Thai Name – Da-cope farang (ตะขบฝรั่ง)
Scientific Name – Muntingia calabura
Family Name – Muntingiaceae
Other English Names – Strawberry tree, jam tree, Singapore cherry
Flowering Season – Year-round, but less in the cool season
Native to Thailand – No
Typical Height – 5-12 meters

One of the most understated flowering trees in Thailand, you could easily walk past a flowering calabura and not notice the small (1.5-2cm) solitary white flowers. They have five wide petals and prominent yellow stamens and resemble strawberry flowers, leading many people to call calaburas “strawberry trees.” The branches are flat and droop prominently so many trees have clear horizontal tiers on the lower level of the crown. Calabura flowers grow on top of the branches, sticking up above the leaves, which hang down or stick out to the side. The short-lived (just one day) flowers become cherry-sized fruits that begin green and turn to shiny red when ripe. The fruits are sweet and edible, but not particularly popular in Thailand. Many people out in the countryside eat them and sometimes make them into juice, but you’ll probably not find calabura fruit sold in a market. In some countries they are used for making jam, hence the name “jam trees.”