History: Portuguese explorers first took the cashew from Brazil to India (Goa) and then to Mozambique (Africa) in the 16 th century. There is no commercial production in the United States, though cashews are grown in botanical collections and some home landscapes. Since cashew requires a frost-free tropical climate, planting in the United States is limited to extreme south Florida, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico. This area is a dry forest or savannah-woodland habitat.ĭistribution: The cashew is now of pan-tropical distribution and is grown commercially in many tropical areas of the world, including East Africa, Southeast Asia, India, and Australia, with India, Côte d'Ivoire, Benin, Nigeria, Vietnam, and Brazil currently the leading producers. Origin: Northeastern Brazil in the region between the Atlantic and Amazon rainforests. Relatives: mango ( Mangifera indica), pistachio ( Pistacia vera), spondias ( Spondias spp.), varnish tree ( Toxicodendron vernicifera), tannin ( Schinopsis spp.), Brazilian pepper ( Schinus terebinthifolius), poison sumac ( Rhus vernix), poison wood ( Metopium toxiferum), and poison ivy ( Toxicodendron radicans). Synonyms: Acajuba occidentalis, Cassuvium pomiferumĬommon names: Maranon, cajuil (Puerto Rico), mereh (Venezuela), caju (Portuguese), acajou (French), mamuang himmalphan (central Thailand), jambu monet (Malay)

Cashew tree