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Cashew plant origin8/9/2023 Home gardeners interested in growing cashews often start with a seed of seedling of unknown genetic origin.įor the best results, plant cashews at the beginning of your area’s wet season. Most cultivars are only available to commercial orchards - these cashew trees have been selectively bred for qualities like fruit size and flavor. But within this species are several cultivars and varieties. It’s easier than you might think! But there are also plenty of reasons to continue getting your cashews from the local grocery store.Īll cashew trees belong to the species Anacardium occidentale. So why not learn how to grow cashews of your own? Nut or not, cashews are undeniably delicious. Other drupes include cherries, olives, and peaches. Rather, they’re a type of fruit called a drupe. Also, cashew “nuts” aren’t even true nuts. But do you have any idea where, say, cashews actually come from? Cashews grow on tropical, evergreen trees of the species Anacardium occidentale.įew people know that what we think of as a cashew is only part of the tree’s fruit! The other portion is known as a cashew apple (and it’s also edible). The story of the nut, from growth to harvesting and finally processing, is quite a journey to remember.No pantry is complete without an array of salted nuts. The next time you incorporate it in your cakes or cookies, spare a thought for the cashew fruit. The seeds can be roasted multiple times to add flavor before finally being ready to be eaten. Next, the seeds are roasted to eliminate any remaining urushiol. The seeds are then dried in the sun or in a facility to remove traces of urushiol. To be made suitable for human consumption, the seeds first need to be removed from the fruit. This is the same substance found in poison ivy, and like that plant, exposure can cause rashes. This is because the cashew drupe contains a substance called urushiol. While we enjoy cashews regularly, cashew nuts cannot be eaten raw. It should be noted that the cashew apple is perishable and can spoil within a day or two of harvesting. The taste of the cashew apple is a mix of sweet and sour, as if you are eating an apple. What Else Should I Know About The Cashew Fruit?ĭespite not being the main fruit of the cashew tree, the cashew apple is still edible and can be used for culinary purposes. Because cashews fall into the latter category, they are not considered true nuts. Drupes, on the other hand, have fleshy exteriors. True nuts, such as acorns and hazelnuts, have shells and seeds that are both hard and dry. Although they are referred to as nuts in the culinary world because of their color, taste, and texture, they are not considered true nuts. The answer to that question is no! Cashew nuts are not nuts at all. In fact, as seen in the image above, this means that when cashews grow, the drupe develops before the accessory fruit. Interestingly enough, because the cashew apple is merely an accessory fruit, the seed grows independently from it. Instead, the actual “true” fruit of the cashew seed is the drupe. This means that the cashew apple is technically not the “true” fruit of the cashew seed, as mentioned earlier. This means that unlike most fruits, which develop from the ovaries of flowers, their flesh grows from a different part of the plant. When immature, it can have a green color, but once it does mature, it can turn red or yellow.Ĭashew apples are an example of what is called an accessory fruit. To repeat: the cashew apple is not the main fruit, the kidney-shaped drupe is. On the other hand, the apple-like fleshy object above it is called a cashew apple. The kidney-shaped object is the drupe and is the actual fruit of the tree. When you look at a cashew fruit, you may notice that it consists of two parts: a dark-colored kidney-shaped object and a fleshy light-colored fruit. What About The Cashew Fruit? Image from Wikimedia Commons Some other popular examples of drupes are mangoes, cherries, apricots, and peaches. This means the fruit is composed of a large fleshy part that surrounds a single hard seed. Cashew nuts are harvested from trees and processed for food and other purposes.Ĭashew seeds grow inside what is called a drupe. The cashew tree is native to the Americas (particularly Brazil) but is now grown in tropical areas worldwide. First, what are cashews exactly? Cashews are the seeds of the cashew tree ( Anacardium occidentale).
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