🍒 Lychee
Litchi chinensis
Tastes like a flower decided to be candy.
Sun
Full sun, 8+ hrs
Days to harvest
3–5 years from air-layered tree
Spacing
25–30 feet apart
Soil pH
6.0–6.5
How to grow
South Florida's diva fruit — lychee needs a cool (not freezing) winter to set fruit, so warm winters mean a gorgeous tree with zero lychees. Plant air-layered trees (never seedlings) in well-drained, slightly acidic soil with wind protection. 'Brewster' and 'Mauritius' are the proven Florida varieties. Mulch heavily; lychees hate grass competition.
Water & feeding
Critical during flowering and fruit development — drought then means dropped fruit.
Common problems
- Erratic bearing after warm winters
- Cold damage in freezes
- Erinose mites and webworm
Harvest
Pick when fully red and the skin is bumpy-smooth — lychees do NOT ripen after picking, so taste-test first.
Nerdy fact: That rough red shell is all armor and no flavor — the edible part is the translucent aril inside, which is technically a fleshy seed coating. You're eating packaging material, and it's delicious.