The fruit has its origins in the time of the Incas, who glorified themselves in all that nature had to offer. They named this fruit the Inca gold. It was a rare fruit and symbolized fertility and creativity. The lucuma tree grows at altitudes between 2,700 and 3,000 meters in fairly dry locations. The tree produces fruits all year round. Full grown fruits fall to the ground, but are not edible until they ripe which takes a few more days. Peruvian Indians buried them in hay, straw, dry leaves or other materials until they ripened.