No menu items!

COSTA RICA'S LEADING ENGLISH LANGUAGE NEWSPAPER

HomeCosta RicaNaranjilla: How to Grow in a Costa Rica Highland Garden

Naranjilla: How to Grow in a Costa Rica Highland Garden

Here’s another curiosity plant that’s a specialty for highland gardeners. You may be familiar with naranjilla, a popular fruit drink in Costa Rican sodas and restaurants.

The fruit naranjilla (Solanum quitoense), or “little orange,” as it’s translated in English, is actually a member of the Solanaceae family, so it’s closer to a tomato or an eggplant than an orange.

Botanical researchers believe this plant originated in the Andes in what is now Ecuador, where it is referred to as lulo or nuquí. It was spread through the American tropics by indigenous tribes traveling on their trade routes from one region to another. Most likely it was introduced to the Spanish colonists by local tribes, and has remained a popular fruit drink with the locals.

Easy to identify in markets, the fruit is about the size of a tennis ball, green to orange in color. Inside each fruit you’ll find a greenish pulp divided into four membranous sections with many seeds. The plant reaches one to two meters tall and has spiny stems and leaves. It can be found growing in partially shaded areas of the forest, where it is adapted to capturing the filtered sunlight.

Naranjilla grows best at elevations between 1,200 and 2,100 meters, where it is grown commercially. Even so, it grows marginally in home gardens in the intermediate regions of Costa Rica. The plant grows quickly and produces fruit in 10 to 12 months, almost continually through the year when grown in the shade.

You can start your own naranjilla plants at home from seeds collected from fruits available in local markets. Plant one or two seeds in a pot of prepared potting soil. Keep the soil moist during germination, and be sure to transplant the seedling plants to permanent sites before they become root-bound.

Shady areas with partial sunlight are best, since these plants suffer from the heat and drought of the dry season if planted in full sun, which will affect fruit production.

Naranjilla plants respond well to applications of rich compost fertilizer, which keeps them growing vigorously and producing fruit. This hardy plant suffers from no serious pest problems or diseases.

The ripe fruits can be harvested to make fruit drinks, marmalades and desserts. Costa Ricans usually cook the acidic, seedy pulp in water with sugar, then strain and cool to make frescos (fruit drinks), but you can also simply blend the fruit pulp with honey, strain and serve with crushed ice. What a flavor!

And for jellies, jams and marmalades, simply substitute the strained pulp in your favorite recipes.

Trending Now

Caral Citadel in Peru Opens After 3,800 Years

A 3,800-year-old citadel belonging to the Caral civilization—one of the oldest in the world—opened its doors to the public this Saturday after eight years...

Honduran teen deported by US feels like foreigner in native country

Emerson Colindres had just finished high school when he was sent back to Honduras by the United States, a country that he had called...

U.S. Foreign Investment Fuels Costa Rica’s Growth—But at What Cost?

Costa Rica has reached a new milestone in foreign direct investment (FDI), recording more than $4.3 billion in inflows in 2024—a 14% increase from...

Honduras Mayor Murdered in Motel Ambush Stirs Outrage

Francisco Martínez Domínguez, the mayor of San Isidro, a small municipality in Honduras, was brutally killed in Siguatepeque, about 90 km north of Tegucigalpa....

Gisele Bündchen’s Summer Getaway in Costa Rica’s Santa Teresa

Supermodel Gisele Bündchen spent late June in Costa Rica, soaking up the sun and sand in Santa Teresa with her partner, Joaquim Valente, and...

Guatemala Earthquakes Leave Two Dead and Several Injured

Two people died following the strong earthquakes that shook much of Guatemala on Tuesday and caused various material damages, according to civil protection authorities....
spot_img
Costa Rica Tours
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Travel Insurance
Costa Rica Rocking Chait
Costa Rica Travel

Latest News from Costa Rica