What happened to my jackfruit tree?

[Malia]

Beginner questions again...

I bought this 3 gal mai 3 jackfruit from Excalibur about 2 months ago.
It looked really healthy, lots of leaves.
Now it looks like it is going to die like my previous mai 1 tree.
It started losing leaves probably 1-2 weeks after planting.
I was away this really rainy week and this is what I found after I arrived:





Is it fungus or mold?
Is there any chance for this tree? What should I do?
Jackfruit is my favourite tropical fruit and it looks like I am failing all the time growing it.
Thank you for all advice!

[Rex Begonias]

Beginner questions again...

I bought this 3 gal mai 3 jackfruit from Excalibur about 2 months ago.
It looked really healthy, lots of leaves.
Now it looks like it is going to die like my previous mai 1 tree.
It started losing leaves probably 1-2 weeks after planting.
I was away this really rainy week and this is what I found after I arrived:





Is it fungus or mold?
Is there any chance for this tree? What should I do?
Jackfruit is my favourite tropical fruit and it looks like I am failing all the time growing it.
Thank you for all advice!

Whoa, weird, I also bought a Jackfruit from Excalibur around that exact same time and mine also looks nearly the same as yours.  Mine is a Lemon Crunch though.  I had assumed I wasn’t watering mine enough and that was why it dropped leaves, but it honestly should be hanging in there just fine unless Jackfruit are water lovers more than I knew?

[Malia]

I was watering it every day and the last week it was raining almost all the time (at least according to my weather app - I was not at home).
The same thing happened to mai1. I assume I should be buying 15 gal jacks because I cannot keep babies alive.
O maybe anyone can help?

[Rex Begonias]

They’re so easy to grow from seed though, and fast, if this one starts fading I’m going to try from seed and start grafting.  I have a bunch started in pots already, but will probably just direct plant it if this one fades out on me.

[MangoCountry]

I bought a Mai-1 from there a few years ago and it dropped all of it's leaves after planting. It was slow for a few years but has taken off recently. It requires alot of water to be happy.

[Rex Begonias]

I bought a Mai-1 from there a few years ago and it dropped all of it's leaves after planting. It was slow for a few years but has taken off recently. It requires alot of water to be happy.

Makes sense, that’s my first assumption when I see leaf drop, esp when nothing else obvious.

[JoeP450]

The Mai-3 is an awesome fruit and my avatar picture, sweet crunchy and low latex. I heard once that jackfruit is drought tolerant fruit tree which I do not believe to be true at all as on the hottest days I will notice on my two trees that the leaves will sag lower and almost look like they are wilting. I once grew out some seeds in pots and neglected to water them and they dropped leaves like the pictures above, so it may just be a water issue. 

You can see in this post the Tony Morris I purchased in May from Excalibur  http://tropicalfruitforum.com/index.php?topic=31905.msg351453#msg351453 and here is its growth as of today. 
The tree has drip irrigation connected to it as well as a “bird nest” of Areca palm frond leaves, the areca palms are self cleaning and always falling down in my yard so I have repurposed them as natural mulch, they lock in together and form a “birds nest” and naturally locks in moisture from drip irrigation. I also have fertilized with vigoro Florida lawn fertilizer 29-0-2, a high nitrogen component to speed growth, see cookie monsters thread on high nitrogen and jackfruit. For now I think best plan of action is to water and mulch, then as see more leaves keep momentum going with nitrogen.

-Joep450

[pineislander]

It looks like you may have not followed the recommendations for planting:

Many areas in Florida have sandy soil. Remove a 3 to 10 ft (0.9–3.1 m) diameter ring of grass sod. Dig a hole 3 to 4 times the diameter and 3 times as deep as the container the jackfruit tree has come in.

Have a look at ditches in your area. If they are holding water pretty full you have conditions of a high water table.
You could also just dig a hole in the area of the tree and check it after a few rainy days. If there is standing water in the hole you have position which tends to waterlog. In that case the recommendations are to plant on a mound.

Jackfruit trees are not tolerant of continuously wet and/or flooded soil conditions. Trees may decline or die after 2 to 3 days of wet soil conditions

Many areas in Florida are within 7 ft (2.1 m) or so of the water table and experience occasional flooding after heavy rainfall events. To improve plant survival, consider planting fruit trees on a 2 to 3 ft (0.6–0.9 m) high by 4 to 10 ft (1.2–3.1 m) diameter mound of native soil. After the mound is made, dig a hole 3 to 4 times the diameter and 3 times as deep as the container the jackfruit tree has come in.

An easy way to make the mound is to just rest the pot on the ground, then mound soil around it keeping the mound level with the pot for 3 feet diameter, then sloping down at a shallow angle for 2-3 feet farther out. This will give you a 4-10 ft diameter mound.

Understand that planting on a mound will mean the tree will need irrigation in dry times until it gets roots down.
Mulch will help and if continued will build soil fertility and structure and work against weeds. 
You might see other jackfruit trees in the area thriving but not on mounds. Probably they got lucky in their formative years. Newly planted trees are much more sensitive to flooding than established trees. I know of a whole grove of sugar apple 2 years in-ground which sat submerged for 2 weeks while newly planted sugar apples on the same ground all perished. Roots need air and newly planted trees simply cannot breathe or find air with their roots like established trees can. Trees in waterlogged soil suffocate.

The quotes above come from:
https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdffiles/MG/MG37000.pdf

[sahai1]

easy..

1.  potted jackfruit (taproot very fickle)
2.  rainy weather
3.  your hole

When you dig a hole, the soil when refilled will be naturally less compact then surrounding area, this causes water to collect in the hole and cause waterlogged conditions. 

Next time you can try to disturb surrounding dirt less, or try to compact it better and plant slightly above in a mound.  It will settle in a year or two level.

Sorry to say but in my experience potted Jackfruit and Durian, once they start dropping leaves due to waterlogged conditions, they will die, never seen them make a come back.

[Rex Begonias]

easy..

1.  potted jackfruit (taproot very fickle)
2.  rainy weather
3.  your hole

When you dig a hole, the soil when refilled will be naturally less compact then surrounding area, this causes water to collect in the hole and cause waterlogged conditions. 

Next time you can try to disturb surrounding dirt less, or try to compact it better and plant slightly above in a mound.  It will settle in a year or two level.

Sorry to say but in my experience potted Jackfruit and Durian, once they start dropping leaves due to waterlogged conditions, they will die, never seen them make a come back.

Don’t the leaves typically yellow and go limp if overwatered?  It looks more droughty to me, but I will stand corrected, could be wrong.  Those leaves that are still hanging on look healthy.

[sahai1]

the few I lost experienced wet feet for a a day or two and went into shock, new budding leaves kept coming up giving me hope, but eventually those grew very small with brownish tips and the tree just gave up.

[Malia]

the few I lost experienced wet feet for a a day or two and went into shock, new budding leaves kept coming up giving me hope, but eventually those grew very small with brownish tips and the tree just gave up.

This is exactly what is happening to my tree brownish tips. They are hardly visible on the picture because I could not take a sharper picture. Looks like a lost case...

[sahai1]

Malia, per your original reply, buying a bigger potted Jackfruit will not solve the issue, plant from seed, spend that money on fresh jackfruit and plant as many seeds possible everywhere.  Eventually just cull the weakest out.

[Malia]

Sahai1, thanks for the reply. Actually, I did so. A few weeks ago I started germinating Mai 1 jackfruit. They are growing very well. I counted 16 seedlings altogether, so if any of you is in need of seedlings, I can share them for free. However, I do not guarantee they really are Mai1. I bought the jackfruit from Excalibur and they told me it was mai1. It was crunchy, delicious, yellow/dark yellow and with very little sap. It also had a very interesting structure inside, unlike the pictures most of you place on the forum.

Interesting thing: I found instructions online that I should germinate them in 3-gallon pots and put them 1 inch deep in soil. I did so with most of them, the rest I put in a regular Jiffy germination station. The latter sprouted immediately with a rate of 100%.  How do you germinate your jackfruits?

What do you think about how I should proceed with the seedlings? Better keep replanting them in bigger pots and then plant in the ground or stop at 3 gallons and then plant in the ground? The biggest pot I have is 15 gallon.

BTW, does anyone of you have mai 3 seeds? Or a seedling?

[Malia]

JoeP450, your jacks look gorgeous. Thanks for the hint with Areca. I have one of these monsters in my lot. I will use the fronds.
BTW, do you know if there are any Tony Morris seeds anywhere available? Probably the cultivar is too new.

[Malia]

Meanwhile, my mai3 started new growth, as per picture, but the brownish tips are also present.

[Malia]

It looks like you may have not followed the recommendations for planting:

Many areas in Florida have sandy soil. Remove a 3 to 10 ft (0.9–3.1 m) diameter ring of grass sod. Dig a hole 3 to 4 times the diameter and 3 times as deep as the container the jackfruit tree has come in.

Have a look at ditches in your area. If they are holding water pretty full you have conditions of a high water table.
You could also just dig a hole in the area of the tree and check it after a few rainy days. If there is standing water in the hole you have position which tends to waterlog. In that case the recommendations are to plant on a mound.

Jackfruit trees are not tolerant of continuously wet and/or flooded soil conditions. Trees may decline or die after 2 to 3 days of wet soil conditions

Many areas in Florida are within 7 ft (2.1 m) or so of the water table and experience occasional flooding after heavy rainfall events. To improve plant survival, consider planting fruit trees on a 2 to 3 ft (0.6–0.9 m) high by 4 to 10 ft (1.2–3.1 m) diameter mound of native soil. After the mound is made, dig a hole 3 to 4 times the diameter and 3 times as deep as the container the jackfruit tree has come in.

An easy way to make the mound is to just rest the pot on the ground, then mound soil around it keeping the mound level with the pot for 3 feet diameter, then sloping down at a shallow angle for 2-3 feet farther out. This will give you a 4-10 ft diameter mound.

Understand that planting on a mound will mean the tree will need irrigation in dry times until it gets roots down.
Mulch will help and if continued will build soil fertility and structure and work against weeds. 
You might see other jackfruit trees in the area thriving but not on mounds. Probably they got lucky in their formative years. Newly planted trees are much more sensitive to flooding than established trees. I know of a whole grove of sugar apple 2 years in-ground which sat submerged for 2 weeks while newly planted sugar apples on the same ground all perished. Roots need air and newly planted trees simply cannot breathe or find air with their roots like established trees can. Trees in waterlogged soil suffocate.

The quotes above come from:
https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/pdffiles/MG/MG37000.pdf

Thank you, pineislander, for all the lessons   Yes, there is a ditch right behind my backyard and it always keeps water. You made me aware of this issue. Very valuable info for my future plantings.

[Malia]

And this is (was) mai1 that lost all leaves, got overlooked and run over by lawn mower. It grows new leaves from rootstock that look pretty healthy. Does anyone remember what rootstock Excalibur uses?

[Malia]

JoeP450, yes I think I will need to start fertilizing high nitrogen. Your leaves are so healthy dark green, mine are fluorescent green.

[sahai1]

Hi, you are missing the point.. plant the seeds directly in the ground, jackfruit planting is not really planting, they should sit above or a just a bit under loose dirt with plenty of shade, so if the area you want to plant is getting full sun, build a square shadenet house around it.

By planting direct in the ground, the tree will acclimate to the conditions better.  Also the seedlings have quite a lot of nutrients to push the taproot deep and to the right level, and it can help 'push' up the tree to where it needs to be survive.  None of that can be done if started in a pot.  Also since planting a bunch, a few dying is not a big deal, and those seeds may have survived in the pot, but not survive when planting after raising in a pot.

What do you think about how I should proceed with the seedlings? Better keep replanting them in bigger pots and then plant in the ground or stop at 3 gallons and then plant in the ground? The biggest pot I have is 15 gallon.

[Malia]

Ohhh, got it. Now I need to buy another jackfruit

[Malia]

Hi, you are missing the point.. plant the seeds directly in the ground, jackfruit planting is not really planting, they should sit above or a just a bit under loose dirt with plenty of shade, so if the area you want to plant is getting full sun, build a square shadenet house around it.

By planting direct in the ground, the tree will acclimate to the conditions better.  Also the seedlings have quite a lot of nutrients to push the taproot deep and to the right level, and it can help 'push' up the tree to where it needs to be survive.  None of that can be done if started in a pot.  Also since planting a bunch, a few dying is not a big deal, and those seeds may have survived in the pot, but not survive when planting after raising in a pot.

What do you think about how I should proceed with the seedlings? Better keep replanting them in bigger pots and then plant in the ground or stop at 3 gallons and then plant in the ground? The biggest pot I have is 15 gallon.

Sahai1, let me ask another question: In the spot that I put the seed (above ground), should I fill the hole with tree and shrub soil from the store? I know nurseries advise against it, but I am afraid there is something seriously wrong with my soil. The plants that I planted in holes filled with store-bought soil grow very well, with others I have mixed results.

Also, when you advise germinating in the ground directly, do you mean I should later graft? I do not mind if the tree grows big. I plan to plant in the front yard. No electric wires, enough room for roots. I have never done any grafting and I read in this forum that jackfruits are true to seeds.

And a question for Floridians: I read what you wrote about fruit thieves... But I live in a safe neighbourhood in central Jupiter, not a gated community. I see that all of my neighbors' mangos stay on trees the entire season... Under these circumstances, would you risk having a jackfruit in your front yard? If otherwise, the spot seems perfect...

[sahai1]

hard to know Malia without seeing your soil, and knowing what your store bought soil is like.  However I am a huge fan of hole digging and soil replacement. I've got it down to a science for my soil conditions, I dig the hole as deep as possible, fill with chopped banana, then I burn material in the hole like mill cut offs, dried coconuts, leaves, grass, etc. until the hole is pretty full of ash and cinder.   Then I fill with compost, manure, and coir mix mounded up high.  Then I wait for this to settle and plant trees in this.  The only real proof that this works, is that before my trees always died or stunted before, but now my trees almost always survive.  I think long term the hole will help build grow really strong taproots to water table because nothing too difficult to go around.
 

[Malia]

Thank you all for all the information and suggestions. I started this topic being completely at a loss and now I am pretty sure I will be able to grow a jackfruit successfully.

Sahai1, what are the sacks in your last picture?
After reading your post, I decided to always replace soil when planting. I cannot do the entire procedure with burning etc because I live in town center, but the soil from Lowe's is surprisingly good.

[spaugh]

hard to know Malia without seeing your soil, and knowing what your store bought soil is like.  However I am a huge fan of hole digging and soil replacement. I've got it down to a science for my soil conditions, I dig the hole as deep as possible, fill with chopped banana, then I burn material in the hole like mill cut offs, dried coconuts, leaves, grass, etc. until the hole is pretty full of ash and cinder.   Then I fill with compost, manure, and coir mix mounded up high.  Then I wait for this to settle and plant trees in this.  The only real proof that this works, is that before my trees always died or stunted before, but now my trees almost always survive.  I think long term the hole will help build grow really strong taproots to water table because nothing too difficult to go around.
 

Dang that looks like some hard work.  Glad it works for you.  I liked your pic with you in the hole.

[mangomanic12]

Malia, do not replace the soil with any other soil . Jack fruit grow  well in Florida in your native soil in most areas.
Dig at least 3 ft down by 3-4 ft wide square hole.
Plant the jackfruit.
Back fill only with the soil you dug out.
After planting mulch on top with woodchips and or grass clippings / leaves. Keep this material 8 inches or so from the  trunk of your plant.
If you want you can also put a layer of compost 8 -inches or so away from the trunk directly around the tree
Water well with a hose
Fertilize in spring and maybe late summer
Mike

[FMfruitforest]

Black Gold Seedling in flooded area as test tree.
4 days of standing water now