Have you ever seen a palm tree make fruit?

While dates may be the most famous fruit tree from palms, one great Florida-Friendly palm we have growing throughout much of the state should not be overlooked for your landscape or in a tasty cocktail.

Try a Pindo

Pindo palms (Butia odorata) can grow in most areas of Florida but does best in cooler zones of the state. This is a smaller palm and is a slow grower, reaching a height of 15-20’. This makes it a great candidate for home landscapes where larger palms would be out of place. The gray-green recurved leaves are very attractive, as are the patterns of the boots along the trunk. Plant this palm

in a full sun to partial shade in a wide range of soils including very dry or alkaline sites.

For care, pindo palms are remarkably disease and pest resistant and are known for being one the lowest maintenance palms for Florida. The only issue you may see, that is common among most palms, is potassium deficiency so applications of palm fertilizer 3-4 times per year is needed. For more information on this great landscape palm, check out https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/ST105 or https://gardeningsolutions.ifas.ufl.edu/plants/trees-and-shrubs/palms-and-cycads/pindo-palm/ .

Pindo Fruit

One awesome feature of this palm is the yellow-orange colored fruit they produce annually. Being around the size of a large cherry, they are ripe when they turn a reddish orange and become somewhat soft. You will also notice that once they are ripe, many mammals, birds, and insects will show up to share in the bounty. Harvest when ripe and wash them to enjoy and peel the edible flesh away from the very tough inner stone.

The flesh of the fruit can be eaten raw, used to create jellies, or as I have found, make a delicious cocktail. To feature the pindo fruit in a cocktail, I created a flavored syrup by mixing equal parts sugar and water to create a basic simple and then steep this mixture at a low temperature with the flesh from several pindo fruits. I allowed this to sit for around a half hour but the longer you allow it to steep, the stronger the resulting flavor. Overall, the syrup has a flavor similar to a tart apricot and is very delicious. On my second trial of making it, I added in some cinnamon sticks and some cracked allspice to give some further complexity.

Below you will find a recipe for both the pindo syrup and the cocktail I created to use it, the Pindo Pindo. Happy Horticulture Happy Hour!

To find more horticulture and Extension educational materials and upcoming workshops including Horticulture Happy Hour mixology courses, follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ClayCountyExt .

Pindo Syrup Recipe

Ingredients

• 4 oz Sugar
• 4 oz Water
• 6-8 Ripe Pindo Fruits
• Optional: Cinnamon, allspice, cloves, herbs, etc.

Directions

Heat water in saucepan or pot and add in sugar, stir continually until sugar is completely dissolved. Add in washed, ripe pindo fruits that are quartered and allow to steep. After a half hour more, transfer to bottle and stir in a refrigerator until use. Most flavored syrups will last around 3-4 weeks while refrigerated but adding a small amount of neutral spirit such as vodka, white rum, or

grain liquor can aid its longevity. Use the syrup in cocktails, flavored lemonades, ice water, or even on pastries.

Pindo Pindo Cocktail

Ingredients

• 1 oz Fresh Squeezed Lime Juice
• 1 oz Pindo Palm Syrup
• 0.25 oz Triple Sec or Dry Curacao
• 1.5 oz White Rum
• 1 Dash Bitters

Directions

Mix all ingredients in the above proportions into a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake vigorously until cocktail tin begins to frost and drink is chilled. Pour into rocks glass and top off with ice or strain into a coupe. Garnish with two pineapple leaves stuck vertically to simulate palm fronds.

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