Talk:Carambola

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Discussion header[edit]

It is unfortunate that this article is so very one-sided. It only covers health risks due to interactions with medications. It does not cover health benefits of the fruit and covers absolutely nothing of the plant's culture, growing, soil needs etc. Many healthy foods can interact with chemicals artificially introduced into the body, but this article makes Carambola sound like a dangerous "product" when in fact it is the pharmaceuticals themselves that are dangerous and interact with natural healthy foods in a potentially lethal way. Of course all of these medications should contain ample warnings about side effects and dangerous interactions. It is the responsibility of drug manufacturers to inform their customers the dangers of their products. It is not the responsibility of fruit growers to inform their customers of pharmaceutical interactions.

Fatal consumption of Carambola (starfruit)[edit]

I never knew that you could die from eating this fruit, shouldn't they put health warnings or something. From today's news 10 people in serious condition, 2 of them died after eating Carambola --Bukhrin (talk) 14:02, 23 April 2008 (UTC)[reply]

There is a fair amount of oxalic acid in the ripe fruit. http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/mg269 I have 2 trees, both root grafted "Sri Kembangan" from Malaysia. I usually eat the fruit slightly green. It isn't nearly as sweet that way, kind of like a green apple, but is much less likely to cause trouble.

My father in on dialysis and should never eat the fruit. There is also a fine line between ripe and fermented with the variety I have in the summer heat. They are difficult to fully ripen without spoiling. I live in south Florida and the fruit is popular with my Jamaican neighbors, but they also eat ackee, which will kill you quick if not prepared correctly. The crop yields listed in the article above are real. It sounds hard to believe that a 12 foot tree could produce over 300lbs of fruit a year, but mine consistently does, and I give away far more fruit than I eat. David74.163.171.37 (talk) 02:19, 28 July 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Pronunciation[edit]

Carambola is pronounced CaramBOla. The primary stress is in the third syllable, with secondary stress on the first syllable, according to Webster.com.

Phonetics available at http://dictionary.reference.com/search?r=8&q=carambola

Eating[edit]

To eat it, just wash it and cut it up (it doesn't matter how, lengthwise or widthwise (stars)). You don't need to peel it. I don't think there is a "proper" way to eat it, though I think it would make sense to cut it up since it's a little... awkwardly shaped to just eat it. 24.84.0.4 03:05, 16 June 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Agreed. However. I typically slice off the very edges of the star points, as these usually are browner or greener than the rest. I also do not eat the seeds, which are generally slimy and hard. Lastly, you can also slice the carambola into 5 pieces by slicing each point off the fruit. This way, you avoid the seeds, and you have some crunchy carambola sticks. It's delicious, and I like it better refrigerated.

Varieties[edit]

The ripeness will determine taste and consistency, like any other fruit. Varieties do as well, just like tomatoes, apples, etc.

Pome[edit]

This fruit is not a pome because it is not in the rose family.

WikiProject Food and drink Tagging[edit]

This article talk page was automatically added with {{WikiProject Food and drink}} banner as it falls under Category:Food or one of its subcategories. If you find this addition an error, Kindly undo the changes and update the inappropriate categories if needed. The bot was instructed to tagg these articles upon consenus from WikiProject Food and drink. You can find the related request for tagging here . If you have concerns , please inform on the project talk page -- TinucherianBot (talk) 11:14, 3 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Kingdom Hearts?[edit]

I'm pretty sure the Paopu fruit is not based on the Carambola. I think the star shape is just a coincidence. Unless someone can find some conclusive evidence that the carambola is the basis of paopu's design, I'm going to delete that section. Jamie1743 (talk) 20:51, 6 November 2008 (UTC)[reply]

"Chinese goosberry": not[edit]

No one who's ever seen a gooseberry would think that "Chinese gooseberry" could be applied to star fruit: Kiwi fruit is called "Chinese gooseberry" ...by the kind of people who call an avocado an "alligator pear". Why is there a separate page Averrhoa carambola? Rival hobbyists making lists? Not encyclopedia writers, certainly.--Wetman (talk) 13:30, 8 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]

It is most definitely not Chinese Gooseberry. Although to be fair, 'Chinese Gooseberry' (at least the 'Chinese' part, the 'gooseberry' bit being entirely subjective to the European POV) is an older and a more accurate name for the Kiwifruit, as it originates from East Asia. The 'Kiwi' sobriquet was added later on as a marketing gimmick when it began to be cultivated in New Zealand. People tend to get the impression that it came from New Zealand because of this, but the truth is it's not native there.
And I think the intent of the other article was to describe the entire plant itself, while this article describes the fruit. The problem is... both of them describe both the plant AND the fruit. Some parts should be migrated to that article and some parts from that migrated to this one.--Obsidi♠nSoul 14:31, 3 December 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Taste[edit]

This section needs references. Not to mention that I just ate one and it tasted like a plum (same consistency too although firmer), nothing like an orange or the other fruits mentioned. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Telanis (talk • contribs) 03:10, 17 June 2010 (UTC)[reply]

I have never eaten a plum so I can't really compare it with that, but I've eaten carambolas since I was a kid. I think the comparison to the orange is more because of the strongly acidic sourness present especially in unripe fruits. Since I have read similar comparisons with lemons, grapefruit, citron, etc., I have merged all references to point to fruits of the citrus family. Though it is important to note that the texture/consistency is another matter entirely, and does not in any way resemble citrus family fruits. The texture is somewhat similar to a cross between juicy cucumbers/apples/pears and cherries/plums/peaches (or perhaps like grapes but firmer).
Also, it is important to note that the taste varies according to the level of ripeness. Very ripe fruits are mildly sweet, even bland, with little to no sour undertaste. Fruits which are just right (light yellow-green to yellow coloration), has a tart sweet-sour taste. Unripe fruits can be bitingly sour, a taste similar to that of its close relative, the Bilimbi. Or perhaps like tamarind or lemon in the way you can't help but make a face after biting into it, heh.--Obsidi♠nSoul 15:48, 3 December 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Different varieties have very different tastes. Some are very sour and sweet, with a strong taste, might be why some people compare it to oranges. Other varieties are a little acidic with a milder sweet taste and almost no sour. ~~ Someone who also eats carambolas as a kid — Preceding unsigned comment added by 177.96.50.150 (talk) 02:01, 17 April 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Number of Sides[edit]

It's actually 3 to 6, but five remains the most common. Some of the lower number of ridges result from fusing of two or more ridges, others are 'mutants'. Photographic evidence: [1] --Obsidi♠nSoul 12:40, 14 December 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Merge[edit]

This article needs to be merged into Averrhoa carambola--Mr Fink (talk) 05:50, 16 April 2011 (UTC)[reply]

  • Support I agree they should be merged. I guess I agree with Obsidian, but as a botanist I feel like the latin name should be the title...although I think he's right and Wikipedia disagrees with me. PSseudoscienceFTL 06:20, 26 June 2011 (UTC) — Preceding unsigned comment added by PseudoscienceFTL (talk • contribs)
  • Oppose I think the articles are large enough to support their own topics. One is on the fruit product and the other is on the species. This is suggested with many commercially important species per WP:FLORA. Rkitko (talk) 02:31, 27 June 2011 (UTC)[reply]
  • Comment The given example in WP:FLORA, Apple and Malus domestica, have actually been merged already. Carambola is closest to that situation, being a one-to-one correspondence of plant and fruit (no special cultivars, and the fruit comes from a single species, etc.). But yeah, I agree that their content is different enough by now. However, I'm still concerned about the fact that the separation of the fruit and the tree is not mentioned more prominently in both articles. A reader stumbling across one or the other may mistake it for the only article on the species. Should there be at least hatnotes?-- Obsidi♠nSoul 06:55, 27 June 2011 (UTC)[reply]
  • I didn't realize that about Apple and Malus domestica. Perhaps we should choose a better example, though I think there's a lot of information that would naturally fit into a Malus domestica article that wouldn't fit into an Apple article. However, no, I do not think hatnotes are required in this situation. It's clear in the very first sentence that there are different articles on the species and the fruit. Rkitko (talk) 01:58, 28 June 2011 (UTC)[reply]
  • Fair enough, retracting my support for the merge, though I remain neutral at this point.- Obsidi♠nSoul 03:40, 28 June 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Same as ma dun et al.?[edit]

    The following supposed Dab entry has been rewrit at Manis (disambiguation):

The ext lk is to a page (also specifing regions where the terms are used) that seems to imply there may be two species in that list, so i have not added accordingly to the accompanying article.
--Jerzy•t 04:05, 23 October 2011 (UTC)[reply]

"Belimbing manis" is simply Indonesian/Malaysian for "Sweet Belimbing" (Averrhoa carambola) as opposed to "belimbing asam", "Sour Belimbing" (Averrhoa bilimbi). So yes, "belimbing manis" is carambola. I have rewritten the entry at the dab. -- Obsidi♠n Soul 13:12, 23 October 2011 (UTC)[reply]

File:Carambola Starfruit.jpg to appear as POTD soon[edit]

Hello! This is a note to let the editors of this article know that File:Carambola Starfruit.jpg will be appearing as picture of the day on August 10, 2012. You can view and edit the POTD blurb at Template:POTD/2012-08-10. If this article needs any attention or maintenance, it would be preferable if that could be done before its appearance on the Main Page so Wikipedia doesn't look bad. :) Thanks! —howcheng {chat} 18:29, 8 August 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Carambola
A vertical, end view, and cross-section of a carambola, the fruit of Averrhoa carambola, a species of tree native to Southeast Asia and South Pacific islands. The fruit has ridges running down its sides (usually five, but the number may vary); in cross-section, it resembles a star, inspiring the alternative name starfruit. The entire fruit, including the slightly waxy skin, is edible.Photo: S. Masters
Archive – More featured pictures...

Image[edit]

It would probably be better if the main image of the fruit shows ripe fruits instead of unripe, as it would better represent the fruit. Everyone would recognize an unripe tomato, but people don't know how an exotic fruit is supposed to look like. ~~ Unsigned — Preceding unsigned comment added by 177.96.50.150 (talk) 02:14, 17 April 2016 (UTC)[reply]

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Minor edit[edit]

I added information on the growth rate of the tree in different percentage types of sun light. Cowboy961 (talk) 00:06, 23 October 2018 (UTC)[reply]

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