Kenya Natural History Guide >>> Plants >>> Moraceae >>> Artocarpus heterophyllus

Jack Fruit

Artocarpus heterophyllus

Jack Fruit, Artocarpus heterophyllus, Nairobi, Kenya, photo © by Michael Plagens

Photographed at the Nairobi Aroretum, Nairobi, Kenya. November 2012.

From Wikipedia: The jackfruit (alternately jack tree, jakfruit, or sometimes simply jack or jak; scientific name Artocarpus heterophyllus), is a species of tree in the Artocarpus genus of the mulberry family (Moraceae). It is native to parts of South and Southeast Asia, and is believed to have originated in the southwestern rain forests of India, in present-day Kerala, coastal Karnataka and Maharashtra. This tree is widely cultivated in tropical regions of the world. The jackfruit tree is well suited to tropical lowlands, and its fruit is the largest tree-borne fruit,reaching as much as 36 kg in weight and up to 90 cm long and 50 cm in diameter.

Moraceae -- Mulberry/Fig Family

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Copyright Michael J. Plagens, page created on 22 January 2013.