Author Topic: caimito fruit- star apple  (Read 32326 times)

HMHausman

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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #50 on: March 31, 2012, 03:18:30 PM »
And what about Kohala longan?  Then there is some question about the ST Maui mango......more to come I am sure. I know there were many Hawaiian mangoes reviewed by (well, perhaps panned by is more acurate) Crafton Clift.  There was a refutation of Crafton's not very complimetary reviews by one of the growers over there....I forget who. Oscar, you know to what and whom I am referring? I may have it somewhere in an email or file.

Harry
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fruitlovers

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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #51 on: March 31, 2012, 03:24:53 PM »
And what about Kohala longan?  Then there is some question about the ST Maui mango......more to come I am sure. I know there were many Hawaiian mangoes reviewed by (well, perhaps panned by is more acurate) Crafton Clift.  There was a refutation of Crafton's not very complimetary reviews by one of the growers over there....I forget who. Oscar, you know to what and whom I am referring? I may have it somewhere in an email or file.

Harry

Don't like to take credit for Kohala because like i said before, while it may be a good longan for Florida and California, it is simply terrible over here. No i don't know what you are referring to about Crafton?
Oscar
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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #52 on: March 31, 2012, 05:20:54 PM »
When collecting in the state of Yucatán, México, I have purchased several caimito fruits at least as big as Oscars, in markets.  I liked them a lot.

I have never been favorably impressed with any I have eaten here in Florida.  Nor with abiu I've eaten in Florida.

There are excellent abius here, some are the size of a softball. It's hard to find good ones at the markets though. There used to be someone here growing them in large quantity but he bailed out.
Oscar
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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #53 on: March 31, 2012, 05:39:27 PM »


Oscar
How many Hawaiian cultivars can you readily find? The only one I have ever seen here is the Alano Sapodilla and I have one. After growing it for several years it is getting yanked out because it is slow growing and the fruit quality is lousy compared to Hasya or Molix (Mexican cultivars).  Pls tell me which other Hawaiian developed cultivars of any type are worth growing because I am not aware of any.


Not sure what your question is? Thread started with abius, then it was starapple, now you bring up sapodillas? Are you asking about cultivars in general or of only one kind of fruit? If the first then most of the cultivars here for the above mentioned three were imported into Hawaii from elsewhere. As i already mentioned most of the abiu cultivars here came from Australia. The sapodilla cultivars came mostly from Phillipines and other parts of Asia. The starapples we have several cultivars but most promising in my opinion are excellent seedling trees. Our trees don't fall over in hurricanes or freeze, as you mentioned so often happens in your location. So they are very long lived trees. Most of the named Hawaiian cultivars bred here are avocados, mangos, papayas, pineapples, and a few citrus. I think Florida could really benefit by planting Hawaiian avocados: ones like Kahaluu and Malama are far superior to any Florida avocado i've ever tasted, and i would guess they would grow well in Florida. As for the introduced cultivars here, like abius, this fruit has been here at least 3+ decades and we do have have a lot more named cultivars than exist in Florida. There is also a good gene pool of seedling abius planted here. Abiu and starapples volunteer and grow wild here below mother plants. As for starapple, it seems that a lot of Florida forum members have never tasted this fruit, or if they have never tasted a good one, so it seems it also is not very common in Florida yet. Starapple has been here much longer than abiu, but not sure exact date of introduction, i'm guessing starapple has been here over a century.
Oscar
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stressbaby

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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #54 on: April 01, 2012, 07:28:01 PM »
We had lots of star apples a couple of weeks ago in Jamaica.  There is the purple kind, also one which they call a white star apple which is green with white flesh and with fewer seeds.

LL, I have some seeds of both :-X and will be attempting some seedlings if interested.

HMHausman

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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #55 on: April 01, 2012, 08:53:12 PM »
We had lots of star apples a couple of weeks ago in Jamaica.  There is the purple kind, also one which they call a white star apple which is green with white flesh and with fewer seeds.

Ok, Robert...what the heck.....no description of your Jamaican star apple eating experience??  This will never do.  What did you think of them? And where would place them in the pantheon of tropical fruits you've tried thus far?

Harry
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stressbaby

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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #56 on: April 01, 2012, 09:53:53 PM »
I agree with comments above.  They were quite sweet, with a somewhat berry-like flavor.  Texture-wise they were gelatinous as has been mentioned above, but quite juicy, some nearly watery.  Apparently it is a breakfast food in the rural area of Jamaica where we were.  I preferred the white to the purple; the purple had 4-6 seeds as compared to an average of 2 seeds per fruit in the white variety.  There were so many seeds in the purple ones that you could not cut straight through the fruit, you had to cut most of the way through and sort of tear it in half.  Also, the pulp was adherent to the seeds in the purple ones, while the seeds popped freely out of the white ones.

All that said, the one abiu I had a Ian's was better than any of the star apples I had a couple of weeks ago. It would definitely not beat a good mango or lychee in my book.
« Last Edit: April 02, 2012, 07:26:22 AM by stressbaby »

HMHausman

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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #57 on: April 01, 2012, 10:06:11 PM »
Thanks, Robert.  Your thoughts are pretty much what I expected you to say.  I am not going to say anything more about Caimito that could be construed to be neagtive until I get to try Oscar's.

Harry
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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #58 on: April 01, 2012, 10:18:36 PM »
Hi,

I think the original question was if anyone in Florida grows star apple. I have one in a pot or should I say I had one in a pot. It was finally planted in the ground earlier today. Here is how long the root was:



Tomas

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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #59 on: April 01, 2012, 10:31:08 PM »
Thanks, Robert.  Your thoughts are pretty much what I expected you to say.  I am not going to say anything more about Caimito that could be construed to be neagtive until I get to try Oscar's.

Harry

Oh mine isn't the only good starapple out there. I just think it's one of the better ones. Did you note that Stressbaby likes abiu better than mango Harry, or better than lychee Lycheeluva. Double blasphemy! Abiu is a good fruit, but i've never seen one person put it in their top 10 list as is lychee and mango.
Oscar
 
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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #60 on: April 01, 2012, 11:17:20 PM »
Thanks, Robert.  Your thoughts are pretty much what I expected you to say.  I am not going to say anything more about Caimito that could be construed to be neagtive until I get to try Oscar's.

Harry

Oh mine isn't the only good starapple out there. I just think it's one of the better ones. Did you note that Stressbaby likes abiu better than mango Harry, or better than lychee Lycheeluva. Double blasphemy! Abiu is a good fruit, but i've never seen one person put it in their top 10 list as is lychee and mango.
Oscar
I have seen it in some top ten lists.
- Rob

HMHausman

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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #61 on: April 02, 2012, 06:32:12 AM »
It would definitely not beat a good mango or lychee in my book.

Oscar...you misread the comment about lychee and mango.  That little NOT, I think you missed.

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lycheeluva

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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #62 on: April 02, 2012, 08:26:16 AM »
you guys are all too funny-- i post innocuous questions and get to watch all manner of bedlam break loose!!

thanks for the  offer of a seedling but after conquering mango and lychee, ive decided to go for something easy like a jakfruit!
but tasting a star apple is definitly high on my list of priorities. if anyone ever hears of some available by mail order, please let me know.
great pic thomas

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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #63 on: April 03, 2012, 02:04:13 AM »
It would definitely not beat a good mango or lychee in my book.

Oscar...you misread the comment about lychee and mango.  That little NOT, I think you missed.

Harry

Oh good! Now he doesn't need to go to fruit purgatory for saying what i thought he said!!!
Oscar

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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #64 on: April 03, 2012, 07:39:41 AM »
Hi,

I think the original question was if anyone in Florida grows star apple. I have one in a pot or should I say I had one in a pot. It was finally planted in the ground earlier today. Here is how long the root was:



Tomas

Hi Tomas,

what did you do with the long roots? do you prune them?
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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #65 on: April 03, 2012, 08:23:40 AM »
Hi Jackfruitwhisperer69,

Kept the root as is. I just dug a hole as deep as the root.

Tomas

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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #66 on: April 03, 2012, 08:36:24 AM »
I would've done the same! Because, some trees are really sensitive to root pruning!

Good luck with the Star apple tree!!! BTW keep us posted when it fruit's ;D ;D ;D
Time is like a river.
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HawaiiFruitGrower

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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #67 on: March 10, 2013, 06:59:31 PM »
I know this topic was from last year but oscar, i wanted to tell you that starapple was real'ly here in hawaii for over a century. In Hana,Maui we went to a friends house which was a property of the Hana Ranch Bosses from the 1850-1920 really old property, we were actually there digging for old bottles which is another hobby of mine, but anyways on the property there was a 50 to 60 ft tall starapple tree the fruit was small and green, our friend said it has to come a little brown when ripe and taste like a coconut haupia whic i found really tempting only thing is the fruits were all the way at the top! He said he uses the Hana ranches cherry picker to harvest fruit. This tree must have been about 100 yrs old it was taller then most of the common mangos in that area which were already 60 ft tall. ;D ;D ;D

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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #68 on: March 11, 2013, 01:32:20 AM »
I know this topic was from last year but oscar, i wanted to tell you that starapple was real'ly here in hawaii for over a century. In Hana,Maui we went to a friends house which was a property of the Hana Ranch Bosses from the 1850-1920 really old property, we were actually there digging for old bottles which is another hobby of mine, but anyways on the property there was a 50 to 60 ft tall starapple tree the fruit was small and green, our friend said it has to come a little brown when ripe and taste like a coconut haupia whic i found really tempting only thing is the fruits were all the way at the top! He said he uses the Hana ranches cherry picker to harvest fruit. This tree must have been about 100 yrs old it was taller then most of the common mangos in that area which were already 60 ft tall. ;D ;D ;D

Thanks, i know starapple has been here a long time. I have somewhere a chart i made with years many tropical fruits were introduced into Hawaii. Will try to scan it at some point and post it.
Oscar

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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #69 on: March 11, 2013, 01:51:24 AM »
oscar ive been meaning to ask what other fruit trees do you have available at this time, that are grafted or air layered? Lookinf for any different kinds of that taste good even if you have any seedling that produce really fast from seed. I will be up there next week on the 17th which is a sunday and will be at makuu market later on in the day. Thanks

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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #70 on: March 11, 2013, 08:42:36 AM »
I picked this Caimito yesterday.  It's the first of the season.  Did I pick it too early?  It has a little "give" but as you can see the color change is not yet complete..



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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #71 on: March 11, 2013, 12:43:14 PM »
I find they are the sweetest when the skin has just wrinkled a tad.... or the skin is no longer glossy and shiny, but matted

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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #72 on: March 11, 2013, 05:31:46 PM »
I picked this Caimito yesterday.  It's the first of the season.  Did I pick it too early?  It has a little "give" but as you can see the color change is not yet complete..



Yes, you picked it way too early, and they won't continue to ripen once picked. The fruit should be purple colored all the way around. Sometimes tricky to pick them like that because the stem end on top is last to turn color, so if the fruit is way up high you won't see the color at the top, and from bottom it looks totally purple. It's very common that people pick them too early because of this reason, and they will have lots of latex and sugar content will be low. Use a ladder if necessary and really check color on top of fruit. Skin should be shiny, not flat dull as once that happens fruit is over mature and will start rotting. Starapples don't fall from tree when ripe, so if you let them get flat colored dull they will start to rot and then mummify on the tree.
Oscar

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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #73 on: March 11, 2013, 05:37:59 PM »
Thanks Oscar.  That's exactly what happened.  The fruit was high in the canopy and looked totally purple from below. 

How long is the proper picking window time?  From turning totally purple to turning dull and being over ripe?

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Re: caimito fruit- star apple
« Reply #74 on: March 11, 2013, 05:40:41 PM »
Thanks Oscar.  That's exactly what happened.  The fruit was high in the canopy and looked totally purple from below. 

How long is the proper picking window time?  From turning totally purple to turning dull and being over ripe?

I haven't really timed it, but they are pretty forgiving of non diligent lazy people like myself. I usually manage to get to eat lots of fruits at prime stage. ;D
Oscar