Classification

Native: Indonesia, Malaysia
Exotic: Australia, Brazil, Cambodia, China, Colombia, Dominican Republic, India, Israel, Japan, Laos, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Province of China, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, Uganda, United States of America, Vietnam

Common Names

Creole: blinblin long, karambola, konichon peyi, ziblinn lo
English: carambola , five corners, foreign peach, star fruit, star pickle
Filipino: balimbing
French: blinblin longue, carambolier, cornichon du pays
Hindi: kamrakh, kamranga
Indonesian: belimbing manis
Khmer: spo
Lao (Sino-Tibetan): fuang
Malay: belimbing manis/segi
Mandarin: yongt'o
Spanish: carambola , carambold, carambole, jalea
Swahili: carambola , carambold, carambole, jalea
Thai: mbirimbi wa kizungu
Vietnamese: khe

Recommended varieties

Clone Characteristis and cultivars: Good starfruit varieties are sold in several fruit nurseries in Malaysia as well as in many other parts of the world. There are several excellent starfruit varieties available in the following countries. Some attributes of a good cultivar are:

	sweet and less tart with brix of >11% and low oxalic acid content good colour yellow to golden yellow strong, broad ribs to withstand bruising good post harvest shelf life good yielder >40-60 mt/ha/year and can withstand cold temperatures
Yields of 150 kg/tree from 3 year old trees have been reported but average marketable yields of 100-120 kg are more realistic.



i. Varieties grown in Florida, USA

Arkin		Arkin: The fruit is uniform fruit,10 to 12.5cm long with bright yellow to yellow-orange skin and flesh. It is very sweet, juicy, firm flesh with few seeds. It keeps and ships well. The tree is partially self-fertile. Bears fruits in December to March in California and it is the leading commercial cultivar.

Fwang Tung		Fwang Tung The fruit is 5 - 8 inches long with pale yellow skin and flesh. Very sweet and juicy, firm flesh with few seeds. Beautiful star shape when cut in slices

Golden Star		Golden Star Originated in Homestead FL. Introduced in 1965. The fruit is large, deeply winged. The skin is bright golden yellow very waxy. The flesh is juicy. crisp, mildly sub-acid to sweet in flavor, containing no fibers. It is high in carbohydrates and vitamins A and C content. The tree bears well and regularly without cross pollination.

Hoku: It is selected by the University of Hawaii. The fruit is 5 - 6 inches long with bright yellow skin and flesh. The fruit is juicy, firm flesh with a sweet rich flavor, few seeds. Attractive star shape when cut in slices.

Kajang		Kajang The fruit is 4 - 5 inches long with bright yellow skin and flesh with sweet, juicy, firm flesh with few seeds. Beautiful star shape when cut in slices.

Maha		Maha It is originated in Hawaii. The fruit is roundish with light yellowish-white skin. It is sweet, crunchy, white flesh with low acid content.

Seri Kembanqan (Kembangan)		Seri Kembanqan (Kembangan) It is originated in Thailand. Elongated pointed fruit, 5 - 6 inches long with bright yellow-orange skin and flesh. The fruit is juicy, firm flesh with few seeds. The flavor is rich and sweet; excellent dessert quality.

Wheeler: It is medium to large, elongated fruit with orange skin and flesh. The fruit is mildly sweet flavor. Tree a heavy bearer

Thayer and Newcombe: They are two of the better known tart varieties.


ii. Commercial starfruit varieties grown in Malaysia

B2		B2 It is large greenish yellow fruit with fine texture, sweet, juicy and with good aroma. The fruits do not keep well and softens easily. The tree is slower growing.

B10		B10 It is large, golden fruit with fine texture, juicy, sweet with good flavor

B17		B17 It is large, orange color, broad winged fruit. The flesh is firm, fairly good textured and very sweet. This clone requires a pollinator like B2 to set fruit


iii. Varieties grown in Thailand



	Thai Knight			Bangkok Noi

iv. Varieties grown in Taiwan

Taiwan has also developed multiple varieties such as Two Forest, Light Green and Think, Slant Tail, Malay, TaiFarm #1 and at the same time varieties namely, Tao' (P. I. No. 272065) introduced in 1963, also 'Dah Pon' and 'Tean Ma'. Currently the farming area in Taiwan for Carambola is about 2000 acres. The production is ongoing through out the seasons. Due to its fine qualities, international demands heavily reach from Hong Kong to US.



	Dah Pon			Mei Tao

v. Cultivars introduced to Australia

Cultivars include Leng Bak and Jurong from Singapore , Thai Knight (ex Thailand ) from Florida ; and Kona Beauty, Hart, Kajang and Seremban (both ex Malaysia ) from Hawaii . Very little accessions have been obtained from the extensive gene-pool available from Taiwan and Indonesia . Other local selections include Giant Siam, Jungle Gold, BCP-1, Hosie, Chujuba. The best cultivars introduced from Malaysia are: (a) B2 (long style), elongated, narrow fruit, ripening yellowish-white.



Seremben Tai	Hart	Kajang

Its flesh is fine textured and sweet with a brix of 8-9%. (b) B 17 (short style) or Crystal honey starfruit is crispy, juicy, extremely sweet with a brix of 15-18%. The fruit is usually elongated with whitish sugar spots and ripens to a golden yellow color. (c) B 17 has good potential in Asian and Middle East countries because of its sweetness but B10 is the most widely accepted cultivar world wide. B 10 has broad, large, 12-14 cm, fruit which ripens yellow to yellow orange with smooth fine textured, juicy, sweet (brix 10-12%) flesh.

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