What Fruit is Florida Known for? 8 Best Known Fruits
In the sunshine state, we admire our appreciable natural resource, the weather, which produces so many delightful Florida fruits. We enjoy warm sunny days and gentle subtropical breezes at the Southeastern edge of North America during months when most of the continent shivers. Our wonderful climate also offers us local culinary treasures, the marvelous Florida fruits that grow year-round.
But the curiosity is that, what fruit is Florida known for? That’s why this article is being curated to let people know about the fruit varieties found in Florida.
Also Read: What Food is Florida Known For
Let’s dive deep into the main content without further ado.
What Fruit is Florida Known for?
Here is the list of famous Florida’s fruits.
Oranges
In Florida, orange is the official state fruit, its juice is the state beverage, and orange blossom is the state flower.
The citrus industry of Florida has a future of large promise, with an annually increasing yield from the normal growth of bearing trees, the coming into the bearing of many new grooves, and steadily increasing acreage, approximately ten million boxes of oranges and eight million boxes of grapefruit shipped to northern and western markets last season.
Jaboticaba
This Florida fruit is popular in Brazil and looks like big, dark purple, round grapes. With heavenly flavor, it tastes like a delicious grape and a hint of spice, little known outside the country.
The skin has a slight pine-like flavor so that you can eat them with skin and all. Jaboticaba is best for fresh eating, jelly, and wine and grows in central and north Florida.
Loquat
A subtropical fruit in the same family as peaches, plums, apples, and pears. The golden orange-yellow Florida fruit has thin, edible skin with several inedible seeds and ranges from round to oval.
It tastes like a combo of peach and pear with hints of citrus and mango. Loquat, also known as Japanese plum, nispero japones, grows in north, central, and south Florida in the spring season.
Chocolate pudding fruit
Chocolate pudding fruit or black sapote is a tropical species of persimmon native to Mexico. This fruit is full of black, sweet, creamy pulp with flavor and texture reminiscent of chocolate pudding.
Black sapote, zapote negro are the other names of chocolate pudding fruit that grows in central and south Florida, best for fresh eating and smoothies.
Jackfruit
Native to southern Asia and popular in India, the crazy tropical aroma and flavor of Jackfruit pack an exotic sensory overload in appearance, smell, taste, and texture.
Jackfruit, also known as Jaca, grows in South Florida from late summer to fall and is best for fresh eating, smoothies, and ice cream.
Kumquats
Native to China, where Kumquats means “golden orange,” it is a small citrus fruit that magnificently tolerates the cooler winters of Central Florida and can be found throughout the region.
Although it is the world’s smallest citrus fruit, it is full of flavor and can be eaten whole, peeled, and all; it comes in tart and sweet varieties.
Kumquats are popular for making delicious jams, jellies, and preserves. This fruit is famous as an ornamental, shrub-like tree that resembles small orange trees with delicate, white, fragrant blossoms.
Muscadine Grapes
Muscadine Grapes are Florida’s very own native species of grape. Unlike their smaller, sweeter, delicate cousins, they thrive in the summer heat.
They also resist many blights that decimate other grape populations, such as Pierce’s disease, phylloxera, and other insect pests.
Muscadine grapes are a great candidate for winemaking, and many regional wineries include muscadine in their blends. They’re also eminent in the region for making jellies.
You can slip them out of their thick skin, which comes off easily, and eat the sweet-sour pulp.
Fruit and jellies are available at local farmer’s markets, especially in early fall when the grapes are most ripe.
Mayhaws
Mayhaws, known as Florida’s cranberry, you’d be hard-pressed to find any farmer’s market that doesn’t have at least a few jars of mayhaw jelly for sale in Central or North Florida.
Several cities in Florida hold local mayhaw festivals in honor of the fruit because it is considered a Southern delicacy.
This Florida fruit loves moist soil around creek and river bottoms and gets its name from the time of year it is most ripe, May.
The mouth-watering mayhaw quickly turns into a sweet, lightly tart jelly that goes with almost anything.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Florida is famous for citrus. However, plenty of other fruits grow and are well known in the Sunshine State. The tropical climate supports the growing season year-round, making Florida a source of winter produce for much of the eastern U.S. If you plan to visit the Sunshine State, don’t miss the chance to taste these marvelous fruits Florida is known for.
