Common name: Chocolate tree, Cacao
Botanical name: Theobroma cacao
Origin: Tropical America
Avg. Height X Width: 15' X 15'
Varieties: Red and Yellow
Season: October-January
Damage temp: 32 F Comments: This beautiful tree has large dark green leaves that shade the fruit pods which grow directly from the trunk and branches. The flesh is eaten as a dessert, and the seeds are the raw material of commercial chocolate. Hot chocolate can be made by drying the seeds, roasting, grinding, and adding milk. Chocolate "beans" were used as money by the Maya Indians of Central America. The red pods are typically larger and have more abundant flesh.
from Here
Image: Noel Ramos