The world’s largest cashew tree (Portuguese -“Maior cajueiro do mundo”), also known as the Pirangi cashew, is located in Pirangi beach in Parnamirim, 12 km south to the capital city of Natal, in the state of Rio Grande do Norte (Brazil). The tree covers an area of approximately 8500 meters, with a perimeter of approximately 500 meters and produces about eighty thousand cashews per year; visitors are free to pick the cashews, which are very rich in Vitamin C. The cashew was planted in 1888 by a fisherman named Luiz Inácio de Oliveira. He died, aged 93 years, under the shadows of the cashew. In 1994, the cashew tree entered the Guinness Book of Records.
In Brazil, the fruit (including the nut) is called Caju (cashew). It’s an amazing fruit, because the pulp is squeezed to make juice, the left overs of the pulp are mixed with sugar to make jam or sweets. The preparation of the nut involves roasting it to release the actual nut, and the left overs of the shell are then pressed to acquire an oil that can be used to power engines. It’s renowned for the fact that nothing goes to waste. Cashews are planted in the beginning of the rain season so the harvest changes according to the country. In Brazil, in the northeast, the harvest generally extends from June to December. It’s about two months after the tree grows flowers. However you can find cashew products throughout the year because different regions have different climates – and different rain seasons).
For the nut (castanha), you pick them up when they fall on the ground and separate the nut itself from the rest of the fruit. Nuts should be harvested about twice per week. For the fruit itself (the “kidney” part) you have to pick them from the tree – which is usually pruned to manageable sizes.