Plant family: Solanaceae
Plant origin: South America.
Fruit description: Red Tamarillo fruit is oval, 8cm long, smooth, shiny, and produced on long stems in small clusters. It is dark red when ripe, the whole fruit is edible, although the skin is not usually eaten. It contains many edible seeds in the flesh like a tomato. Red Tamarillo fruit is tangy and juicy, tasting like a tomato. The fruit of the Red Tamarillo is not as sweet as the Yellow Tamarillo.
Flowers: The flowers are small, fragrant, whitish pink and occur in large clusters in all year.
Growing conditions: The Tamarillo is a small evergreen bush that grows fast to about 2.5 metres high. It has attractive soft, large, heart-shaped reddish-green leaves. New growth is reddish. It can be grown in a pot, and looks lovely when it fruits. Plant it in some shade in a warm position sheltered from strong winds as it has shallow roots and can be blown over. It likes rich, well-drained soil, avoid waterlogged conditions. It grows in a cold, subtropical, or tropical climate. Tamarillo is quite frost tolerant. Mulch the plant well and water it during fruiting. Pinch out the growing tips in the young tree to encourage it to branch. Prune the plant lightly each year after fruiting, as fruit is produced on new wood.
Uses: Tamarillo fruit can be eaten fresh, or the same as tomatoes. Cut the fruit in half to spoon out the flesh to eat. The skin can be a little bitter. Eat Tamarillo fresh in salads, or use them in casseroles, sauces, curries, or they and can be pickled or preserved. Try it on a pizza! When you are cooking tamarillos, dip them in boiling water and peel off the skin. The fruit is high in pectin so help to set jams. Use Tamarillo in fruit or vegetable juices.
Medicinal uses: The fruit is rich in vitamins A and C, iron, calcium and magnesium.
Pollination requirements: Self-Pollinating.
Harvest time Tamarillo fruit ripen and can be harvested all year. Pick the Red Tamarillo fruit when it is dark red, and the Yellow Tamarillo yellow for yellow variety, when it has a slight give when gently pressed.
Plant relatives The Tamarillo is related to Cape Gooseberry, Naranjilla, Pepino, chillies, eggplant, tomatoes and potatoes
Special features:
Grown by method: Seed Grown Pot size: 140mm
Plant growing Height and Width for pots or in the ground planting: Grows to 2 metres high by 1.5 metres wide if Planted in a Pot. Grows 2.5 metres high by 2 metres wide if Planted in the Ground.
Shipping plant pot or planter bag size: 140mm
