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Barbados cherry

Malpighia emarginata

A bushy shrub or small tree, also called acerola, with glossy red, cherry-sized fruit that is one of the richest natural sources of vitamin C. It bears several crops a year and makes a good fruiting hedge.

Tree facts

Scientific name
Malpighia emarginata
Origin
Caribbean, Central America and northern South America
Tree size
10–15 ft; easily kept as a 6–8 ft hedge
Growth rate
Fast
Sun
Full sun
Soil
Well-drained soil. Roots are prone to nematodes in sand; mulch helps.
Soil pH
5.5–7.5
Pollination
Mostly self-fertile; planting more than one cultivar can improve set
Cold hardiness
Mature plants take brief dips to about 28°F; young plants are hurt near 30–32°F
USDA zones
9b–11
Years to first fruit
1–2 for a grafted or cutting-grown plant
Season
Apr–Nov
Water
About every 7 days once established, without rain; more in heat, in pots and while young
Feeding
About every 60 days, Mar–Sep
Pruning
Jan–Feb
Taste
Juicy and tart to sweet-tart, like a sour cherry or tart apple
Nutrition
Extremely high in vitamin C; a few fruit can exceed a day's needs

Is barbados cherry safe to eat? Edible and toxic parts

What you can eat

  • Ripe fruit, raw or juiced, seeds removed

Toxic parts and cautions

  • Good to know: Each fruit has three hard, ridged seeds. Pit fruit for small children, who could choke on them.
  • Good to know: Tiny hairs on the leaves and stems can irritate sensitive skin.

Pets: Ripe flesh is fine for dogs in small amounts. Remove the seeds.

How to eat and enjoy barbados cherry

  • Fresh, off the bush
  • Juice and agua fresca
  • Jelly, jam and syrup
  • Frozen into smoothies

When it's ripe

Pick when the fruit is fully red and slightly soft. Harvest every day or two in season; ripe fruit drops and spoils quickly.

Storing it

Very perishable: refrigerate and use within 2–3 days. Freeze whole fruit or juice.

Barbados cherry varieties (6)

  • B-17

    A productive Florida selection with large, bright red fruit.

    Origin: Florida · Taste: Tart-sweet · Size: Large

  • Florida Sweet

    A sweeter Barbados cherry, good for eating fresh.

    Origin: Florida · Taste: Sweet-tart

  • Hawaiian Queen

    A Hawaiian selection with sweet, juicy fruit.

    Origin: Hawaii · Taste: Sweet

  • J.H. Beaumont · also Beaumont

    A Hawaiian selection with large, mildly tart fruit.

    Origin: Hawaii · Taste: Mildly tart · Size: Large

  • Manoa Sweet

    A University of Hawaii selection with sweet fruit.

    Origin: Hawaii · Taste: Sweet

  • Red Jumbo

    A large-fruited Barbados cherry with sweet-tart flavor.

    Taste: Sweet-tart · Size: Large

Pests and diseases to watch for

  • Caribbean fruit fly

    Ripe fruit with tiny puncture marks; maggots inside and soft, rotting spots.

    What to do: Pick fruit slightly early and ripen indoors.

  • Scale insects

    Small bumps, waxy or shell-like, on stems and leaf veins; sticky honeydew and black sooty mold below.

    What to do: Scrub small colonies off with a soft brush.

  • Mealybugs

    White cottony clusters in leaf joints, under leaves and on fruit stems; honeydew and sooty mold.

    What to do: Blast off with a strong spray of water.

  • Aphids

    Clusters of tiny soft insects on new shoots; leaves curl and get sticky.

    What to do: Spray off with water.

  • Sooty mold

    Black, papery film on leaves and fruit that wipes off; it grows on honeydew.

    What to do: Control the insects making honeydew; the mold then weathers away.

  • Spider mites

    Fine pale speckling on leaves, dusty undersides and fine webbing; leaves bronze and drop.

    What to do: Hose the undersides of leaves.

Growing barbados cherries? Let Gardyn keep track.

Gardyn tells you when your barbados cherry needs water based on your local weather, reminds you to feed and prune in season, and keeps every harvest and photo.

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General guidance, not medical or veterinary advice. Poison Control (US): 1-800-222-1222. ASPCA Animal Poison Control: (888) 426-4435.