What Is Rambutan?

Rambutan is the fruit of a medium-sized tropical tree which is located in southeast Asia. It is part of the Sapindaceae family (soapberry family), which is a family of plants such as trees and shrubs. Rambutan is closely related to other tropical fruits and the tree has small flowers.

Rambutan has a leathery red skin and is covered in spines, earning its name from the Malayan word 'Rambutan' which means 'hair'. It has a sweet flavour, and its seed is poisonous.

Rambutan is a popular garden fruit tree. The trees are best in deep soils which are highly organic. It is common for rambutan to be propagated by air-layering and budding. If the trees are grown from seed then the fruit is often sour.

Bees, butterflies and flies commonly visit rambutan, and its flowers often attract bees. Large quatities of honey are produced by Apis cerana bees using rambutan flowers.