The Kei Apple
Scientific Name: Dovyalis caffra x D. hebecarpa
Family: Salicaceae (formerly Flacourtiaceae)
The Kei apple is a large
evergreen spiny shrub native to South Africa, and it's often used in
tropical regions as a barrier or hedge plant. The small green leaves
are shiny and attractive, but the conspicuous feature about the plant
is its long sharp thorns, often two inches or more in length.
Plants
come separate sexes and usually produce flowers during the late winter.
The tiny yellowish-cream flowers are small and almost inconspicuous,
but are produced in large numbers. Fruits generally are one to two
inches in diameter with a thin yellow skin, and a yellow juicy pulp
which has several small seeds.
The pulp is used often to make
jams and jellies which are high quality and reminds many people of
apricot. The juice also makes an excellent addition to many tropical
punches and the kei apple makes excellent ice cream as well. Fruit
production is quite high on plants which have nearby males for
cross-pollination.
The kei apple grows well on a wide variety of
soil types and is considered highly drought-resistant, too. It is often
used in some areas as living fences, since with its spiny nature
nothing will cross areas where these are planted.
Trees grow to
about 18 to 20 feet at maturity, and are propagated by seeds, although
it can also be propagated by air layering. When planting seed, it has
been found that often all seeds from a particular plant may be one sex,
so this has led many people to propagate plants asexually so they know
what type plant they are getting.
The kei apple is quite cold
hardy and will take temperatures down into the mid-twenties
(Fahrenheit) without injury, which allows it be planted over a wide
area. There are few if any pest problems with kei apple, so if you like
a good quality fruit tasting much like an apricot, although a little
bit more acid, try planting this in your landscape.
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Kei Apple Page
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