By MEI REI QUA
LYCHEE is a fruit that many Malaysians seem to enjoy! Something about slowly peeling off the skin to get the perfectly shaped fruit is very satisfying. Sinking our teeth in the juicy and sweet flesh is a dream! With Chinese New Year coming up, it wouldn’t be long until lychees start popping up in every wet market and supermarket. Here’s the news! An Australian farmer has succeeded in creating seedless lychees!
Lychees are amazing. Seedless lychees are even better. Tibby Dixon, an Australian farmer had succeeded in creating the first-ever seedless lychee in Sarina Beach in Far North Queensland. It took him more than 19 years to successfully develop seedless lychees. Throughout the years, he had created multiple lychee varieties via selective breeding and cross-pollinating flowers.
This experiment had amounted to more than USD 5,000 of spending. Of course, the outcome was great. He had described the seedless lychee to be very flavourful. More accurately, it tasted a bit like pineapple fruit. In order to create this new species, Dixon had to import a tree to get small seeds from China. The farmer for more than 40 years kept going until he managed to get a seedless fruit! Strong determination is key.
You are probably wondering when seedless lychee will be available in Malaysia. Mr. Dixon’s latest challenge will be trying to produce a crop of trees to produce in Australia. Within a few years, there should be sufficient for commercial production. Are you excited to eat lychees without seeds? We are down to try this brand new species. – KL Foodie
