Purple Mombin, Jocote, Hog Plum, Ciruela. Good variety with dark red fruit, thin skin and small seed. The Plant with Benefits! This fruit is surprisingly juicy and sweet, and has a unique pleasant flavor. Sometimes it is sold in frozen fruit sections of ethnic stores; however the fresh fruit is way more delicious! No wonder this is one of our hot sellers. The tree is very easy to grow and can thrive in almost neglect. In Caribbean, they even use sticks for creating live hedges - cuttings root easily. Very fast growing, and fruiting right away.
Varieties/colors of the Hog Plum: the red is the smallest fruit, the yellow has the largest fruit, and the orange is in the middle.
In spring, its showy, fragrant flowers bloom from bare, leafless branches in shades of red, purple, or yellow, hinting at the color of the fruit to come. The tree produces oval to round mildly sweet fruits, 1 to 2 ½ inches long, with waxy skin, juicy flesh, and a strong plum-like flavor.
Highly productive, the pleasant aroma of the ripe fruit can be smelled from many feet away!
The fruits are enjoyed fresh, stewed with sugar, or pickled while green for East Indian dishes. Mombin butter, made like apple butter, is especially delicious.
Even the young leaves can be cooked, though they carry a tangy, sour taste.
Deciduous and quick-growing, this tree can bear fruit before sprouting new leaves in spring. It thrives in many soil types and propagates easily from large cuttings, making it perfect for a living fence.
Fruiting from May through July, the Hog Plum brings beauty, fragrance, and flavor to your edible landscape. Very fast growing, and fruiting right away.
Varieties/colors of the Hog Plum: the red is the smallest fruit, the yellow has the largest fruit, and the orange is in the middle.