Artocarpus
Artocarpus is a genus of approximately 60 trees and shrubs of Southeast Asian and Pacific origin, belonging to the mulberry family, Moraceae. Most species of "Artocarpus" are restricted to Southeast Asia; a few cultivated species are more widely distributed, especially "A. altilis" (breadfruit) and "A. heterophyllus" (jackfruit), which are cultivated throughout the tropics. Description. All "Artocarpus" species are laticiferous trees or shrubs that are composed of leaves, twigs and stems capable of producing a milky sap. The flora type is monoecious and produces unisexual flowers; furthermore, both sexes are present within the same plant. The plants produce small, greenish , female flowers that grow on short, fleshy spikes. Following pollination, the flowers grow into a syncarpous fruit, and these are capable of growing into very large sizes. The stipulated leaves vary from small and entire ("Artocarpus integer") to large and lobed ("Artocarpus altilis"), with the cordate leaves of the species "A. altilis" ending in long, sharp tips. Taxonomy. The name "Artocarpus" is derived from the Greek words "artos" ("bread") and "karpos" ("fruit"). This name was coined by Johann Reinhold Forster and J. Georg Adam Forster, a father-and-son team of botanists aboard HMS "Resolution" on James Cook's second  voyage; they used it in their book "Characteres generum plantarum". It is maintained as a conserved name. Subgenera. Recent phylogenetic research, based on leaf arrangement, leaf anatomical characters and stipules, indicates that there are at least two subgenera in "Artocarpus": Subgenus "Pseudojaca" is allied to the genus "Prainea", and some researchers treat this taxon as a fourth subgenus of "Artocarpus". Fossil record. Fossil leaves and fruits of †"Artocarpus dicksoni" have been found in Cretaceous formations of West Greenland. Fossil leaves of †"Artocarpus ordinarius" have been found in Cretaceous stratum at the south bank of the Yukon River just above Rampart , Alaska. Fossils of †"Artocarpus californica" have been described from Eocene and Miocene strata of the Pacific coast of California and Oregon. 8 fossil species of "Artocarpus" (†"A. capellinii", †"A. isseli", †"A. macrophylla", †"A. massalongoi", †"A. multinervis", †"A. ovalifolia", †"A. sismondai" and †"A. taramellii") from the lower Oligocene, have been described from a fossil leaves collected from 1857 to 1889 in Santa Giustina and Sassello in Central Liguria, Italy. Uses. Several species in the genus bear edible fruit and are commonly cultivated: Breadfruit ("Artocarpus altilis"), Cempedak ("Artocarpus integer"), Jackfruit ("Artocarpus heterophyllus"), Kwai Muk ("Artocarpus parvus"), Lakoocha ("Artocarpus lakoocha"), Pudau ("Artocarpus kemando ), Anjily" (a.k.a. Jungle Jack) ("Artocarpus hirsutus"), Chaplaish ("Artocarpus chama"), and Marang ("Artocarpus odoratissimus"). Breadfruit and jackfruit are cultivated widely in the tropical Southeast Asia. Other species are cultivated locally for their timber, fruit or edible seeds. Anjily, "A. hirsutus", is grown for fruit and timber in the Western Ghats.