Stone Fruit
Fruit Farming in South Africa

Stone fruit represents various fruit types that have a stone in the middle, such as peaches, nectarines, plums, lychees, mangoes, coconuts, and cherries as well as coffee beans, olives, almonds, dates and pistachios. 

©Louise Brodie
Stone fruit includes all fruit that have a stone in them.

Unlike pome fruits, such as apples and pears which have a “core” filled with seeds, the pip in the stone fruit is not a seed but a protective layer surrounding the seed. Most stone fruit have a large stone, but a few, such as raspberries, have a multitude of small stones.

By Glenneis Kriel

Apricot Production

The exact origin of apricots is uncertain, but the fruit is thought to be native to northern and western China, Central Asia, Japan, and Kor...more

Nectarine Production

The origin of the nectarine is unknown, but it is thought to have developed more than 4 000 years ago in China, roundabout when the domesti...more

Peach Fruit Production

Peaches are native to the north-west of China. They are believed to have been domesticated along the Yangzi River, where fossilised peach st...more

Plum Production

The origin of plums can be traced along two lines; the common European plum, which originated around the Black and Caspian sea, and the Japa...more

Stone Fruit Production

South Africa is the largest stone fruit producer in Africa but only accounts for about 16% of production in the Southern Hemisphere, and onl...more