Habitat
- Starfruit have been cultivated in tropical and subtropical
regions around the world for centuries. It believed that the
fruit originated around Sri Lanka or Moluccas.
- They were primarily used in parts of southeast Asia such as Malaysia,
India, Thailand.
- Relatively new to the United States, Averrhoa carambola was
introduced around the late 1800s in Florida. Due to the increase in demand now by
consumers there are cultivation sites located in Florida, Puerto Rico,
and Hawaii.
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- The starfruit tree averages around 22-33ft
high and 20-25ft wide. The
fruit is best
cultivated in areas with wind coverage (for
example next to forests) because the small tree
is susceptible to wind damage. This can lead to
stunted growth in some extreme cases. Wind can
also cause defoliation, which results in the
leaves to falling off the tree. This is a major
problem because photosynthesis occurs in the
leaves. Without leaves the tree will loose its
ability to gather large amounts of carbon which
is need for photosynthesis to occur. This in
turn not only effects the trees ability to
gather energy and its ability to transpire to
help create a gradient for which influence the
uptake of water to the top of tree but it also
effects us as well. One of the outcomes of
photosynthesis is the release of oxygen into the
atmosphere.
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