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- Starfruit
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Star fruits get their name from their shape, which is like a 5-pointed star. This page provides some basic information and some photos of star fruit (carambola).
| Scientific name: | Averrhoa carambola L. |
| Family: | Oxalidaceae |
| Order: | Oxalidales |
| Common names: | Starfruit, Carambola |
| Origin: | Sri Lanka, India, Indonesia |
| Distribution: | Southeast Asia and Malaysia, Caribbean islands, Central America, tropical South America, tropical West Africa, Zanzibar, southern China, Taiwan, India, Philippines, Australia, Tahiti, Hawaii, etc. |
| Evergreen or deciduous: | Deciduous |
| Flowers: | The fragrant flowers have a pink color and are about 1 cm in diameter. Flowers are borne in clusters in axils of leaves on young branches, or they grow on older branches without leaves. The trees bloom several times throughout the year. |
| Leaves: | The leaves are spirally arranged and 15 to 25 cm long. Leaves have 5 to 11 nearly opposite, ovate-oblong leaflets. These leaflets are 4 to 8 centimeter long. The leaves are soft, medium-green, and smooth on the upper surface. The underside is faintly hairy with a whitish color. The leaflets are sensitive to light and usually fold together at night or when the tree is disturbed. |
| Fruits: | Carambola fruits are ovate to ellipsoid in shape. They are 6 to 13 cm long and the fruits have 5 (sometimes 4 or 6) longitudinal ribs. The fruit has a golden-yellow to green color. When cut across it shows a 5-pointed star shape, which is why it is also called "star fruit". The crunchy fruits have a slightly tart, acidic, sweet taste. The fruit starts out with a green color. As it ripens the color turns to yellow. The fruit cab be eaten in both the green and yellow stages. |
| Climate and weather: | Tropical and sub-tropical climates |
| Height: | 5 - 9 meter |
| Crwon: | The carambola tree has a much-branched, bushy, broad, rounded crown. |
| Type of soil: | Prefers rich loam, but also grows well on sand, heavy clay or limestone. It cannot stand flooding and needs good drainage. |
| Growth rate: | Slow growing tree. |
| Spacing (close range) | 6 meter |
| Spacing (wide range) | 9 meter |
| Propagation: | Grown from seed. |
| Insect pests: | Fruit flies, Fruit moths, Fruit spotting bugs |
| Diseases: | No major diseases |
| Harvesting: | Fruits fall to the ground when fully ripe. Hand pick the fruits when mature (pale green with a touch of yellow). |
| Uses: | Fruits are eaten fresh or are used to make juice. |
Recipes
What's your favorite recipe with star fruit? Please send me a message.
