átis

The átis, or sugar-apple, is a new-world fruit now cultivated across the Philippines.

Harvested from small trees that grow 3-5 metres tall, with leaves 8-15 cm long.

Fruits are often round or heart-shaped.

Ripeness is determined when the fruit’s skin turns a yellow-ish green colour, as above.

Its flesh is white in colour, soft in texture, and tastes as sweet as it smells.

One reason it proliferates (to our delicious delight!) is that the fruit is extremely attractive to a species of bird locally called “kabag” - which I would love to know more about, because in Tagalog, “kabag” is a descriptor for stomach upsets, and it’s known that eating átis makes you feel this way as well! Curious etymology. Because átis trees bear fruit in as little as a year, they have become a mainstay in many Philippine gardens - from large fields in the countryside to patches of greenery in dense urban areas. A delicious fruit to try when given a chance!

Information translated from the wonderful community behind Sagisag Kultura, a cultural research and awareness project by the Philippine National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA).