Mangosteen Tree and Fruit
Ripe Mangosteen fruits ready to serve. |
The Mangosteen, like the Durian and Rambutan, has its origin in Southeast Asia. Mangosteen fruit is round and crowned with several woody lobes. The rind of a ripe fruit is dark purple. It is rather thick, but soft. If you squeeze lightly each side of the fruit, it would split open, revealing segments of white flesh covering some seeds arranged in a circle. The taste of Mangosteen fruit is sweet but acidic.
Botanically, the Mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana) belongs to the family Guttiferae, and the genus Garcinia in particular consist of hundreds of species found in the tropics. It is a small tree with oppositely arranged thick, dark green leaves. It is not an easy task to grow the Mangosteen tree in large scale for it may takes up to 15 years before fruiting began.
Related Post