Friday, August 15, 2008

roadside fruit trees of lim chu kang (2)

the tall meninjau trees are found mostly along the sides of lim chu kang lane 8. on the female meninjau tree, when the fruit first appear, they are green. then they turn yellow and eventually red, when they are ripe. the male meninjau trees do not produce fruit. the indonesian emping, which we call belinjau, is made from the fruit of this tree.


the monkey/velvet apple trees are found along lim chu kang lane 6. my friend once asked me if the fruit was edible. i told him that the ava would not plant something if the produce was inedible. it is just that the people here are not familiar with the fruit so they do not go for it like, the way they go for langsat, mangosteen and soursop.


the abiu trees are found growing along neo tiew lane 3, the road that leads to the golf course in kranji. the abiu is a smooth, brilliant yellow fruit with sweet translucent flesh. its delicious flavour is reminiscent of crème caramel and it is sometimes used to flavour ice cream and make other desserts. the taste of the fruit is a cross between a mango and a persimmon.



the egg fruit is not the same as the egg plant. the fruit is yellowish to orange with somewhat meaty pulp similar in appearance and texture to a cooked egg yolk embedded often with a single large seed. at maturity, the strong odour of the pulp is musky and the skin colour turns from glossy to dull. there are many such trees with fruit along lim chu kang lane 2, the road where the fire flies health farm is located.


this rambai tree looks very much like the langsat tree and the fruit also can be mistaken for langsat but it does not belong to the same family. like langsat, the fruit hang from the branches and trunk of the tree. there are two rows of rambai trees, one on each side, along lim chu kang lane 3, where it joins with lane 5.

8 comments:

Victor said...

>my friend once asked me if the fruit was edible. i told him that the ava would not plant something if the produce was inedible.

Yg, since you are obviously a botany expert, may I consult you regarding the follow questions in my mind:

1. Is the pong pong fruit edible? If not, then the tree is not planted by AVA but is a wild-growing tree?

2. How about the brown round fruit that is about 6-inch across? (Sorry, I don't know its name.) I see many of these low-hanging fruits in East Coast Park. Knowing Singaporeans, if they are edible, surely there won't be so many still hanging around?

yg said...

victor, i am no botany expert; in secondary school, i studied general science.

as regards the pong pong fruit, i only learnt that it was poisonous when i was older, long after i had tasted the fruit.

when i was in primary school, at newton boys' school, i went with a friend to farrer park after school. there were some pong pong trees at the end of northumberland road, nearer to the farrer park swimming pool.

we climbed the tree, plucked the fruit, smashed it and tasted it. i do not recall falling sick subsequently. maybe, we did not eat the seeds.

as for the brown round fruit, are you referring to the cannonball fruit? i don't know if they are edible. as i have said, i am no expert.

Anonymous said...

The meninjau tree you mentioned is called belinjo in indonesia. besides using the fruit for making emping, it is used to make a classic indonesian dish called sayur asam. The outer thin layer of pulp and skin is removed and the kernel broken to get to the nut concealed inside which has a distinct flavour with slight bitterness. This is the actual ingredient used in making emping. the young leaves can also be eaten

yg said...

hi anonymous, thank you for sharing. the belinjo is one of the many ingredients in the dish sayur asam? so, to make emping, you use the whole fruit, including the seed? i didn't know; i thought only the pulp was used. no wonder i didn't succeed when i tried making some on my own.

Nature lover said...

Hi yg, since I stumbled on your blog yesterday I have found it difficult to navigate away.

I like the topics you write about, especially those on nature. You write well and take great pictures. Enjoy reading your blog very much.

I was actually googling for more information on belinjo and that took me here. May I know, other than at LCK Lane 8, where else in Singapore can I see the fruits of this tree, hopefully somewhere not too far flung like in LCK?

Thanks and keeping blogging. ;)

yg said...

hi nature lover, thanks for visiting and all the compliments. belinjau or belinjo trees are not that uncommon in s'pore.
there sre some at sungei tengah end. along lor lada hitam, off mandai road, there are also belinjo trees. the exit from sle, leading to the s'pore turf club, also has trees on both sides.

Nature lover said...

Thanks, yg.

Anonymous said...

hello! i know im really late and all but i was wondering what kind of roots are from the meninjau trees? im sec 1 and have to learn this stuff:/