pitaya

{{for multi|the city in Thailand|Pattaya|the Thai weightlifter|Pitaya Tibnoke}}

File:Dragonfruit Chiayi market.jpg, Taiwan|alt=Market stall in Taiwan]]

Pitaya ({{IPAc-en|p|ᵻ|ˈ|t|aɪ|.|ə}}) or pitahaya ({{IPAc-en|ˌ|p|ɪ|t|ə|ˈ|h|aɪ|.|ə}}) (common names strawberry pear or dragon fruit) is the fruit of several cactus species indigenous to the region of southern Mexico and along the Pacific coasts of Guatemala, Costa Rica, and El Salvador.{{cite web|title=Hylocereus undatus (dragon fruit)|url=https://www.cabi.org/isc/datasheet/27317|publisher=CABI (Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International)|access-date=19 April 2018|date=3 January 2018|website=Invasive Species Compendium}}{{cite book |last1=Morton |first1=J.F. |year=1987 |title=Fruits of Warm Climates |url=https://hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/morton/strawberry_pear_ars.html |pages=347–348 |location=West Lafayette, Indiana, USA |publisher=Center for New Crops & Plant Products, Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture, Purdue University|access-date=8 April 2016|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160505160134/https://hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/morton/strawberry_pear_ars.html|archive-date=5 May 2016}} Pitaya is cultivated in East Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, the United States, the Caribbean, Australia, Brazil, and throughout tropical and subtropical regions of the world.

Pitaya usually refers to fruit of the genus Stenocereus, while pitahaya or dragon fruit refers to fruit of the genus Selenicereus (formerly Hylocereus), both in the family Cactaceae.{{cite book |editor-last1=Janick |editor-first1=Jules |editor-last2=Paull |editor-first2=Robert E. |year=2008 |chapter=C |title=The Encyclopedia of Fruit and Nuts |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cjHCoMQNkcgC&pg=PA215 |location=Cambridge, United Kingdom|publisher=CABI (Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International)|pages=215–216, 222–226 |isbn=978-0-85199-638-7}} The common name in English derives from the leather-like skin and scaly spikes on the fruit exterior, resembling dragon skin. Depending on the variety, pitaya fruits may have sweet- or sour-tasting flesh that can be red, white, or yellow in color.

Vernacular names

These fruits are commonly known in English as strawberry pear or dragon fruit, a name used since 1963, apparently resulting from the leather-like skin and prominent scaly spikes on the fruit exterior.{{cite web |title=Dragon fruit |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dragon%20fruit#h1 |publisher=Merriam-Webster Dictionary|access-date=25 March 2019 |date=2019}} The fruit is often designated as "Vietnamese dragon fruit" as Vietnam is the lead exporter.{{Cite book |last1= Menon |first1= Jayant |last2= Roth |first2= Vathana |title= Agricultural Trade between China and the Greater Mekong Subregion Countries: A Value Chain Analysis |date=2022-06-21 |publisher=ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute |isbn=978-981-5011-13-5 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=DB-CEAAAQBAJ&dq=vietnamese+%22dragon+fruit%22&pg=PA264}} The fruit may also be known as a strawberry pear.{{Cite journal|last1=Mitcham|first1=Elizabeth Jeanne|last2= Tonetto de Freitas|first2= Sérgio |title= Quality of pitaya fruit (Hylocereus undatus) as influenced by storage temperature and packaging |date= August 2013 |journal= Scientia Agricola |volume=70 |issue=4 |pages= 257–262 |doi=10.1590/S0103-90162013000400006 |issn= 0103-9016 |doi-access= free |url= http://ainfo.cnptia.embrapa.br/digital/bitstream/item/69395/1/Tonetto.pdf}}

The names pitahaya and pitaya derive from Mexico, and pitaya roja in Central America and northern South America, possibly relating to pitahaya for names of tall cacti species with flowering fruit.{{cite web|url=http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_768_2005-01-11.html|title=Dragon fruit|publisher=National Library Board, Singapore Government|date=2017|access-date=19 March 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161121174239/http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/infopedia/articles/SIP_768_2005-01-11.html|archive-date=21 November 2016}}

Geography

File:Dragonfruit028.JPG|alt=Juice being sold in Thailand]]

Pitaya or dragon fruit is native to the region of southern Mexico and along the Pacific coasts of Guatemala, Costa Rica, and El Salvador. It was introduced to Indochina by the French around 1860.{{Cite book |last=Nobel |first=Park S. |url=https://www.google.ru/books/edition/Cacti/DISMqbY-igwC |title=Cacti: Biology and Uses |date=2002-07-10 |publisher=University of California Press |isbn=978-0-520-23157-3 |page=192 |language=en}} The dragon fruit is cultivated in East Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, the United States, the Caribbean, Australia, and throughout tropical and subtropical regions of the world.

Varieties

= ''Stenocereus'' =

Stenocereus fruit (sour pitayas) are a variety that is commonly eaten in the arid regions of the Americas. They are more sour and refreshing, with juicier flesh and a stronger taste.

The sour pitaya or pitaya agria (S. gummosus) in the Sonoran Desert has been an important food source for indigenous peoples of the Americas. The Seri people of northwestern Mexico still harvest the fruit, and call the plant ziix is ccapxl "thing whose fruit is sour".

The fruit of related species, such as S. queretaroensis and the dagger cactus or pitaya de mayo (S. griseus),{{rp|223–225}} are also locally important foods. The fruit of the organ pipe cactus (S. thurberi, called ool by the Seris) is the pitaya dulce "sweet pitaya".

= Dragon fruit, ''Selenicereus'' =

File:Dragon fruit.JPG]]

Sweet pitayas come in three types, all with leathery, slightly leafy skin:{{rp|215–216}}

Selenicereus undatus (Pitaya blanca or white-fleshed pitaya, also known as Hylocereus undatus) has pink-skinned fruit with white flesh. This is the most commonly seen "dragon fruit".
Selenicereus costaricensis (Pitaya roja or red-fleshed pitaya, also known as Hylocereus costaricensis, and possibly incorrectly as Hylocereus polyrhizus) has red-skinned fruit with red flesh.
Selenicereus megalanthus (Pitaya amarilla or yellow pitaya, also known as Hylocereus megalanthus) has yellow-skinned fruit with white flesh.

The fruit normally weighs from {{convert|150 to 600|g|oz|frac=2}}; some may reach {{convert|1|kg|lboz|abbr=on}}.{{Cite journal|title=Hylocereus undatus (dragon fruit)|url=https://www.cabi.org/isc/datasheet/27317|access-date=2020-10-12|website=Invasive Species Compendium|date=2022 |language=en|publisher=CABI (Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International)|doi=10.1079/cabicompendium.27317 |last1=Rojas-Sandoval |first1=J. |last2=Praciak |first2=A. |doi-access=free}} Early imports from Colombia to Australia were designated "Hylocereus ocampensis" (or "Cereus repandus", the red fruit) and "Cereus triangularis" (supposedly, the yellow fruit or the three-sided cross-section of the stem).

Cultivation

File:Pitaya (seedling).jpg]]

File:Lianjiang County - Dongdai Town - Yangguang Dragong Fruit Farm - P1510432.JPG, Fujian, China]]

After a thorough cleaning of the seeds from the pulp of the fruit, the seeds may be stored when dried. The ideal fruit is unblemished and overripe.

Seeds grow well in a compost or potting soil mix – even as a potted indoor plant. Pitaya cacti usually germinate after between 11 and 14 days after shallow planting. As they are cacti, overwatering is a concern for home growers. As their growth continues, these climbing plants will find something to climb on, which can involve putting aerial roots down from the branches in addition to the basal roots. Once the plant reaches a mature {{convert|10|lb|kg|abbr=off|order=flip}} in weight, the plant may flower.{{Clarify|date=May 2012}}

Commercial plantings can be done at high density with between {{convert|1100 and 1350|/ha|/acre|0}}. Plants can take up to 60 months/260 weeks to come into full commercial production, at which stage yields of {{convert|20 to 30|MT|ST|0}} can be expected.{{Cite news|url=https://amorentia.co.za/dragon-fruit/|title=Dragon Fruit – Amorentia Sweet Dragon Fruit|access-date=2018-06-05}}

Pitaya flowers bloom overnight and usually wilt by the evening.{{cite book|last=Boning|first=Charles R.|title=Florida's Best Fruiting Plants: Native and Exotic Trees, Shrubs, and Vines|year=2006|publisher=Pineapple Press, Inc.|location=Sarasota, Florida|isbn=978-1-56164-372-1|page=185}} They rely on nocturnal pollinators such as bats or moths for fertilization. Self-fertilization will not produce fruit in some species and while crossbreeding has resulted in several "self-fertile" varieties, cross-pollinating with a second, genetically distinct plant of the same species generally increases fruit set and quality. This limits the capability of home growers to produce the fruit. However, the plants can flower between three and six times per year depending on growing conditions. Like other cacti, if a healthy piece of the stem is broken off, it may take root in the soil and become its own plant.

The plants can endure temperatures up to {{convert|40|C|F}} and short periods of frost but will not survive long exposure to freezing temperatures. The cacti thrive most in USDA zones 10–11 but may survive outdoors in zone 9a or 9b.{{cite web|url=http://www.miamiherald.com/living/home-garden/article1977019.html|title=Dragon fruit surprisingly easy to grow|publisher=Miami Herald|author=Setzer, Kenneth|date=26 July 2014|access-date=19 March 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170320143829/http://www.miamiherald.com/living/home-garden/article1977019.html|archive-date=20 March 2017}}

Selenicereus has adapted to live in dry tropical climates with a moderate amount of rain. In numerous regions, it has escaped cultivation to become a weed and is classified as an invasive weed in some countries.

= Pests and diseases =

Stems and fruits are susceptible to several diseases caused by fungi, bacteria, a nematode, and a virus. Overwatering or excessive rainfall can cause the flowers to drop and fruit to rot.{{Cite journal|last1=Masyahit|first1=M.|last2=Sijam|first2=K.|last3=Awang|first3=Y.|last4=Ghazali|first4=M.|title=The Occurrence of Anthracnose Disease Caused by Colletotrichum Gloeosporioides on Dragon Fruit (Hylocereus SPP.) in Peninsular Malaysia|date=February 2013|journal=Acta Horticulturae|issue=975|pages=187–195|doi=10.17660/actahortic.2013.975.20|issn=0567-7572|url=http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/29505/1/The%20occurrence%20of%20anthracnose%20disease%20caused%20by%20Colletotrichum%20gloeosporioides%20on%20dragon%20fruit.pdf}} The bacterium Xanthomonas campestris causes the stems to rot. Dothiorella fungi can cause brown spots on the fruit. Other fungi known to infect pitaya include Botryosphaeria dothidea, Colletotrichum gloeosporioides and Bipolaris cactivora.{{cite journal|last1=Balendres|first1=M|last2=Bengoa|first2=J|date=2019|title=Diseases of dragon fruit (Hylocereus species): Etiology and current management options|journal=Crop Protection|volume=126|pages=104920|doi=10.1016/j.cropro.2019.104920|s2cid=202020863|doi-access=free|bibcode=2019CrPro.12604920B}}

Uses

= Culinary =

The fruit's texture is sometimes likened to that of the kiwifruit because of its black, crunchy seeds. The seed oil contains the fatty acids linoleic acid and linolenic acid.{{cite journal |first1=Abdul Azis |last1=Ariffin |first2=Jamilah |last2=Bakar |first3=Chin Ping |last3=Tan |first4=Russly Abdul |last4=Rahman |first5=Roselina |last5=Karim |first6=Chia Chun |last6=Loi |year=2008 |title=Essential fatty acids of pitaya (dragon fruit) seed oil |journal=Food Chemistry |volume=114 |issue=2 |pages=561–64 |doi=10.1016/j.foodchem.2008.09.108|url=http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/14553/1/Essential%20fatty%20acids%20of%20pitaya.pdf }} Dragon fruit is used to flavor and color juices and alcoholic beverages, such as "Dragon's Blood Punch" and the "Dragotini".{{cite book|last1=Small|first1=Ernest|title=Top 100 Exotic Food Plants|date=2011|publisher=CRC Press|isbn=9781439856888|page=105|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Au3RBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA105|access-date=29 July 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171118210349/https://books.google.com/books?id=Au3RBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA105|archive-date=18 November 2017}} The flowers can be eaten or steeped as tea.{{cite book|last1=K|first1=Lim T.|title=Edible Medicinal and Non-Medicinal Plants: Volume 1, Fruits|date=2012|publisher=Springer Science & Business Media|isbn=9789048186617|page=641|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tixF72IuRFwC&pg=PA641|access-date=29 July 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171118210349/https://books.google.com/books?id=tixF72IuRFwC&pg=PA641|archive-date=18 November 2017}}

The red and purple colors of some Selenicereus fruits are due to betacyanins, a family of pigments that includes betanin, the same substance that gives beets, Swiss chard, and amaranth their red color.O. P. S. Rebecca, A. N. Boyce and S. Chandran (2010), [https://www.ajol.info/index.php/ajb/article/viewFile/78317/68682 "Pigment identification and antioxidant properties of red dragon fruit (Hylocereus polyrhizus)"] African Journal of Biotechnology, volume 9, issue 10, pp. 1450–54.C. S. Tang and M. H. Norziah (2007) [https://journal.ugm.ac.id/ijc/article/download/21678/14383 "Stability of betacyanin pigments from red purple pitaya fruit (Hylocereus polyrhizus): Influence of pH, temperature, metal ions and ascorbic acid"] Indonesian Journal of Chemistry, volume 7, issue 3, pp. 327–31.

{{nutritional value

| name=Pitaya, raw

| water=84 g

| kcal = 57

| fat=0.14 g

| protein=0.36 g

| carbs=15.2 g

| fiber=3.1 g

| sugars=9.75 g

| calcium_mg=9

| iron_mg=0.18

| magnesium_mg=7

| phosphorus_mg=12

| potassium_mg=116

| sodium_mg=1

| zinc_mg=0.1

| manganese_mg=

| vitC_mg=4.3

| thiamin_mg=0.012

| riboflavin_mg=0.026

| niacin_mg=0.161

| pantothenic_mg=

| vitB6_mg=0.026

| folate_ug=7

| choline_mg=5.1

| vitE_mg=0.12

| vitK_ug=4.4

| note=[https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/food-details/2344729/nutrients Link to USDA Database entry]

}}

Nutrition

Raw pitaya is 84% water, 15% carbohydrates, and contains negligible protein and fat (table). In a reference amount of {{convert|100|g}}, pitaya provides {{convert|57|kcal|kJ|abbr=off}} of food energy, with no micronutrients in significant content (table).

= Seed oils =

The fatty acid compositions of the seed oils of Selenicereus costaricensis, syn. Hylocereus costaricensis (red-fleshed pitaya) and Selenicereus undatus, syn. Hylocereus undatus (white-fleshed pitaya) were similar: myristic acid (negligible), palmitic acid (17%), stearic acid (5%), palmitoleic acid (about 1%), oleic acid (22%), cis-vaccenic acid (3%), linoleic acid (50%), and α-linolenic acid (1%).

Gallery

File:Dragonfruit tree.jpg|Pitaya "tree"

File:Naozhou - P1570863 - dragon fruit.JPG|Plantation in Naozhou Island

File:Hylocereus undatus in bloom in Kona.jpg|Nocturnal flowering

File:Yellow dragon fruit (50831s).jpg|Yellow S. megalanthus

File:Hylocereus polyrhizus.jpg|Red S. costaricensis

File:Jus buah naga.jpg|Jus buah naga, purple pitaya juice, Indonesia

File:Pitaya Colors.jpg|Red, yellow and white fruits

File:MAPElNorte025.JPG|Dress for a folk dance called Flor de Pitahaya "Pitahaya Flower" from Baja California Sur displayed at the Museo de Arte Popular in Mexico City

File:Dragon fruit (Pitaya).jpg|Dissected pitaya