John Schweizer, age 10, of Orlando, Fla., for his question:

ARE MACADAMIA NUTS GROWN ON TREES OR BUSHES?

Macadamia nuts grow on macadamia trees. The trees are tropical evergreens that originally came from Australia. The fruit comes in the form of large, round seeds.

In the late 1800s, macadamia trees were brought to Hawaii and today the nuts rank as an important crop there.

Macadamia nuts have large, smooth shells that must be cracked by special machines. The white kernels are roasted in oil after they are removed from the tough shells. The roasted nuts, which taste a bit like Brazil nuts, are then salted and canned.

Macadamia nuts are good to eat just as they come from the can. And they also are good when they are used in cakes, cookies, candy and ice cream.

The macadamia tree grows to be more than 40 feet tall and has dark green, leathery leaves and creamy white flowers.

Macadamia nuts are sometimes called Australian nuts, Queensland nuts, bopple nuts and bush nuts.