Longan tree (Dimocarpus longan, Euphoria Longana)

Longan tree (Dimocarpus longan,  Euphoria Longana) is a fruit plant that came from mainland of Asia and Southeast Asia. Cultivated throughout the tropics and subtropics, but primarily in Thailand, Indonesia, China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Australia, and in the USA, Florida, and Hawaii, Litchi fruit flavor is very sweet, juicy, and fresh,  it is one of the better-known tropical members of the soap berry family to the lychee roommates also belongs. This tree can grow well in sub-tropical and tropical.

Characteristics of the tree:

Longan is more suitable to be planted in the plains with an altitude between 200-600 m above sea level, with a wet climate type,  dry season no more than four months.  Ground water between 50-200 cm. 1500-3000 mm rainfall per year with a 9-12 month 2-4 months wet and dry, cold night temperatures (15-20o C) during the dry season encourages flowering plants.

Litchi cultivation is generally carried out intensively on the ground in direct sunlight to make the planting hole. Soil to plant must meet the following requirements: Have a pH 5 to 6.5. Fertile and friable, contains a lot of organic matter. Have good drainage, the water does not stagnate but enough water especially in the dry season.

Longan has a very interesting habitus, forms a canopy like an umbrella.  Leafy, small size, long (with a tapered leaf), and dark green,  branched trunk, branches horizontal direction and meetings,  longan tree can reach a height of 40 m and a trunk diameter of up to about 1 m. Longan plants rooted riding, and numerous side roots, long, and strong.

Longan flowers there are dioecious, but some are monoecious (hermaphrodite). Plants have only male stamens (staminate) without showing any stigma. Flowers generally grow at the tip (flos terminalis), 4-80 cm in length, with a bushy fur felt, form an umbrella like a fork,  petals five strands, length up to 6 mm.

The Fruit:

Longan fruit is round, the size about of marbles.  His skin is light brown to black with a surface rather rash - pimples. The flesh is translucent white and watery, very sweet taste with a distinctive fragrance.  Seeds globular composed of two pieces, and leather black beans. Flesh white seeds, containing carbohydrates, a little oil, and saponins. Litchi fruit can be eaten straight, made syrup, made jam, and made a canned fruit.

Besides having a delicious flavor, litchi is also rich in nutrients. In general, the 100 grams of meat longan fruit nutritional value which is quite good as shown in Table 1 below: 

61 kcal calories, 1 g protein, 0.1 g fat, 15.8 g carbohydrates, 0.4 g fiber, 10 mg calcium, 42mg phosphorus, iron 1.2 mg, 0.04 mg Thiamin and Asorbid Acid 6mg.

Scientific classification:

• Kingdom: Plantae (Plants)
•       Subkingdom: Tracheobionta (Vascular Plants)
•           Super Division: Spermatophyta (Produces seeds)
•               Division: Magnoliophyta (flowering plants)
•                   Class: Magnoliopsida (dashed two / dicots)
•                       Sub Class: Rosidae
•                           Order: Sapindales
•                               Family: Sapindaceae
•                                   Genus: Euphoria
•                                       Species:  Euphoria Longana