What is Akee fruit?

One of the most bizarre looking, yet useful...

Email from our Florida customer:

I got an Akee tree from you last year for my tropical fruit garden collection and honestly didn't know much about what it was. This year it started growing real fast and branched out. In spring it was flowering like crazy and now I have about 20 bright coral fruit hanging off the tree that look like Christmas decorations. They are extremely showy and can be seen from far away, I have neighbors stopping by asking what kind of tree it is. I finally did more research on it and found a recipe how to cook the fruit. Only a few had ripened and opened so far, but I already had a chance to try the meal. Cooked the arils and fried in a pan with some butter. What a delicious surprise! To my taste, it is like a mix of potatoes and eggs. Just through in some bacon and it will make a complete breakfast! One of the coolest fruit I've tasted. Just wanted to share this with you.

About Akee (Blighia sapida)

This showy fruit, a close relative of Lychee, Longan, and Rambutan, is a National fruit of Jamaica. It is indeed very exciting one, and what is also important, the tree is easy in cultivation, fast growing and can be maintained compact. I it is not bugsy or picky about soil/water conditions, and is relatively cold tolerant for being a tropical tree. You can find delicious akee meals only in Jamaican restaurants. But no need to search for it - grow your own tree, it can't be easier. It will start fruiting for you the next season, you don't have to wait long. Sometimes it fruits twice a year! However, remember, the fruit is used as a vegetable, and is not eaten raw. It must be picked after the fruit has opened naturally so the flesh is fully exposed to light. When the fruit has "yawned", discard the seeds (or better plant them to grow more trees - to share with your friends!). The arils, while still fresh and firm, are best parboiled in salted water or milk and then lightly fried in butter. Then they are really delicious!
Read more about this tree...

Sunday Breakfast with Peanut Butter and Blackberry Jam...

It's time for our favorite day and another Easy stroll through Top Tropicals' Garden with savings of 50% and MORE! What a wonderful way to start the day.

Speaking of wonderful, is there any memory as wonderful as a peanut butter and jelly sandwich from back in the day?! PB&J's, a true Classic, easy, savory and delicious and a universal favorite... And for a truly Top Tropicals variation of the Classic sandwich, have we got something special for you...
Bunchosia argentea and Randia Formosa. OK, we admit it may not roll off the tongue quite as easily as PB&J, but your tongue and taste buds will be thankful for the delicious flavors of the Peanut Butter Fruit Tree - Bunchosia argentea, and Blackberry Jam Fruit - Randia formosa.

Combine the rich and creamy delicious Peanut Butter with the not too sweet and fresh pulp of the Blackberry Jam Fruit and you have a unique and tasty combination destined to be a classic of its own while making your garden look even more beautiful!

Saving on your favorite plants is Easy.
Easy like Sunday Morning...

For this Easy Sunday we have priced these at incredible savings:
The Peanut Butter Tree, regularly $49, is on Easy Sunday sale for only $24
The Blackberry Jam, regularly $39, is on Easy Sunday Sale for only $19

Classic Combination

Combine the two for your own Classic Combination and save even more, instead of full price $88, it's only only $39 for the set!

Blackberry Jam Fruit

Randia formosa - Blackberry jam fruit, Jasmin de Rosa - fragrant white flowers of this Gardenia relative and edible fruit that tastes like blackberry jam... Kids love the fruit! Many claim that it's even better than preserves. This exotic shrub will fruit in a container within a year and produces as many as 25 to 30 fruits at a time. It is relatively cold hardy, blooms for a few months in the fall and winter, so fruiting and flowering can be enjoyed when many other plants are dormant.

Picture of 2 y.o. plant full of fragrant flowers, ready to set fruit:

Peanut Butter Tree

Bunchosia argentea - Peanut Butter Tree.
One of the most fascinating exotic fruit, as amazing as Miracle fruit, Peanut Butter Fruit is loved by both kids and adults. Yes, it tastes exactly like peanut butter! Sweet, soft pulp with peanut flavor. The tree is small in size, grows 10-15 ft max, or can be kept as a bush. Starts fruiting within 2-3 years from seed! Keep it in a pot if you have limited space, it can be grown indoors, too. The fruit can be eaten fresh or made into milk shakes. Very rare in cultivation, and relatively cold hardy.

Picture of 2 y.o. tree full of fruit:

Remember, the special prices are good for only 24 hours and expire Monday morning at 7 am EST.
Limited to availability, while supply lasts, hurry up!

Enjoy!

Five most popular Avocado varieties

Food Forest

"What is the best variety of Avocado?"
"Do you have the one with small black fruit and bumpy skin?"
"I have avocado with very large green fruit, what variety is it?"

These are frequently asked questions we get from our customers. This basic "classification" by black/green doesn't encompass all the wonderful qualities avocados have to offer. There are numerous hybrids in cultivation, and once you plant your first tree and taste the REAL fruit (not from the grocery store), you'll be eager to explore other varieties. While it's true that avocado fruit can vary in "butter" content, most superior varieties are equally delicious. First comes first -

The most popular Avocado varieties this year are:

1. Brogdon - red-purple pear-shaped fruit, 7-15 oz. Skin is very thin, yellow buttery flesh. Fruit ripens in late summer-fall. Very cold hardy.

2. Hass - probably the most popular, but this tree prefers drier climate (Florida is humid, so we plant adaptable Florida Hass here). The fruit is dark-colored with a rough and bumpy skin, turns black when ripe.

3. Fuerte - a dwarf and a very cold hardy variety. Everybody's favorite "Condo Avocado": perfect for container culture and small yards. The mature tree in the ground is under 15 ft; 6-7 ft in containers.

4. Oro Negro - Oro Negro means "black gold" in Spanish, which is an incredibly appropriate name for this fruit. This Monroe hybrid (with big size fruit) is crossed with a Mexican type which would explain the black skin. The flesh is rich and buttery with a creamy texture.

5. Winter Mexican - one of most cold hardy varieties, Guatemalan x Mexican origin. Mature trees may withstand temperatures in the mid 20s. Oblong fruit, 12-18 oz, thick green skin. Very vigorous tree, bears heavily and regularly in December-January.

Learn more: Avocado Variety Guide - check this out for interactive chart of Avocado varieties and sort them by flower type A or B, tree habit, fruit shape and quality, cold hardiness, origin, season and more!

Photo above: Avocado Hass

Photo above: Avocado Fuerte

Photo above: Avocado Oro-Negro

Photo above: Avocado Winter-Mexican