Liliw's Lanzones Season

We don’t have apple trees in the Philippines and the apples that we buy locally are all imported from other countries like China [which is the most common], Japan [for Fuji apples but I was just guessing I just made the conclusion because Mt. Fuji is in Japan, hahahaha] and USA [for the delicious apples variety. But again I was just guessing… I am not an expert in fruits and have no friends who are into importing apples so I have no clue]. And you can find apples in the markets, groceries and fruit stalls all over the country… all year-round.

Since it is a tropical country, most fruits that are grown locally are tropical fruits, of course. We have lots of fruits that can be found in other countries too, most especially from our neighboring countries in Southeast Asia. And most fruit trees we have in the country originated from some of these countries or vice versa.

During this time of the year… the most common fruit that you can find in the Philippines and most specifically in our little town in Liliw – is lanzones. It is a kind of fruit which is yellowish in color when it is ripe. They grow from lanzones trees, of course. They are round and grow in bunches like grapes. When you open it… the fruit’s white flesh is in section. It has seeds in it which is bitter when you bite, so don’t under any circumstances bite on it. It is odorless. It is sweet. And it is an anti-oxidant [that I found out only now when I googled it].

Lazones season in the Philippines is from August to October. But usually there are still some trees that bear the fruits as late as November. And they are only available in the market during those months. But unlike here in the US where you can pick your own fruits from the orchard, in the Philippines… you pick your fruits from the fruit stands or fruit section in the grocery. Or maybe you can in other places but in my town, it is very uncommon.

Lazones is one of the most popular fruits in the Philippines and they can be costly. There are some places in the country where they celebrate Lazones Festival as a way of celebrating its abundance and as a tourist attraction.

We have lanzones trees in our yard. They were planted by my grandparents so many years ago. When we were younger, my brothers and I would lanzones in one sitting and threw the fruit skin in a "bilao" which Mom would put it out in the sun to dry. My mom would dry the fruit skin in the sun until it dried up and we used it as insecticide. My mom would burn the dried lanzones skins and the smoke will fill our house to choke the mosquitoes away. And during that session we would be out of the house too because we didn’t want to have the same fate as the mosquitoes. Hahahaha.

NOTE and Photo Credits: Special Thanks to Benzer Brul for all photos and to Kabayan KaLiliw where the images are copied.

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