Inga edulis
species of plant
Inga edulis, known as ice-cream bean, paterna, whitey, padoo, cushín (short variety), joaquiniquil, cuaniquil (both from Nahuatl: cuahuxinicuile combining cuahuitl "tree"; icxitl "feet" and necuilli "crooked") guama, or guaba, is a fruit native to Central and South America. It is in the mimosoid tribe of the legume family Fabaceae. It is widely grown, especially by Indigenous Amazonians, for shade, food, timber, medicines, and production of the alcoholic beverage cachiri. It is popular in Peru, Ecuador, Pernambuco-Brazil, Venezuela, Guyana, Costa Rica and Colombia. The taxonomic generic name Inga is derived from its name with the Tupí people of South America (ingá) while the specific name edulis is Latin for "edible". The common name "ice-cream bean" alludes to the sweet flavor and smooth texture of the pulp.
Biology
Mature trees of I. edulis reach 30 m (98 ft) high and 60 cm (2.0 ft) diameter at breast height, usually branching from below 3 m (9.8 ft). The branches form a broad, flat, moderately dense canopy. I. edulis can be evergreen in tropical regions or deciduous when planted in colder regions. The tree has a pale grey-coloured trunk.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Inga edulis” is species of plant. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Inga, edulis and species, not as a finished interpretation.
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The phrase “species of plant” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
Stable identifiers, scientific names and standards terminology offer the best bridge between this overview and specialist evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 26, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q138183. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.
Current terminology should not be projected backward without checking the classification used when the underlying evidence was created. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
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This entry incorporates text from “Inga edulis” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.