Purple Star Apple Tree (Caimito)

About the Purple Star Apple Tree (Caimito)

Caimito, or star apple, gets its name from the star pattern revealed when the fruit is cut crosswise. This purple form bears smooth, glossy fruit with a lavender-tinted, milky, jelly-soft flesh that is sweet, cool and refreshing, best eaten chilled with a spoon (the skin and latex are not eaten). The tree is truly ornamental: its leaves are deep green above and shimmer golden-copper underneath, flashing in the breeze. It is a good shade tree for warm, frost-free gardens in southern Mexico. Grown on our farms in Yucatán and Chiapas and shipped via DHL.

How to Care for It

Plant in full sun in well-drained soil; it adapts to sandy and limestone soils. Water regularly while young and during fruit development, moderately once established. Feed with a balanced fertiliser two or three times a year. Protect from frost, especially when young. Fruit do not ripen off the tree: harvest when the skin is dull, slightly wrinkled and gives gently. Prune to shape after harvest.

The backbone of a tropical orchard. Mangoes, Booth 8 avocado, red mamey, chicozapote, carambola, dwarf coconuts, jackfruit and dragon fruit: reliable, productive trees that thrive in Mexico's warm lowlands and coasts, grown on our farms and shipped by DHL.

Growing Profile

Botanical name

Chrysophyllum cainito

Family

Sapotaceae

Native to

Caribbean and Central America

Mature height

8–15 m

Plant spacing

8 m

Years to first fruit

4–7 years

Light

Full sun

Water

Moderate

Cold tolerance

down to 0 °C

Best climates

Humid tropics, Dry tropics

Grows in a pot

Best in the ground

Ships from

Our farms in Yucatán & Chiapas