2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Kuruba (Latin Passiflora mollissima) - an exotic plant, which is often called passionflower or banana granadilla, and the fruits of which bear some resemblance to cucumbers.
Description
Kuruba is a vine, reaching a height of five to seven meters. Each stem of such a vine is densely covered with miniature yellowish villi. The leaves of the plant are quite long - up to ten centimeters in length, and their width often reaches twelve centimeters. On the edges of all the leaves there are tiny bizarre denticles.
Kuruba blooms with amazingly beautiful and very large drooping pale pink flowers, the diameter of which can reach seven to eight centimeters. But these amazing flowers do not have a smell.
Kuruba fruits range in length from five to twelve centimeters, and their width ranges from three to four centimeters. They weigh from fifty to one hundred and fifty grams. Outside, this fruit looks like a cucumber (only its dimensions are more impressive), but inside it is very similar to corn. Ripe, bright yellow fruits with a slightly greenish tint (unripe fruits are always green) hide in themselves a juicy aromatic pulp of fiery orange shades, which has a sweet and juicy taste with pronounced sour notes. The pulp consists of a huge number of orangey transparent grains, through which you can see small dark seeds that resemble pomegranate seeds. By the way, Kuruba boasts a very solid water content!
Where grows
Argentina, Colombia, Uruguay and Bolivia - this is the area of distribution of the delicious Kuruba. It grows especially well in cool areas and desert plateaus. Despite the fact that in general this culture is considered wild, in many regions it was learned and cultivated - now the Kuruba farming technique is widely practiced in India and New Zealand. And in California, it is actively grown as an ornamental crop.
Application
Most often, kuruba is eaten fresh - this great fruit is great for quenching your thirst. Kids simply adore fruit salads with fresh kuruba, and they also make excellent refreshing juice, original jam with a very unusual taste and wonderful jelly. In addition, kuruba is often added to ice cream and is actively used to make wine. As for the skin, it is not eaten.
It is not devoid of kuruba and healing properties - it is an excellent helper for ulcers, gastritis and stomach pains. These attractive fruits are rich in vitamin C and contain valuable substances such as phosphorus, iron, riboflavin, carbohydrates, niacin, calcium, proteins and minerals. Kuruba has an excellent calming effect, it is great for dealing with stress and even helps to improve sleep.
Growing and caring
It is not at all difficult to grow this plant, since it is not at all capricious and is able to withstand even significant short-term drops in temperature (up to minus two degrees).
In the Colombian region, Kurubas are harvested throughout the year, but in New Zealand, this crop begins to bear fruit only at the end of March, and harvesting is possible only until the end of October.
As a rule, it takes two to three weeks for fresh seeds to germinate (assuming constant room temperature is maintained), and old seeds will begin to germinate much later. Seedlings are transplanted when they reach the age of three months, forming them on a solid two-meter trellis. Best of all, this plant will develop at temperatures from fifteen to twenty degrees and at a sufficiently high humidity of both air and soil. And the fruiting of kuruba will begin only after the plant is two years old.
