Desaru Fruit Farm - A One-stop Place to Learn about Unusual Tropical Fruits

Essential Information

Getting here: As a stopover on a self-drive Johor tour. Or join one of the many day tours by Singapore travel agencies.
Guided tour fee for walk-in visitors:

RM 15 per person
RM 10 per child (3-12 years old)
fare includes a fruit platter
minimum 4 persons for guided tour to run

Opening hours: 9am-7pm

Desaru Fruit Farm Photo Tour

I had the privilege of going on the Desaru Fruit Farm tour with the Gn family, my long-time friends. Our guide for the day was Ina, who is truly knowledgeable about tropical plants and made our walk very meaningful.

	Ina enlightened us about the breadfruit. We learnt that both female and male flowers could grow on the same tree. This roundish fruit you see on the left is a female breadfruit. It looks like one fruit, but is in fact made up of 1500-2000 flowers clustering together!

	Did you notice the hexagonal 'scales' on this female breadfruit? These are created by the numerous flowers that made up this fruit. The whitish streaks are the sap. We found out that it is used as a sealant for boats, as well as a glue for trapping birds.

	So what does a male breadfruit look like? Well, here it is. It looks like a club. It's easy to remember... The male fruit is elongated. And its longish form reminds you of a certain part of the male body ;-)

	Here, Ina explained to us how dragon fruits are cultivated.

	Did you know that dragon fruits grow on cactus-like plants? Well, I didn't, until I saw this. This sub-species (left picture) has a whitish core. To cause a dragon fruit to grow, a farmer would cut off the tip of a frond.

	Here's another type of dragon fruit. This one has pinkish flesh, and apparently contains stronger anti-oxidants. And definitely costs more at the supermarkets. What a learning experience it had been at Desaru Fruit Farm!

	Durians! Lots of them.

	Soursop.

	Cat whiskers. These apparently are good for treating a range of kidney ailments.

	The herb that gives laksa that minty flavour. Yes, when dried, these become our 'laksa leaves'.

	They are grown in abundance here.

	A little surprise at the end of the guided tour of Desaru Fruit Farm... a koi pond. Fish therapy. Let them nibble at your hands. Here, Jireh (right, in red) entices the fish to his corner with some goodies.

	And even a little (actually it's not that little) pet corner to humour the kids. Here's one of the workers with a (goat) kid. We saw lots of goats, a monkey and even ostriches. It's a nice little treat for the little ones if you are taking them to Desaru Fruit Farm.

My Take on the Desaru Fruit Farm

I had originally bemoaned the RM15 entrance fee. And they didn't want to run the guided tour when I turned up alone a few months earlier - remember they need 4 to go!

But I was impressed after going on the guided tour. The commentary alone is worth the fee. There's also quite a lot to see. And you get a fruit platter at the end. The Desaru Fruit Farm is a worthwhile stop if you are visiting the Kota Tinggi - Desaru area.

We bought some fruits from the farm store. Later we found out that we had a bargain - the fruits sold at Desaru Fruit Farm were cheaper than those at Jaya Jusco Supermarket in Johor Bahru.