Dragon Fruit
Dragon fruit is the fruit of several
cactus species. Dragon fruit usually refers to fruit of the genus Stenocereus
and Hylocereus. The vine-like epiphytic pitahaya-producing cacti of the genus
Hylocereus are native to Mexico, Central America and South America. Currently,
they are also cultivated in East Asian and Southeast Asian. The fruit was
probably introduced by Europeanns who brought it from the New world. In the
case of Taiwan, the fruit was brpught in by the ducth. Hylocereus blooms only
at night, the large white fragrant flowers of the typical cactus flower shape.
The types of
dragon fruit which cultivated :
·
Hylocereus polyrhizus, the fruit are pink
with red flesh
·
Selenicereus megalanthus, the fruit are
yellow with white flesh
·
Hylocereus costaricensis, the fruit body
and the flesh are very red.
Classification
of dragon fruit :
Kingdom : Plantae
Divisio : Magnoliophyta
Class : Magnoliopsida
Ordo : Caryophyllales
Family : Captacece
Genus : Hylocereus
Spesies : Hylocerueu sp
Dragon fruit plant morphology
consist of root, stems, thorns, flower, and fruit. Roots of this plant are
hairy roots. On the spines, flower will grow.
1. Roots, plant roots in the form of
root fibers
2. Stems, stems of this plant has a
triangular stem and has a very short spines
3. Flower, dragon fruit has a single
flower is quite large and will effloresce after reaching 30cm in size.
4. Dragon fruit, dragon fruit is oval
and has fins. Skin color are pink with vines and green scales, the flesh are
with or red.
5. Dragon fruit seed, has a color black
and scattered in the flesh.
Dragon fruit plant is a
long day plant, its mean this plant must have a long radiation every day, so
many tropics region which have a good sun radiance in a year suitable to
planted this plant. After thorough cleaning of the seeds from the pulp of the
fruit, the seed may be stored when dried. Ideally, the fruit must be
unblemished and overripe. Seed grow well in a compost or potting soil mmix even
as a potted indoor plant. Pitahaya cacti usually germinate between 11 and 14
days after shallow planting. As they are cacti, overwatering is a concern for
home growers. As their growth continues, these climbing plants will find
something to climb on, which can involve putting aerial roots down from the branches
in addition to the basal roots. Once the plant reaches a mature 10 pounds in
weigh, the plant may flower.
Hylocereus has adapted
to live in dry tropical climated with a moderater amount of rain. The dragon
fruit sets on the cactus-like trees 30-50 days after flowering and can
sometimes have 5-6 cycles of harvest per year. There are some farms in Vietnam
that produce 30 tons of frui per hectare every year.
This fruit are rich in
fiber, vitamins, and minerals are able to prevent a variety of degenerative
diseases, reduce emotiona; stress, and neutralize toxins in the blood. There is
a link to the myth can lower blood sugar and cholesterol levels. Dragon fruit
has many essence which good for healty like protein, fosfor, calcium, carotene,
vitamin b, vitamin c and many more.
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