Ice Cream Bean tree

Botanical Name: Inga edulis

Native Region/Environment: Northern Amazon basin but widely naturalized.

Sun/Light: Full sun with room for a broad canopy.

Temperature: USDA 9-12. An adaptable tree once established.  Its native region is tropical and subtropical South, Central America and the Caribbean; it also grows at 7,000 elevation and a mature tree can withstand light freezes.  Juvenile trees cannot survive freezes.

Water: Inga edulis is adaptive to a wide range of moisture conditions ranging from 26" annually up to 155", though its preferred range is 45"-90" rainfall.

Soil: Prefers neutral alkalinity but is quite adaptive to acidic conditions down to 4.5 and alkaline conditions up to pH 8.

Growth Pattern: Often grown for its excellent shade canopy.  Plant to provide cooling shade as an evergreen in tropical climates and deciduous in cooler regions.  Another attribute is that trunk branching typically occurs at about the 10' mark making it often unnecessary to prune lower branches over common areas and unobstructed views.

Mature Size: Can grow to 90' and produces a broad, moderately dense, canopy is ideal for filtered light shade as well as for sensitive understory plants needing protection.  An evergreen in the tropics it is a deciduous tree in cooler climates.  In cooler climates it grows to 30-40'.

Attributes: Besides a drought tolerant tree known for its excellent timber it is likely most regarded for its sweet white, smooth pulp surrounding the seeds encased in enormous pods that taste similar ice cream.  The pods often exceed a foot in length and can grow to 4' on mature trees in favorable conditions.

Attractor: Symbiotic relations are often developed with ants which patrol the trees for unwanted herbivores in exchange for tree supplied nectar.

Pot: 1/2 gallon rooting bag