A SELECTION OF SOME TROPICAL AND SUB TROPICAL FRUIT TREES FOR MIAMI-DADE COUNTY

We are fortunate that living in Miami-Dade enables us to grow so many interesting and delicious tropical and sub-tropical fruit trees. Many of these offer not only excellent fruit, but also provide shade and enhance the ornamental appeal of the landscape. The Miami-Dade Extension Office can provide assistance in choosing trees, and has available for distribution publications written by University of Florida Extension Service fruit tree specialists. The plants listed below are all more or less Apermanent@ landscape items, and are only some of those that can be successfully grown. All of the plants are well adapted to this area, except where noted, and should be available from fruit tree nurseries in South Florida. For those who may want something more temporary, consider papayas, pineapples, passion fruit or strawberries.

TROPICAL FRUITS FOR DOORYARD PLANTING

Common Name Plant Description Fruit Characteristics Varieties/ Comments

Atemoya Small, spreading tree Large, sweet, light green African pride, Gefner, with medium growth aggregate fruit. Used fresh. Page rate

Avocado, Large, fast growing Large green or purple, nutty Simmonds, Miguel, Agucate tree tasting yellow flesh. Used Bernecker, Russel, fresh with salads. Becomes Catalina, Waldin, bitter if cooked. Monroe, , Choquette, Kampong

Banana, Fast growing, Large, yellow, sweet Hua Moa, Orinoco, Platáno herbaceous Ashrub@ Red, Mysore, FHIA3, Cavendish

Barbados Large, moderate Large, red, sweet or tart Seed, air layers best. Cherry, growing shrub with berry. Excellent source of Florida Sweet Acerola multiple trunks. vitamin C. Use fresh

Black Sapote Large, slow growing Large, dark green-black, Seedlings, Bernecker, Sapote negro tree sweet. Fresh or as pie filling. Merida

Star Fruit, Medium tree with Large, yellow/orange, five Arkin, Golden Star Carambola medium growth rate ribbed, sweet or tart. Fwang Tung, others. Usually used fresh but can be Susceptible to wind cooked. damage.

Egg Fruit, Medium to large, Variable shape, sweet, dry Seed/grafted. Bruce, Canistel moderate to fast yellow flesh. Use fresh or Ross, Fairchild 1,2. growing tree cooked as pie filling.

Grumichama Small, slow growing Small, sweet, purple to Seedlings. There are tree/shrub black, slightly resinous. Ripe other small, attractive eaten fresh, half ripe as fruit producing preserves. Eugenias.

Guava, Small, medium growing Medium/large, round sweet Red, Yellow Asian. Guayaba tree and aromatic. Fresh or Susceptible to fruit fly. cooked.

Jaboticaba Small, slow growing Grape-like, black, sweet. Seed, rarely grafted. tree Use fresh or as juice if skinned.

Jakfruit, Large, moderate to Very large, rounded or Seed, cuttings. N-S-1, Jaca fast growing tree eleongated, aggregated fruit. Singapore, Ceylon, J- Cook full grown but not ripe 31, Dang Raisimi, as a vegetable Ripe fruit: , Cheena, pulp around seeds eaten Kun Wi Chan and fresh and seeds cooked. others.

Longan, Large, fast growing Small/medium, brown, Air layers. Kohala, Mamoncillo tree sweet. Usually eaten fresh - Big Boy, Champoo, can be dried or cooked. others. Less demanding than lychee.

Loquat, Small to medium tree Small, round to oval, yellow- Seed, but air layers Nispero japones with medium growth orange, sweet. Used fresh better - Champagne, rate. or cooked. Tanaka, others. Susceptible to fruit fly.

Lychee, Large tree with a Medium, round to oval with Mauritius, Hak Ip, Mamoncillo lichi moderate to fast rate red rough skin, sweet white Kwai May Pink of growth. pulp. Usually fresh, but can (Brewster, be dried. production unreliable). (cont. next page)

Macadamia Nut Medium, slow growing Nut with very hard shell, Air layers best. Arkin, tree. white kernel. Kau, others. May experience nutritional problems on limestone and is susceptible to wind damage.

Mamey Sapote, Large, fast growing Large, scurfy oval to round, Maga a Canistel, Sapote tree sweet to subacid, orange Pantin, Pace many flesh. Usually fresh, as well others - seed but as sherberts and . grafted best.

Mango Medium to large tree Medium to large, various , , , with medium growth colors, sweet to resinous. , Nam Doc rate. Used fresh or in preserves Mai, , and baked goods. Some , , varieties harvested hard and Beverley, Okrung, green for use in Asian , , , cuisine. Philippine, and others.

Sapodilla, Large, slow growing Large, scurfy, tan to brown, Seed, grafted better - Nispero, tree with sweet tan pulp. Used Prolific, Brown Sugar, Chicosapote, as a fresh desert, but can be Hasya, Ox, Tikal, Naseberry. cooked as a pie filling. Makok, Alano, Molix. Excellent ornamental.

Star apple, Medium to large tree Large, purple or green. Use Haitian Star, Purple, Caimito with medium growth fresh - spoon out flesh and Green, others. rate. avoid skin and rind. Excellent ornamental.

Spanish lime, Large, slow growing Medium, green, subacid Seed, air layers. Mamoncillo, tree white pulp. Used fresh or Queen, Sosa, Cuban Quenepa cooked for juice. 1,2. Need both male and female plants for fruit.

Soursop, Small tree with medium Large, green with soft spines, Seedlings , selections Guanabana growth rate. sweet. Use fresh and in ice from Costa Rica and creams. Puerto Rico. Very cold sensitive and will only succeed in the Keys and near coast.

(cont. next page)

Sweetsop, Small tree with medium Large, segmented light Grafted or seed, Sugar apple, growth rate. greenish yellow, with sweet Lessard, Purple. Well Anon, creamy pulp. Eaten fresh adapted to S. Florida Annona

White Sapote, Large, fast growing Medium - large, smooth, Seeds, grafted best. Sapote Blanco tree. greenish yellow, with sweet, Dade, Homestead, pear-like flavor. Smathers.

Tamarind, Large Tree with Pod with brown date like Seeds, air layers or Tamarindo medium growth rate. pulp used fresh or dried and grafted. Manila Sweet as base for sauces and and others. Excellent chutneys. ornamental and shade. Very wind resistant.

Prepared by:

John McLaughlin, Ph.D. Urban Horticulture Assistant

Carlos Balerdi, Ph.D. Commercial Fruit Crops Extension Agent

Seymour Goldweber Extension Agent Emeritus

Adrian Hunsberger Urban Horticulture Extension Agent

November 2000