The Abiu is related to the Lucuma, Sapodilla , Mammey Sapote, and the Starapple. It is native to the Amazon River valleys throughout South America. It can be found year round in the markets of Rio de Janeiro. Only recently has the Abiu, the sweetest of the Pouteria fruits, been grown outside of its native land.

It is delicious eaten fresh and fully ripe so that there is no latex. The taste has been described as "butterscotch caramel." The white, sweet, translucent flesh is enclosed by a tough, thin, yellow skin that is not edible, as there is latex in it.

Abiu is a smallish tree growing 15' to 20' tall, with longish, light green leaves. These baseball-sized fruits are round or can be slightly oblong, growing green and then bright yellow when ripe, with between none to three long, shiny, black seeds.

The Abiu is tropical in its requirements, needing a moist and warm climate. It should grow well from our lowlands to our upper slopes. It prefers a soil rich in humus but is very adaptable to all our soils provided the drainage is good. Give it a neutral pH (5.5 - 6 5) and balanced fertilizer about four times a year.

Abiu is primarily grown by seed and produces fruit in two or three years. There is a great deal of variability in seedlings. Cultivars selected in Australia for taste, flesh to seed ratio, and productivity are now in Hawaii. These cultivars are "Gray" and the "Z" series. They are very difficult to propagate so are rarely available.