With the increase in the search of alternatives by the producers, and of new options for the consumers, the market of exotic fruits has been gainig more space in Brazil. The rambutan is among the fruits with market potential, however it is necessary more knowledge about the culture, appropriate genotype choice for each area and handling of the orchard. Considering that, the present research was accomplished at the Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias - UNESP, Campus of Jaboticabal, São Paulo State, Brazil, aiming to study the morphologic and chemical characterization of rambutan fruits, verifying the genotype distinction and the genetic distance among the materials. It was evaluated: fruit size, filament length, peel thickness, seed size, fruit, peel and seed weight, pulp percentage, soluble solid contents (ºBrix), ascorbic acid and titrable acidity. Morever, the following observations were conducted: peel coloration, filaments and pulp, adherence of the pulp to the peel, adherence of the pulp to the seed and presence of tegument of the seed in the pulp. Based on the obtained results in this research, it can be concluded that the materials A51 and B03 present a better group of desirable characteristics, revealing to be promising for the producers in the installation of new culture plantings.
Nephelium lappaceum; genotypes characterization; genetic distance
