CASHEW
anacardium occidental

An easily grown evergreen relative of the mango, poison sumac and poison ivy. Very sensitive to cold, especially in warm winters followed by a freeze. Leaves are simple, leathery, light-green with a copper-red blush when young. The nut is not edible or safe when raw. Touching an uncooked nut can cause skin eruptions and the smoke given off by roasting is itself an irritant and poisonous. The cashew apple grows above the nut; it is edible and safe without treatment and makes good jelly or fermented liquor.