Cacao

Theobroma cacao

Malvaceae

Food of the gods — a cauliflorous rainforest tree whose seed became chocolate, and a traditional bitter tonic before it became dessert.

Culinary seed. Chocolate is food; cacao powder in medicinal amounts is a stimulant.

Parts used: Fermented dried seed
Traditional notes: Kitchen chocolate · Traditional bitter drink · Fatigue folklore as food
Grow · USDA 6b: Tropical understory tree, USDA 11–12; conservatory north Fresh seed or a nursery plant if you have a jungle room. In work: Jan · Feb · Mar · Apr · May · Jun · Jul · Aug · Sep · Oct · Nov · Dec
Harvest: Ripe pods, ferment the seeds. Most kitchens buy the bar.

A grocery bar is the honest harvest.
Pods grow on the trunk — that is not a disease.

Safety

Migraine if chocolate is your trigger Reflux in large late cups

Lore

Theobroma means food of the gods, Linnaeus’s rare joke. Maya and Mexica drank it bitter with chili and achiote; sugar and milk are a Spanish afterthought. Cacao beans were currency. A 16th-century load of beans could buy a slave or a canoe, depending on the market.

The Herbarium — a teaching catalog, not a clinic. Traditional use is history, not a prescription. USDA 6b dates are a week either way, not a promise. Do not eat, drink, or harvest a plant you cannot name.