| Rambutan | |
| Nephelium lappaceum |
Golf ball sized fruit related to the lychee, with red or yellow skin, having numerous prominent hairs extending from the surface. Flesh is translucent, with an excellent sweet flavor, milder than the lychee.
Description: Medium to large sized tree up to 80ft.
Hardiness: Not frost hardy.
Growing Environment: The rambutan is strictly tropical
and grows best in warm, humid, tropical climates, with year round rainfall.
Frosts and freezes are lethal.
Propagation: Best varieties are propagated
via air layering. Seeds remain viable only a couple of days, and produce
more male trees than females. Flowering and fruiting of seedling trees
can be highly variable.
Uses: Eaten fresh. Fruits are also used in a variety of desserts.
Native Range: Native to Malaysia. Grown commercially in tropical Asia and tropical America.