Brazilian Passion Flower
April 02, 2010
Photographer: Mario Freitas
Summary Author: Mario Freitas
The magnificently colored flower above is called maracuja in South America. It’s also simply known as Maypop Passionflower (Passiflora edulis). Its greenish fruits are a type of berry that can be processed into juice, and its leaves are sometimes used in the treatment of anxiety and insomnia. Stepping on the ripened fruit may result in a loud popping sound, hence the name Maypop. Seventeenth-century Spanish colonizers established that the flower parts symbolized the suffering of Christ on the cross. Photo taken in Curitiba, Brazil on November 7, 2007.