One of the great thing about horticulture is the sheer amount of choice you have for plant . As long as you live in the correct kind of environment , you could adjudicate develop less common but fabulous heat - bonk yield like rambutan . It ’s a conclusion you will unquestionably not regret once you seize with teeth into this sublime dainty .

Although Nephelium lappaceum is not a well - bonk fruit in the US , if you like litchi , you will love the taste of this exceptional fruit . They ’re becoming more pop to develop in many warm part . Ready to join the rambutan apparent movement ?

What is Rambutan?

Rambutan ( Nephelium lappaceum ) is a member of the soapstone phratry and is native to Malaysia . It ’s an evergreen plant that can develop up to 80 feet marvelous and is cultivated in nation like India , Thailand , Burma , and Sri Lanka where they are as common as apples are in western state .

High in vitamin coulomb , branding iron , and antioxidant , the sweet and sometimes slenderly off flavour will surprise you as much as the appearance of the fruit itself .

“ Rambut ” is a Malay word meaning “ hairy , ” which certainly trace the fruit ’s visual aspect . Inside is a dulcet white physical body that makes for a tasty snack . Do n’t worry , though . While the exterior may appear spiny , the spikes are actually subdued and the skin is loose to peel aside .

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Best Varieties of Rambutan

Nephelium lappaceum come in a miscellany of colors , primarily red or yellow - skinned . Red varieties generally mature first and are average - sized . The yellow varieties usually ripen later and are a little smaller . Red rambutan flesh is a little drier than sensationalistic - skinned fruits , which are fat . Both have blank flesh .

The stones at the center of the flesh can be free or not , and the Stone have an outer coat between it and the flesh called a testa .

There are over 200 variety , so correspond what ’s available around you and if there are more than one , pick out the type with the characteristics you prefer . Here are some of the most popular .

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Queen Zaida

This is a intermediate - sized fruit with dark red skin and a blank , sweet overweight indoors . restrained yields .

Princes Caroline

This cultivar yields heavy harvests of dark red fruit with chummy flesh . The ejaculate are particularly small .

Quezon

‘ Quezon ’ produces little to medium - sized yield with a sweet-scented and slimly sour penchant . restrained production .

Quirino

xanthous skin with scarlet , pink spines , this cultivar has super fresh and luscious fruit . The tree bears in clusters of about 80 fruits per group .

Santo Tomas

The yield of ‘ Santo Tomas ’ have yellow , pinkish skin with thick flesh and a small ejaculate . This tree produces moderate yields .

Ponderosa Ferreras

The fruits of this cultivar are scarlet - skinned with prominent , flaccid rachis . at bottom is very thick flesh that is highly sweet . payoff moderate sum of large fruits .

Governor Infantada

This cultivar is more or less morose and acidic , with thick anatomy . The fruit do n’t put in well and should be eaten within a week of harvest . make moderate harvest yield .

Jitlee

‘ Jitlee ’ or ‘ Jit Lee ’ produces dependably high yields of crimson red fruits . The stones in this cultivar are free . This is a smaller cultivar and needs just ten feet of spatial arrangement .

Binjai

This cultivar has orange - red fruits with a cling seed coat . The tree is medium in size and can be planted just ten foot aside from others of its sizing .

Silengkeng

Also import seelenkeng , this tree has more of a weeping development habit . The fruit is slightly sour . This is a popular cultivar in Hawai’i . The seed coat is moderately clinging .

Kaimana

This is a popular smorgasbord in Hawai’i because it blossom dependably and does n’t ache from the pollenation trouble that others have .

How to Plant Rambutan

Rambutans take a tropic or semi - tropical environment to grow successfully . They will do very well when temperatures are consistently around 71 - 86ºF. A mates of day under 50ºF will definitely do the demise of this tree , which loves heat and humidity .

USDA Zones 10 and above are ideal , but if you experience in a warm area outside of these zone , you could judge your rambutans in transferrable container and bring them in when the weather condition cool down .

These Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree can produce anywhere from sea level to 1,800 feet , but not high .

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Rambutans call for cryptic , loamy soil that drains well and does n’t allow the roots to sit in water . A pH of 5.5 to 6.5 is perfect and they wo n’t do well in soil that is too acidic or alkaline .

This is a sun buff , so plant in full sun . If you live in a hot area , a picayune afternoon shade will be good , specially for the first few twelvemonth .

Space trees around 40 invertebrate foot apart as they can grow up to 80 feet high with a encompassing canopy .

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verify you plant away from sidewalks and trails as this is a sullen fruiting tree . It ’s inevitable many of the fruit will fall to the ground and they are slippery when smashed , which could make someone to fall behind their footing , not to cite the deal they make .

Propagating Rambutan

The loose , and most probably - to - succeed method of propagating rambutan is by way of germ . It ’s well-off because the seed is big and if you surveil a couple of principle , you should see successful germination .

A rambutan tree originate in this way will take up to five years to bear yield , so resolve whether you desire this method acting , or if buying a tree diagram suits you better .

you could also propagate these trees throughbud grafting .

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Grafted tree , whether buy or grafted at family , are reliable and produce fruit quickly .

Caring for Rambutan

Provide rambutan tree with a fertiliser specifically for yield trees . Apply the right amount stated by the manufacturer just before flowering and again after harvest .

body of water well all year round if you have dry winter . A rambutan Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree needs at least an inch of pee per workweek , so if it does n’t rain down , check that to keep the stain well - watered .

Rambutan will tolerate drought , but only for a short catamenia .

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If you have your plant in a pot , body of water until it starts to debilitate from the bottom . Water again when the stain feel teetotal to the contact .

Prune rambotan for shape and to take out damage or dead offset . Once the tree is amply grow , it will ask minimal pruning .

rambotan produce in Hawai’i suffer from crushed pollination , which lead in fewer and deformed fruit . To remedy this , you ’ll involve to do your best to encourage pollinators to come and visit your Tree . florescence fall out after water system stress in the springiness or summer .

Companion Planting for Growing Rambutans

Plant any yield tree that get it on tropic rut near your Nephelium lappaceum . In fact , growing other yield tree near your Nephelium lappaceum will facilitate increase the number of pollinator that get around .

Common Problems and Solutions for Growing Rambutans

Rambutans have a few pests and diseases that trouble them . These deviate by positioning .

Mealybugs

These piercing and suction bug can do substantial legal injury to rambutan , especially if their number grow too big .

The best way to describe mealybugs is by the hurt they cause . You ’ll see stunted flora growth , crinkled and juiceless leaves , and droop for no ostensible reasonableness .

mealy bug particularly like new emergence so you may see small pitted holes where they tip . Dark , mouldy leaves where jet mold forms will attract ants who have a go at it the cherubic treat .

To process a mealybug plague , I prefer the green method acting . Take two cup of piddle and two teaspoons of dish soap in a atomizer bottle . Spray liberally on the rambutan works as many clock time as you need to . This only works on small trees , however . For large tree , you ’ll need to wreak out the big gun .

leverage lacewings , which are natural predator , and spray the tree once a workweek with a high - press nebulizer to knock the bug loose . Prune aside any heavily infested branches .

Red Banded Thrips

in the beginning from West Indies , this hemipteron ( Selenothrips rubrocinctus ) can invade many heat - loving crops , specially in places like Florida . Called red - banded due to the blood-red stripe across the middle of the hemipteran during its unripened stages , females can lay up to 50 eggs on leaves and yield .

little pale spots appear on leaves before the whole plant becomes silvery . Badly infected industrial plant may appear to be bleach .

The thrips will be on the undersides of leaves . They are often controlled by born marauder like spiders and lacewing fly , so buy or promote these natural predator .

If they become too high in turn , the rambutan tree may suffer from stress . employ neem oil regularly , or try constitutional genus Pyrethrum as a knockdown remediation .

Corky Bark

This fungal disease triggered by the pathogenDolabra nepheliaeis an easy one to identify and is common in eminent rain areas with mellow humidity . At first , you ’ll see irregular patches on the barque of the trunk and lateral branches . As the fungus progresses , the lesion become corked in coming into court .

Over time the bark cracks and raised cankers organise . If there is a lot of rain , the canker can engage wet , make the decomposition of the forest .

harvest time issue will be slenderize while the tree battles with the fungus .

Prevention is the only refutation . ensure you clean all of your tools , specially if you are pruning multiple tree . If corked bark has been present before , do n’t institute your rambutan in that field . Remove any septic branches and cut them . ‘ Gula Batu ’ has some resistance to the disease .

Oriental Fruit Fly

The maggots of oriental fruit fly ( Bactrocera dorsalis ) burrow into the yield of many trees including rambutan . A exclusive female can lay up to a thousand egg in her lifetime .

emerge as larvae , they drop out of the fruit and burrow into the stain for around 12 day . Ten day afterwards , an adult emerges and they are very strong airman , have it away to locomote up to 30 miles in search of solid food and a place to lay eggs .

This is a serious plague and state have eradication platform , so see what is required in your area .

Powdery Mildew

High humidness or rainfall during summer may stimulate powdery mildew to make and spread . This will cause the fruit to throw away untimely .

This is a common disease that is easily identify . See our articlehere on powdery mildew for more information .

Harvesting and Using Rambutan

harvest home sentence varies by location . In Hawai’i , tardy summer to early wintertime is typical . Harvest the yield when the hairs are bright and equally colored . The yield should have some give and feel nice and flesh out when you pressure it .

Rambutans are unremarkably eaten new , especially since they take up a lot of way , although they will last up to two weeks in the refrigerator in a plastic old bag . They can also be used in mess , baking , ice creams , and water ice .

Despite their visual aspect , the spikes are soft and the peel is peeled forth easily . Just be thrifty when exposing the flesh as they can be very slippery .

To open up a rambutan , softly seduce the pelt using a knife . Then , rive the two halves aside , forget the form inside intact . you could then cut the figure in one-half and remove the stone inside .

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