ABSTRACT
Averrhoa bilimbi Linn belongs to the family Oxalidaceae (Fig. 1). It is a small tree growing to 15 m tall with a trunk diameter up to 30 cm. Young parts of the tree are covered with long-persistent, yellowish to rusty, velvety hairs. Leaves are often crowded at the ends of the branches with 7-19 leaflets, each measuring up to 12 cm by 4 cm, variable in shape; lateral veins have 6-14 pairs. Flowers are borne in dense, fascicled, pendulous clusters on bare branches and on knobby protuberances along the tree trunk; the calyx is yellowish-green, petals are red to purple. Fruits are rounded to blunt, angular in cross-section, up to 10 cm by 5 cm, and fleshy and juicy but acidic when ripe. Though it is widely cultivated in the lowlands of Southeast Asia, the tree’s country of origin is unknown but tropical America has been suggested. Flowering and fruiting occur intermittently throughout the year. Other names of the tree are Averrhoa obtusangula Stokes; Belimbing asam, Belimbing buluh, Belimbing wuluh (Malay, Javanese); Kamias, kalamias, Iba, Kolonanas (Tag); and Ta-ling-pring (Thai) (1).
