Melicoccus bijugatus, Melicocca bijuga

Varieties: Queen, Montgomery. Season: July to September. American relative of the Lychee and Longan. Tall stately tree with smooth gray bark. Cold sensitive especially when young. Male and female flowers are usually born on separate trees but some are partly polygamous. Heavy fruit clusters with nearly round, green fruits tipped with a small protrusion. Pulp is yellowish to salmon colored, translucent, gelatinous, juicy but scant and somewhat fibrous and usually clinging tenaciously to the seed. Flesh is acid-sweet and very tasty. The Spanish lime has quite unusual leaves. You can eat the nut too. It is a very versatile tropical fruit. Relatively cold hardy, to upper 20's for short period.

Similar plants:

• Melicoccus oliviformis, Talisia oliviformis (Cotoperis, Yellow Genip, Cotopriz, Guayo)