Achacha Fruit Tree

[Donna]

Well I'd never heard of this so I googled it when Lissa mentioned it on one of the babaco photos. 

 

Donna:  Never heard of them, googled it just now - can you buy the plants yet?  Or do they grow from seed I wonder, worth a try certainly.

 

Lissa:  I keep looking for plants for sale - Daley have them in production by the looks.

Apparently the Achacha Fruit Group hold rights to growing of the plant (from what I've read). There's some discussions going in Daley's http://www.daleysfruit.com.au/forum/acha-cha-fruit-seeds/?PHPSESSID... at least one guy seems to have grown them from seed.

 

Ali:  Ooo I love achacha... I had one at the Powerhouse Markets a few years ago... I wish I had kept some seeds, but I wasn't gardening at the time. I've never seen them for sale as a tree though.

 

 

  

http://www.achacha.com.au/faq.html

The Achacha is from the same family and is similar in taste to the mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana), known as “the queen of tropical fruit”, which is grown throughout tropical Asia particularly in Thailand, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Philippines and Indonesia. Local and imported mangosteen are available in Australia from time to time.

However the Achacha has a thinner golden skin, compared to the mangosteen’s thicker dark purple skin, it has about 25% more flesh per kilogram than the mangosteen, and it is not as sweet as the mangosteen. The Achacha has a wonderful balance between sweet and tart, with a delicate sorbet finish which makes it quite different to all other fruit and very refreshing.

 

 

[Lissa]

If you look back on page one of this discussion Shirley there is a list of outlets.

[Elaine de Saxe]

There's still a few at the local fruit and veg shop in Rothwell. Did not see any at Woolworths or IGA. It's the very end of the season.

[Shirley]

I am on the Southside of Brisbane and haven't seen any locally, I have asked at a couple of fruit and vegie shops but they hadn't heard of them and were of the opinion that they probably would be hard to get.

[Donna]

I found some awhile ago at Coles in Mt Ommaney Shopping Centre, but haven't looked since.

[Donna]

You'll never guess what I saw on the Daley's website!:

Achacha

The Bolivian Achachairu Garcinia humilis known as the Achacha in Australia grows on a tree that will reach 10m with twisted branches and thick foliage.  The fruit grows inside the tree; initially green, it is not visible until it turns yellow and then orange after three months or so in a tropical climate.  It ripens from December to March.  The small white flowers are attractive to bees so much so that honey production could easily be a profitable orchard by product.  In Bolivia Achacha honey is used for medicinal purposes and is sold at ten times the price of other honey. 

Achacha is native to the tropical lowlands of Bolivia where the soils are rich and the fruits produced from the Achachairu trees are highly revered. Achacha have been trialled successfully in tropical Queensland where the soil is rich and there is high rainfall,  we are very interested to see how the trees cope with subtropical climates.  Anyone interested in growing a tree can register your interest here on our Achacha page and we will let you know when we have some ready for sale.  We have a consignment arriving next week and are particularly interested in hearing from local people who would be keen to give us some feedback on how the tree performs in our climate.  This first shipment of trees will only be available for pick up from the nursery in Kyogle as the trees are too large to ship out, there will be a limit of two trees per person for those intersted as we have limited stocks. Please Contact Us By Email to place an order for pick up.  Anyone interested in growing Achacha commercially should contact Bruce Hill http://www.achacha.com.au/

[Lissa]

Yes! I have emailed them that I and perhaps others are interested. They may require people to turn up in person and not just hand over more than two to one person. It's a 2.5hr drive from me here at Strathpine.

Wish I had a piece of land that I could grow them commercially on.

If they get back to me offering multiples, who else is willing to come and collect with me?

[Elaine de Saxe]

Do they want people in their local area or just in SE Qld/nth NSW in general? Too big a tree for me and if you have to have at least 2, it cuts down on the likely homes for these trees.

[Lissa]

If I get selected for two I plan on keeping them trimmed to size.

No idea yet who's selected - they could get an overwhelming response.

[Donna]

Lissa depending on the day/ date I'd be interested... I've wanted to go and see their setup for awhile - and knowing me certainly wouldn't come home with just that either ;)

[Lissa]

Don't forget to email them for your two trees (if you want them) otherwise, they might let you collect for someone else.

A squiz of Daleys would be good :)

[Shirley]

I have added my name to the list for  two trees when they are released.  I am happy to go down with someone to pick them up if required.  If someone is going down and I am not required I would be grateful if they could pick mine up for me if I am one of the lucky ones who gets an email saying I can have two.:)

[Lissa]

Once we find out who, if any, are the lucky ones we'll figure out whether they will hand them over to one or two people.

Are you north or south Brisbane Shirley?