When Do Shatian Pomelos Ripen? An Analysis of the Latest Ripening Times
The Shatian pomelo originated in Shatian Village, Rong County. Today, in addition to Shatian in Rong County, it has spread to the Liujiang, Guijiang, Lijiang and Hongshui River basins in Guangxi, with Rong County, Pingle, Yangshuo and Gongcheng producing the largest yields and the best quality. It has become a flagship export commodity of Guangxi and is one of China's most competitive fruits on the international market. Let's take a look at when Shatian pomelos ripen!
When do Shatian pomelos ripen?
The Shatian pomelo is a mid-season variety. It blooms around April, and the fruiting period is after late October, with mid-November being the best harvest time. Although they are already on the market around the Mid-Autumn Festival, Shatian pomelos harvested before the Mid-Autumn Festival do not taste very good. Those picked after Frost's Descent are better. Ripe fruit has a slightly darker orange-yellow skin, thick rind, and a surface that is not particularly smooth; the fruit shape is mostly pear-shaped.
Where is the Shatian pomelo produced?
The Shatian pomelo is a local specialty of Rong County, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Because it was first planted in Shatian Village, Rong County, Guangxi, it is called the Shatian pomelo. As early as the 1930s, it was exported to Hong Kong, China, Nanyang, Europe and the Americas. It has now been planted more widely in the Xunjiang, Longjiang, Guijiang, Lijiang and Hongshui River basins in Guangxi, and has also been introduced to Guangdong, Hunan, Sichuan, Zhejiang and Jiangxi. By 2013, Guangxi had become China's largest concentrated production area for Shatian pomelos, with a total planting area of several hundred thousand mu across the autonomous region.
What are the common Shatian pomelo varieties?
1. Rong County Shatian pomelo: The Shatian pomelo originated in Rong County, and the history of cultivating Shatian pomelos there spans more than two thousand years. The fruit is large, beautifully shaped, sweet, and stores well. The fruit is gourd-shaped or pear-shaped, with a short neck at the stem end. The base of the fruit often has a ring-shaped impression the size of an old copper coin, with radiating grooves inside, commonly called a chrysanthemum base or coin base. A single fruit weighs 1000-1500 grams. The surface is golden yellow, and the flesh is shrimp-flesh colored, juicy, crisp and tender, with a clear, honeyed sweetness. It ripens in late October and stores extremely well; the fruit can be kept for 150-180 days, and the flavor is even better after storage. It has the fine reputation of being a fruit delicacy and a “natural canned fruit.”
2. Meizhou Shatian pomelo: The Meizhou Shatian pomelo, also known as the Meizhou golden pomelo, has a vigorous tree habit, with 1-2 year old branches that are thick and relatively upright. The fruit is pear-shaped or gourd-shaped, and a single fruit weighs 500-1500 grams. The flesh is crisp, tender and refreshing, white or shrimp-flesh colored, with a rich, sweet flavor and top-grade quality. The edible rate of the fruit is 40-60%, the juice content is 30-40%, and every 100 milliliters contains 0.3-0.6 grams of total acid and 100-200 milligrams of vitamin C. The fruit ripens from early October to mid-November.
3. Changshou Shatian pomelo: The Changshou Shatian pomelo has been cultivated in Changshou District for more than a hundred years. In 2001, it was rated as a famous-brand product of the China International Agricultural Exposition. In 2006, it won the honorary title of Chinese Famous Fruit. In 2009, the Changshou Shatian pomelo geographical indication trademark was successfully registered. Its fruit's appearance, shape and color are no different from the Guangxi Shatian pomelo, except that the fruit is smaller than the Guangxi Shatian pomelo, with an average single fruit weight of only about 750 grams.
4. Guilin Shatian pomelo: The Guilin Shatian pomelo was introduced from the Rong County Shatian pomelo. Its flesh is tender and soft, with a clear, sweet, delicate fragrance, and it is nutritious; its vitamin C content is more than twenty times that of apples. The pomelo fruit is pear-shaped or heart-shaped, and turns bright yellow when ripe. Each one generally weighs 2 jin. Its most distinctive feature is that the stem end looks like a short neck, and the base has a coin-shaped ring impression, known as the “coin ring.”