The longan tree is an evergreen tropical tree that is native to south east Asia, and it bears edible fruit.It is a close relative of the lychee, which it resembles.It is a decorative tree, with glossy foliage, a dense canopy and corky furrowed bark.They can grow to around 10 metres tall and wide.Fruit - raw or cooked.The mucilaginous flesh is whitish, translucent and somewhat sweet, though not as flavoursome as the related lychee(Litchi chinensis).

It is delicious eaten raw and can also be dried, preserved in syrup, cooked in sweet and sour dishes or in soups.The globose fruits are 12 - 25mm in diameter, with a thin, brittle.Seedling trees take 7 - 10 years to commence bearing fruit, whilst vegetatively propagated trees can fruit in 3 - 5 yearsPink Longan fruit plants in Keralais now available in our farms.