Due to the smell, durian is not allowed in many hotels and buses.
Noni and durian are two subtropical fruits that are grown in southeast Asia and the Pacific Islands and renowned for their pungent odor. The malodorous pungency is perhaps all they share. Durian's smell has been compared to decaying onions, cheese and turpentine. Noni's well-deserved nickname is "cheese fruit." There exists several differences between noni and durian.
Plant
The plants of the two fruits are different. Durian grows in trees that reach between 90 and 130 ft., with thick trunks. These trees grow best in tropical forests, and the fruit is collected after it falls to the ground. Noni fruit grows on either a shrub that may grow as tall as 20 ft., or a tree that may grow as tall as 52 ft. Harvesters pick the noni from the plant when it is ripe.
Appearance
Several hundred varieties of durian exist in the world. They all, however, have an oblong, yellowish, woody exterior covered with short, sharp spines. Harvesters must beware during the ripening season as falling durian can inflict serious harm. Approximately 80 species of noni exist. They vary from the size of a golf ball to that of a fist. They are bumpy and appear light yellow or white when ripe.
Growing Season
Due to durian's large size, it only ripens and is harvested once or twice a year, depending upon the species and the weather during the growing season. In contrast, noni flowers and bears fruit year-round. Young noni plants can be expected to bear roughly 2 lbs. of fruit a month, while older plants may bear as much as 20 lbs. per month.
Fruit
If you can get past the smell, durian bears a soft custard-like fruit resembling no other. Alfred Russel Wallace is often quoted, extolling the virtues of durian as "a rich custard highly flavored with almonds ... but there are occasional wafts of flavour that call to mind cream cheese, onion-sauce, sherry wine and other incongruous dishes." Noni's virtue as a fruit tends to be in its wide and year-round availability, as well as its health properties. Many call the fruit's flavor "awful," and it is generally eaten during times of famine.
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