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Diospyros blancoi
Also called Mabola Tree, Velvet Persimmon, Velvet Apple, Butter Fruit
In Singapore: Butter Fruit, Velvet Persimmon, Velvet Apple, Mabolo, Buah Lemak, Buah Mentega (Cultivated in Singapore)
Mabolo is a dioecious tropical fruit tree in the ebony and persimmon genus Diospyros, grown for its velvety reddish fruit with soft, peach-scented pink flesh. It thrives in wet tropical climates with well-distributed rainfall and grows in a wide range of soils.
Diospyros blancoi, (synonym Diospyros discolor), commonly known as velvet apple, velvet persimmon, kamagong, or mabolo tree, is a tree of the genus Diospyros of ebony trees and persimmons. It produces edible fruit with a fine, velvety, reddish-brown fur-like covering. The fruit has a soft, creamy, pink flesh, with a taste and aroma comparable to peaches.
It is widely distributed and native to the Philippines, but it is also native to eastern and southern Taiwan. It has also been introduced to other parts of Southeast Asia, the Pacific Islands, South Asia, the Caribbean, Florida, and other tropical regions.
It is a dioecious tropical tree that grows well in a diversity of soil, from sea level to 750 metres (2,400 ft) above sea level. Seed trees are normally planted 10–15 metres (30–45 ft) from each other; this one can be planted from 7.5–9 metres (25–30 ft) from each other. It needs a good distribution of rainfall through the year. Trees that were planted by seeds could take 6 or 7 years to give out fruit, but trees that were propagated by cuttings produce fruit in 3 or 4 years. It is a very productive tree.
The fact that fruits vary greatly – in shape, color, hairiness and taste – suggests that there is a great deal of genetic variation in the plant. Seedless cultivars exist, and are highly favored since in the normal varieties the large seeds occupy a considerable volume of the fruit.
Diospyros buxifolia · Diospyros diepenhorstii · Ebony · Diospyros egrettarum · Diospyros ferrea · Australian Ebony · Japanese persimmon · Date-plum · Indian Persimmon · Tendu · Black sapote · Diamond Leaf Persimmon
[Contains information from Leaf Area Index (LAI) and Heritage Trees from data.gov.sg (National Parks Board), made available under the terms of the Singapore Open Data Licence version 1.0]
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Diospyros blancoi by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
