The Hylocereus undatus is a night-blooming cereus, and its fruit is known as pitaya, pitahaya and strawberry pear as well as red pitaya, dragon pearlfruit, thang loy and pitahaya roja but the most common name is dragonfruit.

Aerial Cactus

H. undatus is a climbing, aerial cactus. It will clamber over anything, from trees to trellises, and can reach a length of 20 feet. It is reputed to have originated in Central America and is recorded in Aztec writing from the 13th Century. Today it is cultivated commercially across the globe, from El Salvador to Vietnam, Australia and Israel's Negev Desert.

The flowers are ornate and fragrant, only blooming at night and only for one night. It is when the flowers bloom that assisted pollination is carried out to ensure a good crop. This cactus needs a warm and semi arid climate to thrive, as too much moisture will cause the plant to rot as well as affect pollination and limit fruit production.

Eye Candy

The dragonfruit is shaped like a mini rugby ball and fits in the palm of the hand. It has a dramatic fuchsia-coloured skin and green leaflets¹ which look like little scales curling around it. The inner rind is thick and also a startling deep pink, while the flesh itself is white or red and opaque, hosting dozens of tiny black seeds disappearing into its depths. Slicing open a dragonfruit for the first time is a memory rarely forgotten, such is the visual feast.

Dragonfruit Dessert

Fruit jelly is a favourite dessert among children and the standard recipe is easy enough to adapt.

• Take a ripe dragonfruit, slice in half and scoop out all the flesh and seeds. Make sure the two halves have no flesh left in them and set aside. Mash the pulp with a fork and set that aside as well.

• Take a packet of gelatine (or the alga substitute if you prefer) and prepare a quantity as directed on the packet. You need half a cupful of the finished product. Hold back a third of the water required and put in the mashed dragonfruit pulp with the juice of half a lemon and a tablespoon of sugar instead.

• Pour the prepared mixture into your dragonfruit 'shells' and refrigerate as directed on the packet. If your shells are wobbly, slice a tiny bit off the outside so they stand firm, then fill with the liquid.

• Serve chilled.