From the
Tropical Fruit News, Rare Fruit Council International Miami RFCI
by Gene Joyner
The Bilimbi
The bilimbi (Averrhoa bilimbi)
is native to the Indonesian area, but is cultivated widely throughout
most of the tropics. This cousin to the carambola forms a medium sizes
to large tree in the tropics that can reach heights of almost fifty
feet, but is more commonly seen here in Florida at heights of about
twenty feet.
The leaves in appearance look very similar to
carambola being compound with anywhere from thirty-five to forty-five
individual leaflets. The oblong leaflets can be two to four inches in
length and the tree at night folds its leaves and looks almost wilted,
but this is normal.
Dark red flowers are produced in panicles
along the trunk and older branches throughout much of the year in the
tropics and the fruits when mature resemble small pale green cucumbers
and have a size of about two to four inches in length.
The
acid pulp contains several small seeds and unlike the carambola which
is eaten as a fresh fruit, usually the bilimbi is used for various
types of cooking purposes. The pulp can also be made into a refreshing
drink and preserves made from bilimbi are excellent.
There is a sweet form of the bilimbi, but this is usually very hard to locate and the usual
form found in the tropics is the acid type.
The
bilimbi is easily propagated by seeds, but as with most other tropical
fruits improved forms can be air layered or grafted. Trees grow well
over a variety of soils, but suffer on high pH soils from severe
nutritional deficiencies which must be corrected by nutritional sprays.
Bilimbis do not like flooded conditions, but they do prefer
moist soils for optimum growth and fruiting. They should be fertilized
with a fruit tree type fertilizer every three to four months during the
year and because of their shallow roots generally like mulching to
protect them during the dry spring season.
Young trees grow
quickly from seed, but generally do not start to produce flowers until
four to five years of age unless grafted. Air layered branches usually
will provide some flowers within one to two years after planting.
Growth rates on bilimbis once well established usually are about two to
three feet a year.
Bilimbis are much more cold sensitive than
their carambola cousins and will be easily damaged by even light frost.
Young trees are often killed by temperatures below 32°F. For this
reason bilimbis should be provided with cold protection until they get
up into eight to ten feet or even larger specimens and are able to
withstand twig and leaf damage from cold weather.
Bilimbis are not highly salt tolerant and should be protected from direct seaside salt spray.
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