BELIMBING
SCIENTIFIC NAME: Averrhoa bilimbi
FAMILY: Oxalidaceae
Belimbing is a small evergreen tree which is native to this part of the world. The fruit, known in many regions as bilimbi, blimbing asam, belimbing buluh, b'ling, billing-billing and cucumber tree, has been cultivated for so long that the exact origin is not really known. It is a pale, open tree, up to about 6 to 10 metres in height, with short trunk which soon breaks into branches. The bark is pinkish brown, fairly smooth and occasionally flaking off. Twigs are softly hairy and break easily. Leafy twigs are often growing from the trunk.
Its compound leaves are spirally arranged and bunched together at the twig ends. Leaves are divided into 5 to 18 pairs of leaflets and a single terminal leaflet, each 5 to 10 cm long. Leaflets are pale green, soft and hairy, drooping in a characteristic manner. The base of each leaflet is uneven. The midrib is raised on the underside of the leaflet and the main veins are not distinct. Leaflet stalks are very short and are covered with pale brown hairs.
Flowers are produced all the year round, especially during the drier part of the year. The crimson flowers occur in clusters from the trunk and older woody branches. The perfect flowers are small, about 2 cm across, with 5 pointed sepals, which are green and flushed with pink, 5 deep red petals, 10 white stamens and a pale green ovary. Flowers possess a strong, sweet scent.
The fruits, several together, hang down from the trunk or from the woody branches. The cylindrical fruits are 5 to 7 cm long and nearly 3 cm wide, faintly 5-angled in shape, and resemble smooth-skinned gherkins.
They are often narrower at the stalk end, which is capped by the sepals. The skin is smooth and very thin, and is green and firm at first, and turns yellowish, becoming squashy and translucent when ripe. The pulp is juicy and extremely sour. There may be no seeds, or a few pale, small, flattened seeds embedded in the pulp.
Belimbing is one of the small fruit trees commonly grown as a backyard plant in the home gardens and in the kampongs of Malaysia and Singapore. The tree thrives in well-drained sandy soil and prefers a sunny dry season.
It is usually propagated by seed. Each seed is covered with a fatty layer. Washing them with soap improves germination. The tree is quick-growing and plants grown from seedlings will start to fruit within 2 years. It is a consistent bearer which fruits continuously throughout the year. It is known only as a cultivated species, as so little work has been done on belimbing that no horticultural varieties have been developed.
The belimbing fruit contains up to 6% oxalic acid, which can cause calcium deficiency and kidney stone. Owing to its high acid content, the fruit is very sour and is not suitable for use as fresh fruit. It may be pickled or preserved in syrup. It is also popular as seasoning in curries and can make an excellent chutney. The juice is used to remove stains from clothes and hands.
DATE: May 1989
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