Breadfruit
Artocarpus altilis
One tree can feed a family; roast it like a potato.
Hardiness: zones 11 to 12
Light: full sun
Size: about 50 ft tall, 30 ft wide
Harvest: June to September
From: Pacific Islands
Here: Too tender to overwinter outdoors on the Lake Erie shore (zone 6b to 7a): grow it in a pot and bring it in, or treat it as an annual.
Good for: food.
Native to: South & Southeast Asian tropics, Hawaiʻi & Pacific Islands, New Guinea & Melanesia. Hardy in zones 11 to 12.
The story
Breadfruit was carried from New Guinea across the Pacific by Polynesian voyagers as a canoe plant and became the staple of Tahiti and Hawaiʻi, where ʻulu groves fed whole valleys; Captain Bligh was transporting it to the Caribbean when the Bounty mutinied. The second voyage succeeded.
Planting
Full sun, deep drained soil, heat, humidity, and no frost; a 50-foot tree, though dwarf types exist. Plant a rooted sucker or tissue-culture tree.
Growing
Water through dry spells, mulch thickly, and prune young trees to keep the crown in reach. It fruits in three to five years.
Harvest and use
Pick when the skin turns from bright to dull green and sap beads on the surface, mostly summer and autumn; roast, boil or fry like potato. A mature tree gives hundreds.
What to watch for
Wind, drought, fruit rot in the wettest weather, and any cold.
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More tropical and subtropical food plants
General guidance, not professional advice. Conditions vary by yard and year; for local specifics ask your county extension office. Never eat a wild plant you cannot identify with certainty. Traditional uses are shared as history, not medical advice. © 2026 Sean Priest · Irie Orchard. Terms & credits · Privacy · Home