Cocona is a tropical shrub grown for its edible orange or yellow berries, native to the Amazon and Andean regions. It needs warmth, humidity and regular feeding, and is best kept frost free.
Family
Solanaceae (Nightshade family)
Grows as
Shrub
Light
Full sun, Part shade
Water
Keep the soil evenly moist, water more in dry spells and let the top layer dry slightly between waterings.
Soil
Fertile, well drained loam or a rich potting mix.
Temperature
20–32 °C; protect below 10 °C
How easy
Moderate
Safety
Not known to be toxic. Toxic to cats and dogs (ASPCA).
Edible
Yes, some parts
Native range
Nicaragua to S. Trop. America
Climate
wet tropical
About
Solanum sessiliflorum, the cocona, is a tropical shrub of the family Solanaceae. The cocona plant has sturdy branches and huge, serrate and hairy leaves. Cocona closely resembles a number of close relatives, including naranjilla (S. quitoense) and pseudolulo (S. pseudolulo.) It can be distinguished from those plants by its lack of spines. It will hybridize with those and other close relatives. Cocona also lacks the characteristic purple coloring usually seen in the naranjilla. Its flowers resemble large potato flowers, with light green petals. Cocona is harvested in parts of South America around the Amazon rainforest such as Purús Province in eastern Peru.
The fruit of cocona is a red, orange or yellow edible berry. Cocona is native to the Andean region of South America, where it is occasionally cultivated for human consumption.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Solanum sessiliflorum by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.