Lulo

The lulo or naranjilla is a subtropical perennial plant from northwestern South America. The fruit, crowned with the persistent, 5-pointed calyx, is round or round-ovate, to 2 1/2 in (6.25 cm) across and contains 4 compartments separated by membranous partitions and filled with translucent green or yellowish, very juicy, slightly acid to acid, pulp of delicious flavor which has been likened to pineapple-and-lemon. There are numerous pale-buff seeds, thin, flat, hard and 1/8 in (3 mm) in diameter.

The usually spineless naranjilla is believed to be indigenous and most abundant in Peru, Ecuador and southern Colombia. In Ecuador, 90% of commercial naranjilla cultivation is in a 15-mile area in the valley and adjacent hillsides of the Pastaza River, a tributary of the Amazon.