Custard apple also known as the “aristocrat of fruits”, is a fruit that can be found in places with a warm and humid climate. The fruit comes from a tree that occurs in many parts of the world such as South East Asia, India, Australia, Taiwan & Africa. It would normally take about 20 to
The soursop is a flowering evergreen tree that is native to Central America, the Caribbean, and the northern part of South America. The sourop is also native to countries in Sub-Saharan Africa that are within the tropics. Today, it also grows in some parts of Southeast Asia and in Florida, USA. Other names that the
Ambrella (aka the Malay Apple or the Golden Apple) is a tropical tree found around the equator. It is known as an edible fruit which contains a fibrous pit. Most people do not know this fruit as “ambrella”, as there are many regional names for it. In Trinidad and Tobago is is called Pomme cythere,
Also known as the cacao or cocoa tree, Theobroma cacoa is a small, evergreen tree that is native to the deep tropical regions of the Americas. It grows up to only 4 to 8 metres tall, and is famous around the world for its seeds which are used to make chocolate and cocoa powder. Its
Coconuts are part of the Arecaceae family (ie palm family) and is the only accepted species in the Cocos genus. The Coconut tree is a large palm tree that can grow up to 30 metres tall, has pinnate leaves that are about 4 to 6 metres long, and pinnae at 60 to 90 cm long.
The carambola, also known as the starfruit, is the fruit of the Averrhoa carambola tree. This tree species is native to the Philippines, Indonesia, India, and Sri Lanka. In the Philippines, they are called either ‘saranate’ or ‘balimbing’ depending on how sour it is. This tree is also popular throughout southeast Asia, the South Pacific,
Tangerines are an orange coloured citrus fruit that is a variety of the Mandarin orange. Like mandarins, tangerines are smaller than most oranges and are easier to peel and split into segments. Compared to an orange, it has a sweeter (or less sour or tart) taste. Tangerines growing on a tree This fruit has been
Native to China is the peach tree, which is famous for its edible and juicy fruits called a peach. Peach trees are deciduous and grow up to 4 – 10 metres tall. Its leaves are long at between 7 – 16 cm long, and 2-3 cm broad. Its flowers grow in the spring time before
A cactus (or in plural – cacti or cactuses) are the member of the Cactaceae plant family which is native to the Americas. However, there is one exception which is the Mistletoe cactus which is native to Europe. Cacti are usually used as an ornamental plant, however there are some varieties that are used as
Maize, also known as corn, is a type of grass that was domesticated by the indigenous people of Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. It was used by the Mayans and the Aztecs to cook or grind it in a process called nixtamalization throughout central and southern Mexico. Later on, this crop spread throughout most of the
Pitaya, also known as pitahaya, is the fruit of cactus species. It is commonly known as a dragon fruit, strawberry pear, or nanettikafruit. It is native to Central and South America and comes from a vine-like catus. It is also grown in Asian nations like Vietnam, Thailand, Taiwan, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Sri Lanka. They
Also known as a courgette, the zucchini is a type of small summer squash that is part of the Cucurbita pepo. Zucchinis are yellow or green, and look similar to a cucumber. However, there are some varieties that look round or bottle-shaped. The zucchini, like all other summer squahes, had its original ancestors from the
The turnip is a type of root vegetable that is grown in temperate climates around the world. It is known for being a white and bulbous taproot vegetable which is used for human consumption. Larger versions are used to feed livestock. It is also an old vegetable charge in heraldry, as the prince-archbishop of Salzburg,
The banana is a common name for a type of herbaceous plant, as well as the name for the fruit that they produce. Although we normally see bananas as being yellow, they actually come in a variety of sizes and colours when they are ripe – including purple and red. The bananas that we normally
The purple mangosteen, simply known as ‘mangosteen’ to the rest of the world, is a tropical evergreen tree. It is believed to have origated in the Sunda Islands of Indonesia. Purple mangosteen trees grow up to around 7 to 25 metres tall. They have a hard rind which is a deep purple when it is
