The popular and intriguing dragon fruit
DRAGON fruit has been commercially produced in Sabah and Sarawak for several years. This also got home gardeners interested in growing the fruits. Today they are well accepted and grown commercially.
First we had the white-fleshed variety, then came the red and yellow varieties as g rowers looked for more resistant plants. Prices reached around RM10 each and then dropped after supply increased. The fruit was often chosen as gifts and were used in gift baskets.
After a golden period with the cacti mushrooming everywhere, calamity struck and the plants were i nfected with disease, causing them not to bear fruit.
Though plant pathologists worked hard on preventive and control measures, we have not gotten the right mix yet and the industry has suffered a setback. Few talk of planting over two acres of the fruit any more even though the price has bounced back.
As the fruit is expensive, perhaps home gardeners would l i ke to grow their own to enjoy its health benefits more economically. Interesting origins
Known as pitaya in Africa and dragon fruit in Asia, this plant orig inally from South America was brought by the French to Asian countries such as Vietnam, Thailand and Taiwan.
It is actually a cactus from the genus Hylocereus. The Hylocereus blooms only at night for nocturnal pollinators. The f lower is large, white and frag rant — typical of cactus f lowers.
A common variety is t he Hylocereus undatus or whitef leshed pitaya with a red skin. The red-f leshed variety is Hylocereus costaricensis or Hylocereus polyrhizus and it also has red skin. The Hylocereus megalanthus is a yellow-skinned fruit with white f lesh.
The fr u its a re beaut i fu l, with an intense shape and colour. The skin is a thin rind that has scales. The f lesh is a sweet tasting pulp. Speckled within t he f leshy pulp are small black seeds. These can be dried for germination and planting, otherwise they are also consumed.
Perhaps the expensive price is because t he fruits were orig inally the choice of royalty and wealthy families. The dragon fruit industry has f lourished in the United States, Mexico, Argentina and Peru. Planting
This cactus prefers hot temperatures, so thrives in tropical reg ions. The thorny vine grows to at least five feet in height and requires support. I have seen planters use an old motorcycle tyre on top of a pole, to allow the plant to spread its branches and dangle down — giving it space to develop its fruiting branches.
The nocturnal pollinators are bats and moths. Sel ffer ti lisation wi l l not produce fruit in some species and crossfertilisation with a new variety will produce more fruit sets and quality improvements as hybrids.
Take seeds from the pulp or f lesh of ripen fruits and wash out the pulp. Dry the seeds and then store in sealed packets.
A fter planting the seeds, it takes about 10 days to germinate and grow into a healthy cactus.
Cutting the stems will germinate new roots like with other cacti. This method is used for large-scale plantations.
Pests and diseases
The worst case would be bacterial attacks of Xanthomonas campestris, which causes the stems to rot. Dothiorella fung i can cause brown spots on the fruit too.
Other pests would be birds, which can be a nuisance. Control measures
Attacks by bacteria are common in our tropical weather and can destroy the industry. Naturally occurring bacterium in the soil can spread with water together with human contact from shoes and tools, making prevention and control measures using chemicals inefficient.
Regular inspections are necessary and diseased portions need to be pruned and burnt. Shoes sterilised with chemicals would also help for large-scale planting.
Reducing the amount of water is the best means to control the spread of diseases.
Planting under transparent rain sheds with controlled irrigation to the rootsphere only, without aerial spraying, may also help to prevent disease. Health benefits
The fruit of fers a number of health benef its. The most signif icant would be the high level of vitamin C, which can promote bone and tissue health as well as protect cells from free radicals.
Additionally the fruit seeds are a good source of hearthealthy polyunsaturated fats.
The fruits also have a considerable fibre content.
However, eating a significant amount of red-f leshed dragon fruit may result in harmless reddish colouration of the urine — pseudohematuria — and faeces.
Happy gardening.