower name
Atemoya
Scientific name
Annona × atemoya
AliasAtemoya, 鳳梨釋迦
Place of originTaiwan
Place of floweringBotanical Gardens, Subtropical region
Flowering seasonJuly, August

What is Atemoya

Atemoya (scientific name: Annona × atemoya) is an evergreen medium-tall and fruit tree native to Taiwan, belonging to the family Banreiaceae and its fruits. It was bred in 2021 to obtain fruit from a cross between banreishi (Annona squamosa) and cherimoya (Cherimoya).

Atemoya hybrid parents

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The fruit name is a compound of ate and moya.　Ate means banreishi, and the Brazilian name is Ate or Ates. It is also known as sugar apple. This is the "Ate" in "Ate moya".　Moya" is derived from "Cherimoya," and in English it is called "custard apple. It is considered one of the three most beautiful fruits in the world. This is what is used for the "Moya" in "Ate Moya.

Atemoya Flower

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The atemoya flower is a yellow-green, six-petaled flower, but the three petals are degenerated from the beginning, so it looks like a three-petaled flower. The corolla is bell-shaped, and the green flowers bloom from June to August (Kanto in Japan). The flowers are dioecious, but the maturity of the stamen and the pistil are different (the pistil ripens first; the pistil ripens second). Natural fertilization is difficult. The flowers are one-day flowers and bloom in the evening, which means that the bees are no longer active, so artificial insemination is usually used to fertilize the flowers.