Dragon fruit: Turkey's first tropical fruit

Dragon fruit: Turkey's first tropical fruit

Pitaya, also known as dragon fruit, has been officially registered as the first tropical fruit of Turkey by the country's Seed Registration and Certification Center. The Western Mediterranean Agricultural Research Institute (BATEM), Akdeniz University Faculty of Agriculture and Antalya Directorate of Provincial Agriculture and Forestry conducted the exotic fruit project by bringing six species in eleven kinds of tropical fruits from the U.S. to Antalya's Gazipaşa in 2012. It became a bountiful source of income for locals within three years.