The most luscious Hospitality Fruit: Pineapple

I wonder how many people know that the Pineapple (Ananas comosus) was actually the very first New World tropical fruit to have been sampled fresh by European royalty? It happened 527 years ago, when one made it to Spain, being personally delivered to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella by Christopher Columbus... He had obtained a huge number of them, however only one actually survived intact and edible! That pineapple was instantly declared to be the most luscious wonderful fruit ever!..
...During the 1700s before the Revolutionary War, the overly monetarily intoxicated super-rich were actually paying a modern equivalent of⁠ - get this - 8000 dollars for a single fruit!..
...In conclusion, I will add the simple recipe for my personally favorite go-to comfort food...

Kwai Muk: the Ugly Delicious Fruit

Q: I have been hunting for a rare and exotic edible to grow on my property here in South Florida for some time now. I found an interesting tree called Kwai Muk while browsing your website. I do not have a lot of space left to plant but this tree seems to be smaller in size and also somewhat cold and wind tolerant which is a bonus as far as I am concerned. It also sounds like the fruit is exceptional. I would love to grow one. It is similar to Jackfruit?

A: ...The piece de resistance of Kwai Muk is the excellent fruit it produces. Some people seem to think it is some of the weirdest looking fruit out there! This may be true, but what it lacks in appearance, it certainly makes up for in taste. It is called sometimes "the ugliest and yet the best tasting fruit". The creamy pulp is absolutely delicious and mostly eaten fresh. I have heard people say the flavor reminds them of mango, apricot, jackfruit, fig, quava and strawberry. Sweet and tangy loveliness with a hint of sherbet. The fruit looks like mini jackfruit on the inside but is about the size of a fig. The flesh inside also closely resembles jackfruit....

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Featured plant. Clitoria ternatea - Blue Butterfly Pea

Clitoria ternatea - Blue Butterfly Pea

Butterfly pea, Asian pigeonwings. Perfect vine! Blooms year-round, fast growing, easy, not invasive, controllable, not messy, curious bright blue flower - Clitoris-like flower shape, hence the name of the plant. Fast-growing climber with fine foliage, pinnate leaves. Besides being a great ornamental, this plant has some practical and medicinal value. The seed pods are edible, as well as the flowers. The flowers are used for blue food dye for rice and teas. It is also a nitrogen fixer and helps prevent E-coli.

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Dwarf Barbados Cherry

Malpighia punicifolia - Dwarf Barbados-Cherry, Dwarf Acerola. This dwarf form of Acerola makes a wonderful low-growing shrub or beautiful bonsai tree with edible fruit. Profuse bloomer, it is also a nice ornamental! Due to its shallow and smaller root system, Acerolas can be interplanted with other crops more closely than many trees. Acerolas grows in marl, limestone, clay and other heavy soils as long as it drains well. Has the highest vitamin C content of any fruit. 1 Cherry is equal to 12 oranges. Used in jellies, jams, freezes without losing its vitamin C content. The plant is drought tolerant and easy to grow.

Malpighias are available from our store

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Featured Plant. Dillenia philippinensis - Katmon, Philippines Elephant Apple

Dillenia philippinensis - Katmon, Philippines Elephant Apple

Philippines Elephant Apple has spectacular blooms and amazing large leaves that are toothed and unusually shaped. This super-tropical looking beauty is a favorite tree among Filipino garden enthusiasts. It is endemic to the Philippines. The tree is buttress-forming, evergreen, and shade tolerant, it is a great container and house plant. The leaves are large, 1-2 ft long, leathery, shining, and coarsely toothed at the margins. Its flowers are white, large, showy, and also very large, up to 1 ft wide, with showy reddish pistils and stamens. The edible fruits are rounded, 2-3"in diameter, with medicinal value. Flowers last only one day, but the plant stays in bloom all summer through fall, with multiple flowers and buds that keep opening every day. The plant is perfect for container and indoor culture, with showy tropical leaves, beautiful flowers, shade tolerance, and compact growth.

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