[3] We usually have fresh seeds available on and off from May-September. Once significant rooting has occurred, the marcott is cut from the branch and potted. Raw lychee fruit is 82% water, 17% carbohydrates, 1% protein, and contains negligible fat. As noted on the website, some items are seasonal, and may only ship in spring or fall. Once your order is shipped, you'll receive an email with a tracking number. It grows wild in southern China, northern Vietnam, and Cambodia. Just pot them up in a container and keep outside during the spring and summer months. The lychee grows best in a partially subtropical climate, where temperatures are cool (32-45F) and dry for a few months during winter. In the US, production is based on several cultivars, including Mauritius, Brewster, and Hak Ip. The season is upon us for harvesting the fruit of the Lychee tree.Despite the fruits addictive flavor, it remains one of China’s best … [22] Lychees naturally produce butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT). Mature trees will withstand light frosts, but temperatures below 32F for prolonged periods of time may begin to damage or kill the tree. [T]hey haue a kinde of plummes, that they doo call lechias, that are of an exceeding gallant tast, and neuer hurteth any body, although they shoulde eate a great number of them. Litchi … The rind is inedible but easily removed to expose a layer of translucent white fleshy aril with a floral smell and a sweet flavor. [24] I have grown some lychee trees from seeds, and the saplings are now four to five inches tall. Young trees (less than 4 years old) should be fertilized with 0.25 to 0.50 lbs (0.11 to 0.22 kg) of a complete fertilizer every 8 weeks (Table 3). Lychee flowers are pollinated by bees and various fly species (Figure 6). [3] Unofficial records in China refer to lychee as far back as 2000 BC. The outside of the fruit is pink-red, roughly textured and inedible, covering sweet flesh eaten in many different dessert dishes. Beneath its thin skin is revealed white-translucent pulp with a uniquely sweet flavor. Heavy rain, fog, as well as heavy winds are detrimental during flowering and fruiting periods. Native to lowland areas in the provinces of Kwangtung and Fukien, in Southern China. For the Cuban-born Mexican writer, see, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, "The enigma of litchi toxicity: an emerging health concern in southern Asia", "Association of acute toxic encephalopathy with lychee consumption in an outbreak in Muzaffarpur, India, 2014: a case-control study", The history of the great and mighty kingdom of China and the situation thereof, "Overview of lychee production in the Asia-Pacific region", "Lychee growing in the Florida home landscape", "Daily polyphenol intake in France from fruit and vegetables", "Alpha-(Methylenecyclopropyl)glycine from Litchi seeds", "At least 31 children in India killed by toxin in lychees", "Litchi-associated acute encephalitis in children, Northern Vietnam, 2004-2009", "Outbreaks of Unexplained Neurologic Illness — Muzaffarpur, India, 2013–2014", "Dangerous Fruit: Mystery of Deadly Outbreaks in India Is Solved", "Pesticides May Have Caused South Asian Children's Sudden Deaths", "Outbreak of Sudden Death with Acute Encephalitis Syndrome Among Children Associated with Exposure to Lychee Orchards in Northern Bangladesh, 2012", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Lychee&oldid=986814996, Articles containing Chinese-language text, Articles with unsourced statements from February 2017, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 3 November 2020, at 04:37. These fruit typically have a higher price, due to having more edible flesh. This mimics the tropical climate your Lychee Tree is accustomed to! The raw pulp is rich in vitamin C, having 72 mg per 100 grams – an amount representing 86% of the Daily Value – but contains no other micronutrients in significant content. [3][15][16] They require a tropical climate that is frost-free and is not below the temperature of −4 °C (25 °F). The panicles grow in clusters of ten or more, reaching 10 to 40 cm (3.9 to 15.7 in) or longer, holding hundreds of small white, yellow, or green flowers that are distinctively fragrant. The fruit can be dried with the rind intact, at which point the flesh shrinks and darkens. Medium to large sized tree, often 20-40ft, but up to 100ft. [8], There are numerous lychee cultivars, with considerable confusion regarding their naming and identification. Since the end of the 1990s, unexplained outbreaks of encephalopathy occurred, appearing to affect only children in India[25] (where it is called chamki bukhar),[26] and northern Vietnam (where it was called Ac Mong encephalitis after the Vietnamese word for nightmare) during the lychee harvest season from May to June. [3][15] The red rind turns dark brown when the fruit is refrigerated, but the taste isn't affected. [8], The lychee attracted attention of European travellers, such as Juan González de Mendoza in his History of the great and mighty kingdom of China (1585; English translation 1588), based on the reports of Spanish friars who had visited China in the 1570s gave the fruit high praise:[13]. Growing Environment. Copyright � 2013 Trade Winds Fruit. [31][32], "Lichi" redirects here. [29][30], Earlier studies had incorrectly concluded that transmission may occur from direct contact with lychees contaminated by bat saliva, urine, or guano or with other vectors, such as insects found in lychee trees or sand flies, as in the case of Chandipura virus. The fruit was used as a delicacy in the Chinese Imperial Court. Air-layers, or marcotts, are made by cutting a branch of a mature tree, covering the cut with a rooting medium, such as peat or sphagnum moss, then wrapping the medium with polyethylene film and allowing the cut to root. Dried lychee's are also eaten. ... A calendar outlining the month-to-month cultural practices for lychee is shown in Table 2. [3] Lychee are similar in foliage to the family Lauraceae, likely due to convergent evolution. [9], Different cultivars of lychee are popular in the varying growing regions and countries. [10] Wild trees still grow in parts of southern China and on Hainan Island. [22], In 1962, it was found that lychee seeds contained methylenecyclopropylglycine (MCPG), a homologue of hypoglycin A, which caused hypoglycemia in animal studies. Planting and Caring Tips for Your Lychee Tree June 7, 2011. It was also the favourite fruit of Emperor Li Longji (Xuanzong)'s favoured concubine Yang Yuhuan (Yang Guifei). Better varieties are generally air-layered. Litchi chinensis subsp. A link to a store order page will appear here if seeds are available. chinensis is the only commercialized lychee. [27][28], A 2013 investigation by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in India, showed that cases were linked to the consumption of lychee fruit,[29] causing a noninflammatory encephalopathy that mimicked symptoms of Jamaican vomiting sickness. Lychees have moderate amounts of polyphenols,[21] including flavan-3-ol monomers and dimers as major compounds representing about 87% of total polyphenols, which declined in content during storage or browning.