Possibly, many must know the passion fruit (parchita is called here in Venezuela), but I assure you, very few know the small fruit that I will share with you today, you can say that it is one of its smaller cousins, hahaha. Since I was a child, I knew it by the name of Tagua Tagua, I saw it growing wild in vacant lots and roadsides. I was always struck by the fact that they were like seeing tiny passion fruit, but we were never allowed to eat them, they said they were bird food and threatened us that we would get a tummy ache if we ate them.

It was only in my adolescence that I dared to try it and I realized that it was not only similar to passion fruit on the outside, it was exactly the same on the inside, only the flavor is a little different, it is less acidic and intense, but much sweeter. Recently, I came across a Tagua Tagua plant again and decided to photograph it to share the images with you, as well as some information about this interesting vine.

Thanks to my research, I learned many things about this climbing species, first of all, I discovered the name by which it is called at the scientific level, which is Passiflora foetida. Also the common names with which people know it, I will place below the most common ones: wild passion fruit, “burucuyá fétido”, “cibey”, “caguasa”, “parchita de culebra”, “murucuja”, crown of Christ, “bedoca”, “Ñorbo hediondo”, “pedón”.

This perennial climbing vine is native to northern South America and the Antilles, and belongs to the Passifloraceae family and the genus Passiflora. Although here in Venezuela it grows wild, in some places it is cultivated as an ornamental plant, used to form hedges and is even used for agroforestry purposes. However, as it is characterized by its rapid development, care must be taken with it, because if it is not properly controlled there is a risk that it will become an invasive weed.

Like other species of the genus Passiflora, it has a thin and branched stem, developing along its length a kind of small springs, covered with a sticky hairiness. These structures are the ones that allow the plant to climb, clinging to whatever it finds on its way.

On the other hand, its leaves arranged alternately around the stem, have a wrinkled texture and as you can see in the pictures, in terms of its shape are subdivided into 3 segments, which gives the impression of petals. They are covered with hairs and measure between 5 and 9 cm long and between 3 and 8 cm wide, they also have the peculiarity that they give off a strong and unpleasant odor.

Although I did not have the opportunity to photograph the flowers, since they only open in the morning, I can tell you that, except obviously for the dimensions, since they are considerably smaller, they are very similar to those of the passion fruit flower.

As for its berry, which measures approximately 3 cm, it develops enclosed within a kind of spherical mesh formed by several bracts that protect it. Initially they are deep green in color, but as they ripen, they change color until they turn yellow. They are edible; however, it is necessary to wait until they are ripe before eating them, otherwise they are toxic due to their high cyanide content. When they are opened, inside, there are many little black seeds, covered by a white pulp, with an aromatic sweet aroma. The taste of the pulp is similar to passion fruit, however, it is less acidic, being a rich mixture of sweetness and acidity.

Although, apparently in some places it is very appreciated due to its use in the gastronomic field to aromatize drinks and in natural medicine to treat some respiratory and digestive system affections. It is necessary to emphasize that it should be used with great caution, since all parts of the plant contain toxic substances, except for the ripe fruits, as I mentioned above.

Finally, I want to tell you a very curious fact about this species of vine, it turns out that it has a protection mechanism, quite peculiar, the bracts that protect the flowers and then the fruits, are able to catch and kill small insects. However, unlike carnivorous plants, this one does not have the ability to digest it or extract its nutrients, which is why this type of plant is called a proto-carnivore.

Well, my dear readers, I just have to say goodbye, I hope, that the information and photographs that I shared this time, have been to everyone's liking, especially to Hive account@bucipuci, Hive account@adalger and the whole team of Hive account@dna and Hive account@amazingnature, since it is my entry for this week's contest, which, if you want to participate, you can access by clicking on the following link Amazing Nature Contest: FREE TOPIC - #1/11/22. Best wishes for well-being and health to all, God Bless. See you next time.

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