Common names: star apple, star apple, caimito. Exotic fruits

star apple (Chrysophyllum cainito) - fruit plant, belongs to the Sapotov family. The tree is native to America. It is currently grown in many tropical countries. Grows in the form of a tree. In the wild, it can reach a height of up to 19 meters. There is milky juice in the bark.

The star tree has another leaf, leathery, reaches a length of 15 cm. The leaf blade is oval in shape with a pointed edge and tip. The inflorescence consists of five to thirty flowers. They grow in the leaf axil. The flower is quite small, inconspicuous. The fruit is round, ovoid. It has a green or purple skin. The pulp of the Star apple has a very pleasant sweet taste. The fruits are used in cooking. The seeds of the plant are located in the fruit.

Star apple - care:

Lighting:

The star apple prefers well-lit areas of the earth. Likes direct sunlight. In summer, in hot weather, you can take the plant to fresh air. In order for it to bear fruit, it must be pinched. Do not put the Star apple in the shade. The abundance of growth in this case will decrease significantly.

Temperature:

Star apple belongs to tropical heat-loving plants. Needs high air temperature for normal growth, abundant flowering and fruiting. The optimum temperature is considered to be around 24 - 27 ° C. In no case does not tolerate frost or frost. In cases of contact with them, it freezes. If the Star Apple is grown indoors, then in severe frost it is better not to ventilate the room.

Watering:

Star apple needs abundant moderate watering. Watering frequency can be controlled as the topsoil dries out. It should have time to dry out and not remain dry or very wet for a long period of time.

Humidity:

The star apple comes from the tropics, so you need to create an average humidity for it. Optimally well suited 55 - 70%. On hot days in the evening or in the morning, you can spray with cool water.

Top dressing:

Once a week, when it is in the stage of active growth and flowering, the star apple can be fed with nutrients. You can take complex mineral fertilizers.

Transfer:

The star apple should only be repotted when needed. If the pot has become small or the soil needs to be changed.

Reproduction:

The star apple reproduces mainly by seeds, air layering, and grafting. Seeds retain their germination for a sufficiently long period of time. After sowing seeds in spring in moist fertile soil, they germinate quite well. It is only necessary to create the necessary conditions for the normal growth of the plant. Only after a couple of years this - nine, the grown trees begin to bear the first fruits. From the time of sowing seeds to fruiting, a long period of time passes. Therefore, many gardeners prefer to buy grown small Star apple trees or propagate by grafting.

Some features:

Star apple is widely used in cooking and medicine. The fruits are mostly eaten fresh. Sometimes they are used to make juice and various desserts. The peel should not be eaten because it is bitter and unpleasant in taste. The star apple does not need pruning, it is only worth doing to form the shape of the tree. Fruits in tropical regions ripen in late spring or early summer, and are stored in the refrigerator for a long time.

Star apple - diseases and pests:

TEMPERATURE FOR A STAR APPLE

The star apple is almost immune to infection by diseases and attack by pests. At the first sign, if this happened, it is enough to treat the plant with special preparations for pest control.

Botanical name: Star apple or Kianito, or Caimito (Chrysophyllum cainito) - belongs to the Sapot family.

Homeland of the star apple: Mexico, Central America.

Lighting: light-loving.

The soil: fertile, hydrated.

Watering: abundant.

Maximum tree height: 30 m

Average life expectancy: long-lived.

Landing: seeds, grafting, air layering.

Description of star apple fruit

Star apple is an evergreen tree up to 30 m high, characterized by rapid growth. It has a straight, short trunk with thick bark and a wide dense crown. Branches brown, pubescent. The leaves are oval, alternate, oblong, leathery, bright green above, golden brown on the reverse side, up to 16 cm long. The flowers are small, inconspicuous, collected in the axils of the leaf plate.

Fruits can be of various shapes: rounded, flattened, pear-shaped, oval. Their diameter reaches 5-10 cm. The peel is pale green, red-violet, purple, sometimes almost black. The pulp is soft, juicy, white in color, with a pleasant sweet taste.

Inside the fruit contains 3-8 oval-shaped seeds. Fully ripened fruits do not fall off, but are firmly attached to the tree, therefore, when harvesting, they are cut off along with the branch. Only ripe fruits are to be consumed, otherwise they will turn out to be viscous and inedible. Fruit ripening is determined by its appearance. When the peel becomes shriveled and the fruit itself is rather soft when pressed, this indicates that it is fully ripe. The shelf life of a ripe star apple is no more than 3 weeks.

The fruit got its name because of the star-shaped arrangement of the seed chambers.

Spreading

This individual is found in Central America, in the south of Mexico, in Panama, Argentina, in the Caribbean. Cultivated in West Africa, India, Zanzibar.

The plant grows in a hot tropical climate, therefore it does not tolerate temperatures below -2 ° C. The tree grows well and bears fruit on fertile loam, sandy and limestone soil. Needs enough moisture. Prefers sunlit areas or partial shade.

Fruiting takes place in February and March. Up to 70 kg of fruits are obtained from one tree.

Application

The star apple fruit is consumed fresh and is also used to make juices and

Words can't describe how crazy I am about starapple fruit! Also known as star apple. And I tried it only once from the 5th! Therefore, many cannot understand its taste, believing that it is some kind of stupid fruit that does not deserve attention at all. But finally, I tried it and now I just can’t tear it off by the ears!

I love both purple and light green starapples equally. The main thing is to be ripe, because unripe, firstly, are not very tasty, and secondly, they have a lot of latex. Although even the most ripe starapple leaves a little bit of latex on the lips, it is very easy to remove with just water and a towel. This is not the same latex as in jackfruit and chempedak.

The taste of star apple reminds me of some pies. Sometimes apple like charlotte, sometimes some others, and sometimes even semolina. Tasty-delicious! And the consistency is like a persimmon. Awesome fruit. I want to eat it every day!

So, it's purple starapple. This fruit got its name (star apple) due to the fact that a star is obtained in its section, and the fruit itself looks like an apple. But the star is formed precisely in the section across, and not along.

In some purple starapples the flesh is completely purple, in some it is white. Compare the photo above and the photo below.

With this cut, a star is obtained.

I like to eat away the star apple to the very, very, very skin, and not just its central part, as everyone usually eats. Close to the skin, starapple is less sweet, but insanely delicious!

This is what Starapple looks like when cut lengthwise. And this is how white latex, easily washed off, appears in it.

It is convenient to eat a star apple like this, with a spoon from the resulting halves.

But it is also very convenient to cut it into slices and eat it like a watermelon or melon.

Eating out like this. Wow, how delicious!

Milk latex in starapple.

Green starapple. No less delicious. The main thing do not forget that when buying you need to choose very soft fruits. They will be the most delicious! But they should not have damage and holes from the worms. Then it will be the most delicious fruit!

We also cut it in half, across.

And here it is, the star inside.

By the way, starapple (star apple) is called not only a star apple, but also a star apple, as well as chrysophyllum cainito, Cainito or Caimito. This fruit grows on trees and belongs to the Sapotaceae family, as well as the fruit.

General information about the fruit

The homeland of the star apple is considered to be Central America, but in many countries of Southeast Asia it has long been firmly established in culture.
The star apple tree is very beautiful, it grows fast and always stays green. Its leaves are attractive and bright - dark green, shiny on the outside and velvety dark brown inside. The flowers of the fruit are white and fragrant.
The fruits of the star apple are round or oval, up to 10 cm in diameter. The peel is smooth and rather thin. Its color is green, brown or purple, depending on the variety. The latter look the most interesting.
Under the peel there is a crust, the thickness of which can be from 3 to 10 mm. The pulp is white with a purple tint, sweet, jelly-like. Cells (6–10) diverge from its middle to the sides. It is because of them that the fruit got its name. Because if you cut an apple across and look at it from above, these cells resemble the rays of a star emanating from the center. As with all fruits, the star apple contains seeds. Their number reaches 10 pieces, the length is about 2 cm. They are black, but only until they dry. After that, the seeds become light brown.
The star apple ripens and produces a crop in spring and summer. Interestingly, ripening, the fruit does not fall from the tree. When it is necessary to harvest, the fruit is cut along with the twig.

Star apple flavor

What taste does this marvelous fruit have? There are a lot of comparisons and they are all varied - pies, apple charlotte and even semolina, felt by those who managed to taste the star apple.
Many people call it a milk fruit, because its taste resembles thick coconut milk.

How to choose a star apple

Ripe fruits are slightly wrinkled and soft when pressed. And unripe ones are knitted and it is almost impossible to eat them.
Choosing a good star apple fruit is not such an easy task. The main problem may be that most fruits come across with worms in the pulp. Such a fruit will be bitter and have an unpleasant taste in damaged areas. A good star apple should not have small black dots and holes on the peel.
The second thing you need to pay attention to is the uniform softness of the fruit. It is better not to take hard fruits, they ripen very poorly and lose their true taste. The ideal will be the fruit that springs when pressed under the arm.

Star apple storage

In the refrigerator, the star apple can be stored for a long time. The maximum period is 3 weeks. It handles transportation well. Therefore, you can safely bring a curiosity as a gift to your household.

How to eat star apple

The star apple's skin and inner rind are inedible. The latter, in addition, contains latex, which, when it comes into contact with the pulp, makes it bitter and tasteless. Because of this juice, the fruit was popularly called "milk breast". Therefore, before use, it is desirable to clean the star apple. Or eat with a spoon, dividing in half, avoiding the seeds. It is easier to cut the fruit across, it can be divided into slices and consumed like a watermelon.

The composition and properties of the star apple

The star apple has a small calorie content - 67 kcal per 100 g. This allows those who want to lose weight or maintain ideal forms to include it in their diet. It contains 0.50 g of protein, 0.40 g of fat and 15.3 carbohydrates.
The composition of the fetus includes many substances necessary for the human body.
First of all, it is vitamin C, which helps to strengthen the immune system, helps in the fight against viruses and infections. Then calcium, which affects the condition of human bones, hair and nails. They contain the fruits of the star apple and potassium, which has a positive effect on the state of the cardiovascular system and blood vessels.
Star apple is recommended for those who suffer from anemia and low hemoglobin. It has an antioxidant effect, can soothe inflammation in pneumonia and laryngitis, and is an excellent remedy for intestinal disorders.
An infusion is made from the leaves of the fruit, which is used for articular rheumatism and diabetes. A decoction of the bark is able to tone up, it is a good cough medicine. The seeds have diuretic and antipyretic properties.

Star apple application

Star apple fruits can be consumed fresh, chilled, or used to make juices, smoothies, and desserts. The fruit is added to sweet salads, pastries. The pulp is frozen and made into ice cream.
You can feel the aroma of a star apple in many perfumes. Its scent became the basis for women's eau de toilette and perfumes such as Versus Versace, Taj Sunset Escada and Fiji Flower St.

Scientific name: Chrysophyllum cainito.

Family: Sapotovye (Sapotaceae).

Common names: star apple, star apple, caimito.

Origin: Central America.

Beautiful fast growing evergreen tree 8-10 m high with a short trunk and dense crown. Shiny attractive oval-shaped leaves 5-15 cm long, dark green on the upper side and velvety golden brown on the back. Small purple-white fragrant flowers appear in the axils of the leaves. The fruits are rounded, 5-10 cm in diameter, tied without pollination.

There are two forms of star apple - with dark purple skin and purple flesh and green skin and white flesh. The skin is thin, smooth, shiny, supported by an inner rind 5-10 mm thick for the purple-fruited variety and 3-5 mm thick for the green-fruited variety. The pulp is white, soft and very sweet, surrounded by 6-11 gelatinous cells, which, when cross-sectioned, resemble the rays of a star emanating from the center - hence the name of the fruit.

Inside the fruit are up to 10 seeds about 2 cm long. The best fruits contain fewer seeds, with unoccupied cells. The seeds appear black but turn light brown when dry.

The fruits ripen from early spring to early summer (in some tropical areas they are formed all year round). The fruits do not fall off when ripe, so when harvesting, they are carefully cut off along with the twig. It is necessary to collect only ripe fruits, otherwise they will turn out to be astringent and inedible. When ripe, they become slightly wrinkled and slightly soft when pressed. Fruits can be stored up to 3 weeks in the refrigerator.

The peel and peel of the fruit are inedible (they occupy about 1/3 of the volume of the fruit). Avoid contact with the bitter latex contained in the rind. Before eating, the fruit must be cooled and cut in half. The pulp can be eaten with a spoon directly from the fruit, avoiding the seeds and seed cells.

Citrus juice significantly improves the taste of the pulp. In Jamaica, crushed pulp is mixed with mango, pineapple, citrus, other fruits and coconut milk and served frozen as a delicious dessert. You can also mix the pulp with orange juice, a little sugar, grated nutmeg and a spoonful of sherry - you get a strawberry and cream dessert. The emulsion from the seed kernel has a slight bitterness and is used to make nougat and other sweets.

Propagated by seeds, grafting and air layering. Seeds can be stored for several months. Seedlings begin to bear fruit after 5-10 years. Currently, the seed method of reproduction is rarely used due to the late entry into fruiting, grafted specimens can bloom in a year.

Grows well in a container with a loose potting mix and drainage. Prefers sun or light shade. It does not require special pruning, it is used only to form a tree of a certain size and shape. Responds well to moist air and spraying.