Last edited on 29 Nov 2025. View history

Achiote

Bixa orellana

Also known as aploppas (EN) uruku (EN)

How to sow achiote: Direct seed or cuttings

Achiote is a shrub or small tree originally from the tropical region of the Americas. It's waxy seed coverings (known as arils) are used to make annatto, a natural orange-red condiment that is used to color and lightly season food. The ground seeds are used in Central and South American, Mexican, and Caribbean cuisines. The plant bears clusters of bright white to pink flowers at the tips of the branches. The red-brown seed pods are covered in soft spines and each pod contains many seeds covered in thin waxy red arils.

4: plantings
2: harvests
0: seed packets

Growstuff is a free, community-run site for people who grow food. Keep track of what you plant and harvest, find seeds to swap, and see what is growing near you. Join to record your own achiote.

Achiote facts

Lifespan

Annual living and reproducing in a single year or less

Height

600cm

How members grow achiote

Sunniness

Planted from

Harvested for

Photos

Achiote crops

Photo by Eric Fischer Rempe via iNaturalist (Copyright Eric Fischer Rempe)

Video

Where achiote grow

Only plantings by members who have set their locations are shown.

What people are saying about achiote

Nobody has posted about achiote yet.

Who's planted achiote

toristreet Garden
andru Riverside
aelspeth The Farm at EKECCS · Fairbanks, AK

Achiote harvests

pozorvlak harvested 3, weighing 0.7 kg.
Edinburgh

almost 13 years ago
toristreet harvested not specified.
unknown location

almost 13 years ago

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Find achiote seeds

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Ecological requirements

Data from the FAO EcoCrop database for Bixa orellana L.

Optimal temperature	20 - 28 °C
Absolute temperature	15 - 36 °C
Optimal rainfall	1500 - 2000 mm/year
Absolute rainfall	1250 - 2500 mm/year
Optimal soil pH	5.5 - 7.5
Absolute soil pH	4.5 - 8.5
Crop cycle	150 - 365 days
Max altitude	2000 m
Life form	shrub, tree
Life span	perennial
Habit	erect
Optimal soil depth	deep (>>150 cm)
Optimal soil texture	medium, organic
Optimal soil fertility	moderate
Optimal soil drainage	well (dry spells)
Optimal soil salinity	low (<4 dS/m)
Photoperiod	short day (<12 hours)
Optimal light	very bright to clear skies

Licensed under CC-BY-4.0 .

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) ECOCROP, the crop ecological requirements database. Version 1. https://data.apps.fao.org/catalog/dataset/ecocrop. Accessed through the CGIAR Climate Action Data Hub, https://cgiar-climate-data-hub.github.io/catalog/ecocrop_1/.

Learn more about achiote

Resources outside Growstuff.

Achiote