Dimocarpus longan (Longan or Longyan)


Botanical Information

FamilySapindaceae
GenusDimocarpus
Specieslongan
CategoryTropicals
TypeTree (evergreen)

Description and Growing Information

HabitatSouth and southeast Asia.
Leaf DescriptionThe evergreen, alternate, paripinnate leaves have 4 to 10 opposite leaflets, elliptic, ovate-oblong or lanceolate, blunt-tipped; 10-20 cm long and 3.5-5 cm wide; leathery, wavy, glossy-green on the upper surface, minutely hairy and grayish-green beneath.
Flower DescriptionThe pale-yellow, 5- to 6-petalled, hairy-stalked flowers, larger than those of the lychee, are borne in upright terminal panicles, male and female mingled.
Fruit DescriptionThe longan ("dragon eyes") is so named because its fruit, when it is shelled, resembles an eyeball. The seed is small, round and hard, and of an enamel-like, lacquered black. The fully ripened, freshly harvested shell is bark-like, thin and firm.

Photographs