Lychee

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The Lychee (Litchi chinensis), also spelled Litchi (the USA FDA spelling) or Laichi, is the sole member of the genus Litchi in the soapberry family Sapindaceae. It is a tropical fruit tree native from southern China and Vietnam south to Indonesia and east to the Philippines. Local names include vải, lệ chi or 荔枝 (pinyin: lìzhī), Alupag (Philippines), lin jee (ลิ้นจี่, Thailand), and Reishi (レイシ or 茘枝, Japan).

It is a medium-sized evergreen tree, reaching 15-20 m tall, with alternate pinnate leaves, each leaf 15-25 cm long, with 2-8 lateral leaflets 5-10 cm long; the terminal leaflet is absent. The newly emerging young leaves are a bright coppery red at first, before turning green as they expand to full size. The flowers are small, greenish-white or yellowish-white, produced in panicles up to 30 cm long.

The fruit is a drupe, 3-4 cm long and 3 cm in diameter. The outside is covered by a red, roughly-textured rind that is inedible but easily removed. The inside consists of a layer of sweet, translucent white flesh, rich in vitamin C, with a texture somewhat similar to that of a grape. The edible flesh consists of a highly developed aril enveloping the seed. The centre contains a single glossy brown nut-like seed, 2 cm long and 1-1.5 cm in diameter. The seed, similar to a buckeye seed, is slightly poisonous and should not be eaten. The fruit matures from July to October, about 100 days after flowering.

There are two subspecies:

• Litchi chinensis subsp. chinensis. China, Indochina. Leaves with 4-8 (rarely 2) leaflets.
• Litchi chinensis subsp. philippinensis (Radlk.) Leenh. Philippines, Indonesia. Leaves with 2-4 (rarely 6) leaflets.

Cultivation and uses

Lychees are extensively grown in their native region, and also elsewhere in southeast Asia, India, southern Japan, and more recently in California and Hawaii in the United States, the wetter areas of eastern Australia and sub-tropical regions of South Africa, also in the state of Sinaloa in Mexico. They require a warm subtropical to tropical climate that is cool but also frost-free or with only very slight winter frosts not below -4°C, and with high summer heat, rainfall, and humidity. Growth is best on well-drained, slightly acidic soils rich in organic matter. A wide range of cultivars is available, with early and late maturing forms suited to warmer and cooler climates respectively. They are also grown as an ornamental tree as well as for their fruit.

Lychees are commonly sold fresh in Chinese and southeast Asian markets, and in recent years, also widely in supermarkets worldwide. The red rind turns dark brown when the fruit is refrigerated, but the taste is not affected. It is also sold canned year-round. The fruit can be dried with the rind intact, at which point the flesh shrinks and darkens, somewhat resembling a human earlobe in texture.

Cultivars

There are at many different cultivars of lychee, of which three are considered to be the most sought-after.

The "Three Prestigeous Cultivars"

• Hanging Green (Chinese: 掛綠)- The most famous (and most rare) lychee in existance. It received its name because of the barely noticable light green hue and green line on the shell. Ancient records have described Hanging Green as "Fresh and crispy as pear, without juice. It can last for three days after the shell is removed". For centuries, Hanging Green is a item of tribute to the imperial government of various dynasties, until people in Canton revolted during the Qianlong era against the tributes and chopped all but one of the Hanging Green trees. The sole remaining tree still produces fruit each year, and fruits from that tree are now called "Zhengcheng Hanging Green" (增城掛綠).

• Sweet Osmanthus Flavour (桂味)- Named because of the Sweet Osmanthus flavour it contains, this lychee has light red shells, which contains sharp edges. The fruits are described as crispy and sweet. There is a related cultivar, called "Yatou Green" (鴨頭綠). The shell of this cultivar has dark green spots.

• Glutinous Rice Ball (糯米糍)- Named after its thick fruit meats and sweet (some described the taste as close to honey) flavours. The fresh red shells are not sharp and hard, and the seeds from this cultivar are noticably smaller than others. Some fruits from this cultivar are seedless.

Other notable cultivars

• Baila (白臘)
• Baitangen (白糖罌)
• Black Leaves (黑葉)- This cultivar matures less than others, and has big meats and seeds. The shell exhibits a dark red tint.
• Huaichi (懷枝)- Literally "Branches [of fruit] in the arms of [a person]", this lychee supposedly received its name when a government official toured Lingnan (mondern day Canton) and placed within his arms lychee branches gifted by local villagers.
• March Red (三月紅)- This lychee matures the earliest, and are usually available annually around May.
• The Concubine Smiles (妃子笑)- Famed as the cultivar of lychee Emperor Xuanzong of Tang brought from the edges of the Tang empire to cheer up Yang Guifei, this lychee matures earlier than others, and has a very light red tint on its shells.
• The Jade Purse (玉荷包)- Named because of its large fruits and the thick meat within. The seed is small in this cultivar.

History

A major early Chinese historical reference to lychees was made in the Tang Dynasty, when it was the favourite fruit of Emperor Li Longji (Xuanzong)'s favoured concubine Yang Yuhuan (Yang Guifei).

The lychee was first described in the West by Pierre Sonnerat (1748-1814) on a return from his travel to China and Southeast Asia.

It was then introduced to the Réunion Island in 1764 by Joseph-François Charpentier de Cossigny de Palma. Il was later introduced to Madagascar which has become a major producer.

There is a Cantonese saying: "one lychee equals three torches of fire" (一啖荔枝三把火)^[1]. It refers to the extreme Yang property of the fruit. Over-consumption of lychees is reported^{[citation needed]} to lead to dry lips, nosebleeds, pimples, and mouth ulcers. There have also been reports on Chinese language newspapers on people being sent to hospital for violent nosebleed and/or coughing up blood because of overconsumption of Lychee^{[citation needed]}.

References

1. ^ The quote appears to be the corrupted version of a poetry verse by Su Shi, which reads "Eating 300 Lychee fruits everyday, I will leave unannounced and become a Lingnan (ancient name for Canton) person forever". (Chinese: 日啖荔枝三百顆，不辭長作嶺南人).

See also

• Ackee
• Longan
• Korlan
• Mamoncillo
• Rambutan
• Chinese food therapy
• Lichido Liqueur

External links

• Fruits of Warm Climates: Lychee
• California Rare Fruit Growers: Lychee Fruit Facts
• Know and Enjoy Tropical Fruit: Lychee, Rambutan & Longan
• Litchi chinensis (Sapindaceae)