Since dragonfruit and I only recently met, I decided to get to know it better. To my surprise, dragonfruit comes from a cactus, the genus Hylocereus. The fruit is cultivated in the tropics around the world, and I am not sure why I have not come across it before. In Japan, the fruit is grown in Okinawa.

Hylocereus is one of several cacti genera that are known as “night blooming,” such as in night-blooming cereus or queen of the night. The plant and fruit are also known as pitaya, and apparently several types are cultivated. We commonly see tuna (the fruit of prickly pear cactus) in our markets, but not pitaya.