Abstract:
Sonneratia caseolaris ( ‘Kirala ’ in Sinhala and ‘Mangrove apple’ in English) is a
true mangrove species abundant in low saline mangrove areas of Sri Lanka. It
has a distribution throughout Southeast Asia and many other tropical countries
also. The ripe fruit of this species is edible and, in Sri Lanka it is used to prepare
a fruit drink that is reported as nutritionally rich. Some folks believe that the
drink has healing power on various ailments. Ripe fruits are sold for 5 ± 2 rupees
each. A glass (100 ml) of a mangrove apple fruit drink is usually sold for 20-25
rupees.
