Longan production in Asia - United Nations in Indonesia

Taiwan Province of China
Longan production areas are concentrated in central and southern Taiwan Province
of China. The area planted and the production from 1994 to 1998 are shown in Table 18.
There is minimal or no increase in planted area for the period shown and the production
pattern is evidence of the alternate bearing phenomenon.
Table 18. Planted area and production of longan in Taiwan Province of China
Year
Area
(ha)
Production
(metric ton)
1994 12,142 109,460
1995 12,192 151,388
1996 12,168 53,215
1997 12,015 130,495
1998 11,808 53,385
Source: Yen (2000).
Taiwan Province of China’s longan cultivars originated from mainland China.
There are over 52 longan cultivars existing in the country. However, over 98 percent of
the longan area are planted with the cultivar ‘Fengko’. This is followed by the cultivars
‘Hongko’ and ‘Chingko’. A great variation exists in fruit weight (5.2 - 18.2g), TSS (10.3 -
26.0 percent), seed weight (0.5 - 2.5g), and aril recovery percentage (50.0 - 70.8 percent)
among 52 longan cultivars grown at different locations and years of production (Yen and
Chang, 1991). Most cultivars flower from March to early April and harvesting of fruits is
from August to early September. Common cultivars and their characteristics are described
in Appendix 1.
Vietnam
Longan production in Vietnam is concentrated mainly along the Mekong delta, the
northern region and the southeast region. Among these longan areas, the Mekong delta
accounted for 70 - 80 percent of the total planted area (Table 19). There was an increase
in the longan planted area from 1998 to 1999. Common cultivars and their characteristics
are described in Appendix 1.
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