BOA-TTM trains to cultivate Pitaya, Dragon Fruit in Taiwan

 Dragon Fruit The Bureau of Agriculture (BOA), in collaboration with the TaiwanTechnical Mission (TTM), has announced that it will be conductingworkshop on the cultivation of Pitaya, the Dragon Fruit. Accordingto Fernando Fred Sengebau, Director of BOA, pitaya has become oneof the worlds most delectable fruits. Further, it thrives intropical climates; and Palau is suited for its cultivation. In addition, Sengebau said, if cultivation of the fruit in Palau issuccessful, it would provide for a possible lucrative market forlocal farmers. A pitaya is the fruit of several cactus species. Thefruit are also known as pitahaya, dragon fruit, strawberry pear, ornanettikafruit. The most prevalent of the cactus species thatproduces the pitaya is the Hylocereus cacti, which are native toMexico and Central and South America, but are also cultivated inSoutheast Asian countries such as Taiwan, Vietnam, the Philippines,and Malaysia. They are also found in Okinawa, Israel, northernAustralia, and southern China. Hylocereus blooms only at night;they have large white fragrant flowers of the typical cactus flowershape, that are often called Moonflower or Queen of the Night. Hylocereus, according to Sengebau, has adapted to live in drytropical climates with a moderate amount of rain. The dragon fruitsets on the cactus-like trees 30-50 days after flowering and cansometimes have 5-6 cycles of harvests per year. Records indicatethat there are some farms in Vietnam that produce 30 tons of fruitper hectare every year. Sengebau said the demand for the fruit inworldwide markets has risen over the years. Moreover, Palau, withits tropical climate and minimal rainfall, is an ideal place tocultivate the fruit. According to Sengebau, BOA and TTM, on Wednesday, May 28, will beconducting a workshop on the Cultivation of the Dragon Fruit atNekken, Aimeliik in the TTM Training Room. The workshop will runfrom 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Everyone, particularly fruit farmers,are invited to the workshop, Sengebau said, we will showattendees what the fruit looks like and how to cultivate it. Inaddition, all interested individuals are asked to call GloriaIdesiar at 544-5804 or 544-1049 for confirmation of theirattendance or for further details of the workshop.