Published on Saturday, July 26, 2025

By Victoria Torley

 

Out in the Grecia area, one of my dear friends had an excellent question: "When are certain fruits in season in Costa Rica?"

I did have a list, but here are a couple of things to point out before I start the list. First, Costa Rica has a lot of climates and microclimates where fruiting times fluctuate. Second, we get some things, like avocados, as imports, and that probably goes for other fruits as well. After all, we are in a tropical area, and surrounding countries also have climates that change fruiting dates.

That being said, here are some generalities for fruiting for the months from July to October. 

Sweet passion fruit (Passiflora ligularis), known here as "granadilla," is now producing. I have many 10-pound fruits on my vines.

Spanish lime (Melicoccus bijugatus), commonly called here "mamón," is readily available at most roadside stands for about $4 a kilo. I have recently planted a tree, but I am not sure if my microclimate is suitable for it. We have to wait and see.

Cherimoya (Annona cherimola), known here as "anona," is in season, but there isn’t a large crop here in Costa Rica because of various pests and diseases. The best fruits come from Zarcero in Alajuela and the Cerro de la Muerte area in the central mountain range.

Breadfruit (Artocarpus altilis), known here as "fruta de pan," is a non-native tree and comes in two varieties, one with seeds and one without. The seeds are roasted like chestnuts, so you might look for that variety, called castaño.

You may also find the last of the black raspberries (Rubus occidentalis), known here as "frambuesa," on local bushes and strawberries (Fragaria ananassa), or "fresa", continue to come fresh from the slopes of Volcán Poás.

Wild grapes, known here as "uvas," are hanging in clusters from our vines. We were originally told to leave them for the animals, but a friend went wide-eyed when she saw them and had a few with no ill effects. So far, I can’t find them anywhere in my books, but I will keep digging.

Slipping into October, these fruits continue to produce well.

We have, of course, things that are in constant flower and fruit, such as coconut, pineapple, and bananas. These are three examples of plants that are like energizer bunnies; they keep going, and going, and going.

Plant of the week. Grapes are a wonderful treat. The grapevine is probably the most widely grown temperate fruit crop in the tropics. In the wet, humid tropics, grapevines are evergreen, grow continuously, and with controlled pruning, it is possible to have one cropping cycle per year.

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Find more interesting stories about gardening in Costa Rica on the AM Costa Rica Garden page. Questions on this article, Ms. Victoria Torley, gardener columnist, can be reached by emailing victoriatorley1@gmail.com
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