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Nephelium lappaceum
Sapindaceae FAMILY Least Concern

Nephelium lappaceum

Nephelium lappaceum

Edibility
5/5
Medicinal
2/5

Safety & Hazards

The fruit wall contains a toxic saponin; cases of poisoning are known[1].

Cultivation Details

HabitEvergreen Tree
GrowthFast

Rambutan grows best in the lowland humid tropics at an elevation below 600 metres, though it can also be grown non-commercially up to 1,950 metres[1]. It grows best in areas where annual daytime temperatures are within the range 21 - 35°c, but can tolerate 10 - 42°c[2]. When dormant, a mature plant mat survive temperatures down to about -1°c, but young growth does not tolerate any frost and will be severely damaged at 4°c[2]. Temperatures down to about 5 - 6°c will cause defoliation[2]. It prefers a mean annual rainfall in the range 2,000 - 3,000mm, but tolerates 1,400 - 4,000mm[2]. It prefers climates with all-year rain, but can tolerate up to 2 - 3 dry months[2]. Prefers a sunny position, though young trees appreciate the shelter and dappled shade of trees growing overhead[3, 2]. Prefers a clay loam soil, though it can be grown in a wide range of soil types, even ones with poor drainage, so long as they are not water-logged[1]. Requires a moist fertile acid soil rich in organic matter[4, 3]. Requires shelter from drying winds[1]. Prefers a pH in the range 5 - 6.5, tolerating 4.5 - 7.5[1, 2]. Seedling trees take 6 - 8 years to produce their first crop, whilst grafted trees can fruit in their second year[4]. Fruit yields increase for the next 8 - 10 years; the tree has an economic life of about 15 - 20 or even 30 years, whilst it might live for up to 60 years[2]. Trees usually fruit twice a year, yielding 1,000 - 1,500 fruits per tree per year at age 5 - 7 years and 5,000 - 6,000 fruits per tree for older trees[2]. Very good trees may yield up to 170 kilos per tree and yields per hectare may be from 2 - 20 tonnes[2]. The fruit travels well if packed properly, but shelf life is only a few days, mainly because the fruit loses weight rapidly and appendages and skin turn black. Keeping the fruits moist and shaded prolongs this period slightly[5]. There are many named varieties[6]. Trees are usually dioecious[3], but most commercial cultivars are females that also produce a few male flowers (up to 0.5%) and, with adequate bees and other pollinators present, these are sufficient for fertilization to occur[1, 5].

Propagation

Seed - it has a very short viability and so needs to be sown as soon as it is extracted from the fruit[1]. Wash the seed first to remove traces of the fruit[1]. Sow the seed in containers or in a nursery seedbed in light shade - germination should take place in 7 - 20 days[5]. Properly cared for, the seedlings grow rapidly[4]. They quickly produce a large root system and so need to be planted out into their permanent positions when still young[4]. Layering. Grafting. Cite as: Tropical Plants Database, Ken Fern. tropical.theferns.info. 2026-02-20. <tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Nephelium+lappaceum>

Pollinators

Bees, Insects

References

  1. [1]World Agroforesty Centre — http://www.worldagroforestry.org/ ↩︎An excellent online database of a huge range of trees giving very good information on each plant - its uses, ecology, identity, propagation, pests etc.
  2. [2]Ecocrop — http://ecocrop.fao.org/ecocrop/srv/en/home ↩︎Basic information on a wide range of useful plants, plus details of environmental needs where available.
  3. [3]Tropical and Subtropical Trees - A Worldwide Encyclopaedic Guide. — Barwick. M. · Thames & Hudson, London · 2004 · ISBN 0-500-51181-0 ↩︎A superb book, very concise and well written, giving a wealth of information on 400 or more species including descriptions, habitat, cultivation details and plant uses. A wealth of colour photographs bring each plant vividly to life.
  4. [4]Tropical Food Gardens — Norrington. L. · Bloomings Books (Melbourne) · 2001 · ISBN 1-876473-41-x ↩︎Excellent little book giving some basic information on a range of plants.
  5. [5]Plant Resources of Southeast Asia — http://proseanet.org/ ↩︎Lots of information on the uses of the plants of SE Asia.
  6. [6]Cornucopia II — Facciola. S. · Kampong Publications, California. · 1998 · ISBN 0-9628087-2-5 ↩︎The second edition of an excellent guide to the edible uses of plants, though it does not give any details of cultivation etc.
  7. [7]Digital Compendium of Forestry Species of Cambodia — www.digitalspecies.blogspot.com; Phnom Penh · 2008 · http://www.digitalspecies.blogspot.com ↩︎A very detailed booklet, produced in PDF format on the internet, giving information on around 100 species of trees.
  8. [8]Brazilian Fruits and Cultivated Exotics — Lorenzi. H.; Bacher. L.; Lacerda. M.; Sartori. S. · Instituto Plantarum De Estudos Da Flora LTDA; Brazil. · 2000 · ISBN 85-867174-24-0 ↩︎A superb book, giving information on several hundred fruit species. Each entry has a brief description of the plant and its uses, accompanied by one to many excellent quality photographs of the fruits.
  9. [9]Flora Malesiana Series 1 — Various · Nationaal Herbarium Nederiand, Universiteit Leiden branch · http://www.archive.org ↩︎A massive treatment of the plants of the Malaysian Archipelago. Much of it has been made available to download from the Internet
  10. [10]IUCN Red List of Threatened Species — http://www.iucnredlist.org/ ↩︎A list of plants under threat and facing possible extinction, usually with brief details of the threats and information on habitat.
  11. [11]Plants of Southeast Asia — http://www.asianplant.net/ ↩︎Excellent site with brief information on the plant, its range, habitat and uses, plus phots of specimens, close-ops of flowers and leaves etc,
  12. [12]Dictionary of Economic Plants. — Uphof. J. C. Th. · Weinheim · 1959 · ISBN - ↩︎An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.
  13. [13]Desert Tropicals — http://www.desert-tropicals.com/ ↩︎The main focus of the site is succulent plants, but it also contains information on a wide range of other species. Usually at least one good photograph, plus basic information about the plant and its cultivation.
  14. [14]Perennial Edible Fruits of the Tropics : an Inventory — Martin, F. W.; Campbell, C. W.; Rubertbe, R. M. · U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service · 1987 ↩︎A booklet giving terse details of almost 300 species of edible fruits, plus regional lists of Botanical and Common names for over 2,500 less well-known edible fruits of the tropics.