When Do Longans Ripen? An Introduction to the Latest Ripening Times
Longan is one of the famous fruit trees of southern and southeastern China. It is an evergreen tree of the genus Dimocarpus in the soapberry family (Sapindaceae), also known as guiyuan, yizhi, sanchi nongwei, and others. It is often mentioned together with lychee. Its production areas are most abundant in Guangdong, followed by Fujian, and wild or semi-wild plants are also found in sparse forests in Yunnan and southern Guangxi. Now let us take a look at when longans ripen!
When Do Longans Ripen?
Longans usually ripen from May to October, but the ripening period of longans varies by region and variety. By region, Thai longans ripen in late May, Guangzhou longans ripen in mid-July, Guangxi longans ripen from early July to early August, and Fujian longans ripen from late July to late August. By variety, “Fuyan” ripens from late August to early September, “Dongbi” ripens in late August, “Wulongling” ripens in early September, “Songfengben” ripens from late September to early October, and “Lidongben” ripens in late October.
Where Are Longans Produced?
Longan is a fruit unique to South China. It is mostly grown in southern China (the areas of Yunnan, Guangxi, Guangdong, and Fujian). Together with lychee, banana, and pineapple, it is known as one of the “Four Precious Fruits of South China”. In terms of nutritional value and taste, the longans from Putian, Fujian are the best. Countries and regions around the world that also cultivate longan include Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, India, the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Madagascar, Queensland in Australia, Hawaii and Florida in the United States, and others.
How Do You Choose Fresh Longans?
1. Squeeze: If the longan shell is hard, it indicates that it is unripe; soft and elastic is a sign of ripeness; if it is only soft without elasticity, it is overripe.
2. Look: Choose longans whose skin is spotless, clean, and neat. Generally speaking, those with slightly lighter color are of better quality.
3. Roll: Good-quality longans have high sugar content, and the shell, flesh, and pit are connected, so they do not roll easily on a tabletop; poor-quality ones are the opposite.
4. Peel: After peeling good-quality longans, the flesh is thick and firm, uniform in shape, soft, and transparent or semi-transparent, with a sweet taste.
What Varieties of Longan Are There?
1. Shixia longan: The original stock of Shixia longan comes from Pingzhou, Nanhai, Guangdong. It is a famous fresh-eating variety with a long cultivation history and has spread widely to Guangdong, Guangxi, and other places. It has 3 strains: yellow-shell Shixia, green-shell Shixia, and gongfen-shell Shixia. It ripens in early to mid-August and is an early-maturing variety.
2. Caopuzhong longan: The fruit of Caopuzhong is round-spherical or slightly flattened-round, medium-sized. The skin is reddish-brown or yellow-gray-brown, with tortoise-like markings. The flesh is white-waxy to light yellow-waxy white, semi-transparent, and relatively easy to separate from the pit. The fruit ripens from late August to late September, and it is a mid-to-late-maturing variety.
3. Chuliang longan: Chuliang longan is the only variety that can compete with imported Thai longan, and its quality is superior to Thai longan. It is an excellent variety for both fresh eating and processing. After processing, the guiyuan flesh is yellow and clean, semi-transparent, thick, dry, and storage-resistant, and can produce grade-one to premium guiyuan flesh.
4. Dongbianyong longan: Dongbianyong longan originated in Wuchuan, Guangdong. Its fruit is large, yellow-brown, and does not split. The average single-fruit weight is 12.5-15 g, with the largest reaching 20.85 g. The flesh is crisp and does not release juice, is clearly sweet and often honey-like, and it has early fruiting, high yield, stable yield, large fruit, and excellent quality.
5. Gushan No. 2: Gushan No. 2 has a relatively strong tree vigor and a semi-round canopy. The fruit is round, with an average single-fruit weight of 9.4 g. The skin is yellow-brown, and the flesh is milky white. The flesh separates easily from the pit, has a crisp and refreshing texture, and tastes clearly sweet, with top-grade quality. It ripens in early August and is an early-maturing, high-quality fresh-eating variety.