Syagrus coronata
Licuri or licury palm is a tree growing in dry and semi-arid regions of Brazil up to 40 inches tall. It bears around eight fruit clusters per harvest, from which hang approximately 1,400 nuts, each. Crushed, the pulp can be used to make liqueurs, candies and licuri milk, a specialty of Bahian cuisine. From the nuts, hidden inside the fruit’s flesh, it is extracted an oil similar to coconut oil, which can be used in cooking. The byproduct of this extraction is used to feed animals – thus, nothing is waste in licuri. Even the leaves are transformed into bags, hats, brooms, mops and other handcrafted objects. The palm tree can be found in Minas Gerais, Bahia, Pernambuco, Sergipe, and Alagoas, and harvest runs from March to July.
