Acai palm trees grow in clumps, the roots of which are formed by successive burgeoning from a single root, similar to bamboo. Each root can reach twenty feet in height. Above the trunk, the fruits are borne in clusters of hundreds. Each acai berry is round and about a half inch in diameter. The egg-shaped fruits grow clustered into bunches and are dark purple, almost black, when mature. Fruiting occurs throughout the year, with the greatest abundance during the dry season of July to December. The acai palm only bears fruit after its third year, with maximal productivity occurring in the fifth and sixth years.

More than Just a Palm Tree

The Para region of Brazil is the main habitat for the acai palm, but not the only one. Acai has many other common names, depending on the language and location where it is cultivated. In English, acai is sometimes referred to as cabbage palm. In Brazil, it’s known as acai, acai-do-para, acai-do-baixo Amazonas, acaizeiro, assai, jicara, jucara, palmiteiro, palmito acai, and piria. (Jucara and palmito more accurately refer to acai’s relative, Euterpe edulis Mart., another palm-bearing fruit with similar properties.) In Colombia, it’s known as assai, naidi, or manaca. In Suriname, it’s referred to as manaka, pina-palm, prasara, wapoe, and wasei. Acai is also found in French Guyana, Panama, Ecuador, and Trinidad.

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