Ice-cream-bean

Ice-cream-bean Care

Inga Edulis

What is the plant

Ice cream beans are legumes, just like the beans you grow in your vegetable garden. The pods are about a foot long and contain beans about the size of limas surrounded by a sweet, cottony pulp. The pulp has a flavor similar to vanilla ice cream, hence its name. In Columbia, ice cream beans have many uses in folk medicine. Decoctions of the leaves and bark are thought to relieve diarrhea. They can be made into a lotion that is said to relieve arthritic joints. Root decoctions are believed to be effective in treating dysentery, especially when mixed with pomegranate rind.

If you’ve recognized any mistakes feel free to notify us about it. This would help us to provide only the best-quality information.

Humidity

Normal

Lighting

Part Sun

Hardiness zone

9 - 12

Difficulty

Easy

Hibernation

Cold Period

How to Care for the Plant

Water
As it comes from places with occasional heavy rainfall, your Ice Cream Bean will like a good soaking every now and then. In its native Mexico Inga Edulis will often be found lining the banks of rivers and streams, meaning that it gets year round irrigation-just keep yours well watered and it should be fine.
Pruning
Minimal pruning required to maintain desired shape and size. Remove dead or diseased branches.
Fertilizer
As the plant produces its own nitrogen a fertiliser is not necessary unless it grows in a water logged conditions.

Disease diagnosis

Check your plant’s health

Ease your plant care routine with PlantIn's personalized system.

Sunlight
Prefers full sun and will flower and fruit best in these conditions but will tolerate semi-shade.
Soil
Easy to grow, low maintenance tree that will grow in poorer soils. They will even grow in a wide range of ph from 4.0 to 8.5. Inga Bean will handle some water logging and short drought periods.
Temperature
Inga Bean is not frost hardy but will tolerate brief frosts. If they are exposed to long frost periods the plant will dry back but will come away in the spring. Most suited to warm temperate climates.