Tropical Fruit Selections

Male variety 'Matua' - pollinates most all other varieties, very vigorous, cold hardy, no fruit. One male will pollinate 8 females if close enough.

Female variety, 'Saanichton' - large, tasty fuzzy fruit pollinates with 'Matua', cold hardy. Harvest is late autumn.

Fast growing, can fruit in just two years. Grows 10 to 12 feet tall, protect from freezing. Cashew nuts must be roasted before eating.

8 to 12 inch prickly, green fruit is juicy, acid, white, and aromatic. Broadleaf, flowering, evergreen tree grows up to 13 feet tall.

Softball size fruit, tasty and sweet like custard. Pulp in segments containing a seed easily separated from the fruit. Grows 8 to 10 feet tall and can produce fruit in as little as two years.

A small symmetrical tree with prolific fruit production. The sweet citrus like flavor is delicious and refreshing and used in salads, drinks, garnishes, and eaten fresh from the tree.

Tea has been cultivated for almost five thousand years in China. Today it is the most popular drink in the world next to plain water. The Tea plant is a species of Camellia and tea is made from the dried and cured new buds produced in spring. Flowers are yellow/white.

An evergreen shrub or small tree with dark, leathery, aromatic leaves used as spice and in candy, gum, incense, and perfumes. This is true Cinnamon, not the Cassia substitute so often seen in the marketplace.

Pitomba is an attractive, slow-growing tree to 20 or 30 feet high, with dense evergreen foliage. Pitomba fruits have a thin, tender skin and a soft juicy golden yellow aromatic pulp with a slightly acid flavor similar to apricots. The fruit is eaten fresh and makes good jellies and preserves.

Lychees are one of the worlds most relished fruits. They are eaten fresh, out-of-hand, or peeled and pitted and added to fruit cups and fruit salads. For maximum productivity, there must be full exposure to light on all sides. Trees can grow 60 to 100 feet tall.

Rare! Viney bush produces rich, sweet berries very high in nutrients and antioxidants.

Macadamia can become a large evergreen tree to 35 feet tall. They can withstand some frost and brief freezing in the mid-20s. Young trees require copious amounts of watering but mature trees are quite drought tolerant.

Macadamias are considered to be among the finest table nuts in the world. They contain high quantities of oil. Macadamia nuts are eaten raw, or roasted and salted. The nuts are also used to make an edible bland salad oil. Years ago a coffee-like beverage known as "almond coffee" was marketed from the seeds. (University of California. 2004.) Macadamias are highly nutritious nuts and have the highest amount of beneficial monounsaturated fats of any known nut.

Jaboticaba is a small bushy tree with multiple stems. Fruit is cherry like in appearance with a thicker tougher skin and about 1 inch in diameter. Interestingly, the fruits form on the trunk of the tree and not on terminal branches as most other fruits. Fruits may be eaten out-of-hand, discarding the skin and seeds. They can also be used in jams and jellies, fresh fruit salads, sherbets and cobblers. The tree is cold hardy and likes plenty of water.

Beautiful showy fragrant flowers and large delicious fruit generally eaten fresh but also used in sherbets and drinks. The vine is a vigorous, strong grower, woody at the base, climbing by tendrils. Granadilla prefers moist cool growing conditions but protect from freezing.

Native to Jamaica, Lemon Bay Rum Tree is closely related to the Allspice Tree. It is a small to medium size tree reaching 20 to 25 feet with evergreen leaves that when crushed emit a lemony bay rum scent. White flowers are followed by oblong black berries. Grow in full sun to light shade.

A relatively hardy small tree to 30 feet tall, with spreading branches, the guava is easy to recognize because of its smooth, thin, copper-colored bark that flakes off, showing the greenish layer beneath. Guava is used in jellies, juice, pastries and many other uses. The fruit is smooth, sweet and aromatic. Trees can begin fruiting at one year of age.

An evergreen bush growing to about 18 feet in its natural range but usually around 5 feet in a garden setting. Small white flowers are produced in flushes during the growing season followed by bright red 1 inch berries each containing a single seed. The effect of Miracle Fruit requires eating only a single berry allowing the fleshy pulp to coat the taste buds of the tongue. Within a couple of minutes sour fruit like lemons will taste sweet and delicious. The effect remains for one to two hours. Fruit can be frozen and used later.

A fast growing small tree 25 to 35 feet preferring acid soils for best growth and fruiting. Fruits are bright rose color with a crisp rose like flavor. Evergreen leaves are large to 6 inches long and the fragrant flowers are white and in clusters. The fruit can be eaten out of hand, as a garnish, or in fruit salads. Fruiting is prolific and can begin at just one or two years old. Keep plants around 10 feet tall for easy harvesting.

An attractive fast growing evergreen tree with bell shaped fruit up to 8 inches long with a sweet mild flavor. Leaves are dark green and glossy. Red-Purple flowers are 2 inches across and set in tassel-like clusters. This tree fruits prolifically.

Cultivated by the Mayas, Chocolate is a 'Food of the Gods'. Cacao is a small evergreen tropical tree with large glossy drooping leaves. It is an understory tree and prefers a constantly warm humid environment. Flowers are small and the fruit forms directly on the trunk of the tree and main branches. Fruiting starts at about 5 years of age.