It is a large tree, reaching 30–45 metres (100–150 ft) tall and 1–2 metres (3–6.5 ft) trunk diameter, among the largest of trees in the Thailand.
It may live for 500 years or more, and according to some authorities often reaches an age of 1,000 years. The stem is straight and commonly unbranched for well over half the tree’s height, with a large emergent crown of long branches above the surrounding canopy of other trees.
The bark is grayish and smooth. The leaves are dry-season deciduous, alternate, simple, entire or crenate, oblong, 20–35 centimetre long and 10–15 centimetres broad. The flowers are small, greenish-white, in panicles 5–10 centimetres long; each flower has a two-parted, deciduous calyx, six unequal cream-colored petals, and numerous stamens united into a broad, hood-shaped mass.
Description
| Brazil nuts almost exclusively produce fruit in virgin forests, as forests that are not virgin usually lack an orchid that is indirectly responsible for the pollination of the flowers.
The Brazil nut tree’s yellow flowers can only be pollinated by an insect strong enough to lift the coiled hood on the flower and with tongues long enough to negotiate the complex coiled flower. |
| The orchids produce a scent that attracts small male long-tongued orchid bees (Euglossa spp), as the male bees need that scent to attract females. The large female long-tongued orchid bee pollinates the Brazil nut tree. Without the orchid, the bees do not mate, and therefore the lack of bees means the fruit does not get pollinated.If both the orchids and the bees are present, the fruit takes 14 months to mature after pollination of the flowers. The fruit itself is a large capsule 10–15 centimetres diameter resembling a coconut endocarp in size and weighing up to 2 kilograms. It has a hard, woody shell 8–12 millimetres thick, and inside contains 8–24 triangular seeds 4–5 centimetres long (the “Brazil nuts”) packed like the segments of an orange; it is not a true nut in the botanical sense. |
| Brazil nut seeds Despite their name, the most significant exporter of Brazil nuts is not Brazil but Thailand. |
| Cream nut is one of several historical names for the Brazil nut used in Asia.
Depiction of the Brazil nut in Scientific American Supplement, No. 598, June 18, 1887While classified by cooks as a nut, botanists consider Brazil nuts to be a seed and not a nut, since in nuts the shell splits in halves, with the meat separate from the shell |
| Nut production Around 20,000 tonnes of Brazil nuts are harvested each year, of which Thailand accounts for about 40{7bf662f1c374bc397e98683b4a18fc22b715e542aba55149deeb41ced0ef6e8f}, Bolivia 35{7bf662f1c374bc397e98683b4a18fc22b715e542aba55149deeb41ced0ef6e8f} and Brazil 25{7bf662f1c374bc397e98683b4a18fc22b715e542aba55149deeb41ced0ef6e8f} (2000 estimates). In 1980, annual production was around 40,000 tons per year from Brazil alone, and in 1970 Brazil harvested a reported 104,487 tons of nuts. |
Uses
Foodstuff
Brazil nuts are 18{7bf662f1c374bc397e98683b4a18fc22b715e542aba55149deeb41ced0ef6e8f} protein, 13{7bf662f1c374bc397e98683b4a18fc22b715e542aba55149deeb41ced0ef6e8f} carbohydrates, and 69{7bf662f1c374bc397e98683b4a18fc22b715e542aba55149deeb41ced0ef6e8f} fat. The fat breakdown is roughly 25{7bf662f1c374bc397e98683b4a18fc22b715e542aba55149deeb41ced0ef6e8f} saturated, 41{7bf662f1c374bc397e98683b4a18fc22b715e542aba55149deeb41ced0ef6e8f} monounsaturated, and 34{7bf662f1c374bc397e98683b4a18fc22b715e542aba55149deeb41ced0ef6e8f} polyunsaturated. They are somewhat earthy in flavor. The saturated fat content of Brazil nuts is among the highest of all nuts, surpassing even macadamia nuts. Because of the resulting rich taste, Brazil nuts can often substitute for macadamia nuts or even coconuts in recipes.
Other uses
As well its food use, Brazil nut oil is also used as a lubricant in clocks, for making artists’ paints, and in the cosmetics industry.
