ABSTRACT
This chapter provides information on uses, folk medicine, chemistry, germplasm, distribution, ecology, cultivation, harvesting, yields, energy, and biotic factors of Gru-Gru Nut. Since pre-Colombian times, the palm has, with Copernicia australis (most abundant palm in Paraguay), supplied food, shelter, and the raw material for fabrication of soaps, hats, ropes, baskets, bags, hammocks, and mats. In Argentina, it is regarded as an ornamental palm with edible nuts. The mbocaya palm is of greater economic importance to Paraguay than any other indigenous palm. The oil could be used like that of other oil palms for energy, the press-cake for alcohol production or animal feed. A highly destructive stem borer or snout beetle (Rhyna barbirostris) attacks the palm. Larvae may devour the whole interior, except for the long cellulose fiber. A fungus, probably Phaecophora acrocomiac, may cause yellow blotches with black centers on the leaves.
