Is there any fruit that grows in Hawaii that won't grow in Puerto Rico?

[CherimoyaDude]

And vice-versa. Figuring out where I would retire and start a farm if I ever hit the lottery

[johnb51]

PR would be a lot cheaper than Hawaii in case you don't hit the lottery!

[Satya]

Why not Costa Rica? It has good medical insurance, much laid back life, tico people are friendly too. And you can grow any subtropical or tropical trees depending on which part of CR. Lot prices are cheaper as well.

[Mike T]

Line up the climate maps of each and you will find there is a lot of variation especially in Hawaii. It easier to compare spots than big areas with mountains and island chains stretching up to Midway. You might find you can grow all the same stuff in lowland areas if you provide extra seasonal water in PR.

[fruitlovers]

You can pretty much grow same crops in PR and HI. It's easier to obtain most rare tropical trees in HI than PR. Hawaii has been growing tropical fruits longer, and the population here is a lot more mixed, including lots of Asians, who T have brought over their plants and knowledge. HI is a lot more expensive than PR, but doesn't get hit by hurricanes very often, as does PR. I'd say visit both and see where you feel more comfortable living. The cultures and way of life is very different in both paces.

[pczhou]

Anyone know if Hass Avocados grow in Hawaii and Puerto Rico ?

[canito 17]

Keep dreaming my friend, maybe one day. Who says Hi. have more exotic fruit is true. But you know that we have the best ones. We are true tropical .And Ken Love is WRONG .We have a bigger avocado collection.And We are behind MEXICO, COLOMBIA, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC. .....Hass is overvalued

[fruitlovers]

Anyone know if Hass Avocados grow in Hawaii and Puerto Rico ?

Regular Hass grows but does not fruit well in the tropics. But we have avocados that are 100x better than Hass, so nobody cares!

[canito 17]

true ,Nishikawa,Malama, are better than hass, I have them . But I have much better avocados in my PRIVATE COLLECTION. 32% oil content. I have some hass varieties and various semils, with proper care they fruit
well. In more dry zone like Cabo Rojo, Santa Isabel and Lajas Puerto Rico this avocados have limited Comercial production. Our market is for more watery avocados. You can see big avocado trees in metropolitan area in very tight spaces. Really sorry due
to 3 vicious claims in paypal I'am not making business.

[johnb51]

Anyone know if Hass Avocados grow in Hawaii and Puerto Rico ?

Regular Hass grows but does not fruit well in the tropics. But we have avocados that are 100x better than Hass, so nobody cares!

Ya gotta give Hass some credit.  It's the perfect commercial avocado.  The only thing it lacks is size.

[canito 17]

is true. Dominican Republic harvest it all year round. The semil 34, 43, 22,24,26 etc.The same way. Don Jeño Toro  (Rip) gave the Puerto Rico developed varieties to them. Ironically they have by far bigger production.

[fruitlovers]

Anyone know if Hass Avocados grow in Hawaii and Puerto Rico ?

Regular Hass grows but does not fruit well in the tropics. But we have avocados that are 100x better than Hass, so nobody cares!

Ya gotta give Hass some credit.  It's the perfect commercial avocado.  The only thing it lacks is size.

Yes, and Tommy Atkins is the perfect commercial mango. But is it really the best tasting mango? Anyway, if you are so enamored with Hass, you can go to any supermarket in Hawaii and pay high price to buy small crappy avocado shipped from California. A lot of people actually do!

[johnb51]

Anyone know if Hass Avocados grow in Hawaii and Puerto Rico ?

Regular Hass grows but does not fruit well in the tropics. But we have avocados that are 100x better than Hass, so nobody cares!

Ya gotta give Hass some credit.  It's the perfect commercial avocado.  The only thing it lacks is size.

Yes, and Tommy Atkins is the perfect commercial mango. But is it really the best tasting mango? Anyway, if you are so enamored with Hass, you can go to any supermarket in Hawaii and pay high price to buy small crappy avocado shipped from California. A lot of people actually do!

I eat them because they're only $0.59 or 0.69 here and I don't have a homegrown option, but I still would give them more credit than a TA mango when it comes to flavor.

[fruitlovers]

Anyone know if Hass Avocados grow in Hawaii and Puerto Rico ?

Regular Hass grows but does not fruit well in the tropics. But we have avocados that are 100x better than Hass, so nobody cares!

Ya gotta give Hass some credit.  It's the perfect commercial avocado.  The only thing it lacks is size.

Yes, and Tommy Atkins is the perfect commercial mango. But is it really the best tasting mango? Anyway, if you are so enamored with Hass, you can go to any supermarket in Hawaii and pay high price to buy small crappy avocado shipped from California. A lot of people actually do!

I eat them because they're only $0.59 or 0.69 here and I don't have a homegrown option, but I still would give them more credit than a TA mango when it comes to flavor.

Hass is $2+ a pound here, and not very good quality by the time it reaches Hawaii.

[Mvule101]

Just saying...

Uganda has the best tasting Avocados for only about 15c  a fruit (and some are quite large too).

[CGameProgrammer]

Honestly you should visit both places; they're very different. In terms of plants, PR has a tropical rain forest but Hawaii does not, because PR is overall much wetter and more consistently tropical. But that can work against you if you grow fruits that actually prefer it drier, which would be much easier on the western halves of the Hawaiian islands.

But PR is MUCH cheaper and also much closer to other places as well as Florida. Hawaii is a 6+ hour flight from anything.

[fruitlovers]

Honestly you should visit both places; they're very different. In terms of plants, PR has a tropical rain forest but Hawaii does not, because PR is overall much wetter and more consistently tropical. But that can work against you if you grow fruits that actually prefer it drier, which would be much easier on the western halves of the Hawaiian islands.

But PR is MUCH cheaper and also much closer to other places as well as Florida. Hawaii is a 6+ hour flight from anything.

Agreed with the visiting being most important. But Hawaii doesn't have tropical rainforests? Really? I'm living in one right now. BTW, Hawaii has many areas much higher rainfall than PR, and has many tropical forest areas. Also from California it is a 5 hour flight to Hawaii. The best thing about PR is you can buy real cheap land there, especially now that they are going through severe economic depression, and lots of people are moving out. Also labor and supplies there are a lot cheaper.

[johnb51]

But if he's just waiting to hit the lottery....Anyway, it's an interesting conversation. The overall impression we get about Hawaii these days is that it's prohibitively expensive to locate there for anyone other than the wealthiest 1%.

[bovine421]

Most the Puerto Ricans I know only travel to New York or Puerto Rico when they have to not because they want to. And when they do they can't get back to Florida fast enough.

[Finca La Isla]

Apparently these options are limited to tropical areas that are part of the US, but why?  Both are quite culturally different from mainstream USA.  Personally, my favorite two States are Hawaii and New Mexico, perhaps because of their cultural distinction.
If an American can potentially adapt to living in Puerto Rico then they could also live easily in other more independent tropical countries.  Such a decision should be taken carefully but could work out well.  A well known Puerto Rican is re-locating to Panama.  I do not promote any countries but, for such an important decision, I would ask, why limit the options?
Peter

[JF]

They are pretty similar in what you can grow but in PR you get more bang for yr buck, if you want to relocate. Hawaii is in the middle of nowhere and very expensive. I spend some time in Hawaii while in the military, love the beaches and food. With respect to avocados, Hass is the gold standard and for many good reasons. I’ve never taste a better avocado than Hass anywhere in the tropics and I’ve taste a few of those famous varieties from Hawaii. the best being sharwil most likely a seedling of Hass. I grew up eating West Indies avocados and I like them a lot but you need to add olive oil, vinegar and salt to make it right. Few West Indies avocados can match up to Hass w respect to high oil content and flavor .... two that come to mind are Suarez and Matequilla, even though they are 4 x larger they are 3 x cheaper in the Yucatán peninsula.

[spaugh]

They are pretty similar in what you can grow but in PR you get more bang for yr buck, if you want to relocate. Hawaii is in the middle of nowhere and very expensive. I spend some time in Hawaii while in the military, love the beaches and food. With respect to avocados, Hass is the gold standard and for many good reasons. I’ve never taste a better avocado than Hass anywhere in the tropics and I’ve taste a few of those famous varieties from Hawaii. the best being sharwil most likely a seedling of Hass. I grew up eating West Indies avocados and I like them a lot but you need to add olive oil, vinegar and salt to make it right. Few West Indies avocados can match up to Hass w respect to high oil content and flavor .... two that come to mind are Suarez and Matequilla, even though they are 4 x larger they are 3 x cheaper in the Yucatán peninsula.

Agree about the hass.

[bovine421]

Apparently these options are limited to tropical areas that are part of the US, but why?  Both are quite culturally different from mainstream USA.  Personally, my favorite two States are Hawaii and New Mexico, perhaps because of their cultural distinction.
If an American can potentially adapt to living in Puerto Rico then they could also live easily in other more independent tropical countries.  Such a decision should be taken carefully but could work out well.  A well known Puerto Rican is re-locating to Panama.  I do not promote any countries but, for such an important decision, I would ask, why limit the options?
Peter

Did someone tell Gerardo Rivera that Al Capone had a secret vault in the basement of a Panama City Hotel? What about Super Hass is it more Super than Hass?

[fruitlovers]

Apparently these options are limited to tropical areas that are part of the US, but why?  Both are quite culturally different from mainstream USA.  Personally, my favorite two States are Hawaii and New Mexico, perhaps because of their cultural distinction.
If an American can potentially adapt to living in Puerto Rico then they could also live easily in other more independent tropical countries.  Such a decision should be taken carefully but could work out well.  A well known Puerto Rican is re-locating to Panama.  I do not promote any countries but, for such an important decision, I would ask, why limit the options?
Peter

I guess he wants to move to a place inside the USA? Moving to another country is a much bigger leap, both culturally and distance wise. Also you can get by in PR with english. That's a lot harder in CR or other latin american countries.

[happyhana]

As a recent transplant from Arizona to Hawaii I miss living in a diverse whole native ecosystem that I imagine PR and CR have in abundance. What I don’t miss, and think is worth the extra Hawaiian expense, are all the plants and critters with their spines, thorns, fangs and poison at the ready. Pushing through tall grass here without fear is surreal.

[Mike T]

Some species do like the winter/spring dry period to stimulate flowering and PR may be preferable that parts of Hawaii that get more consistent rain at that time of the year.

[fruitlovers]

As a recent transplant from Arizona to Hawaii I miss living in a diverse whole native ecosystem that I imagine PR and CR have in abundance. What I don’t miss, and think is worth the extra Hawaiian expense, are all the plants and critters with their spines, thorns, fangs and poison at the ready. Pushing through tall grass here without fear is surreal.

PR is very densely populated, i think one of most densely populated places in USA. PR is about same size as island of Hawaii, but has 3.5 million people compared to our 150 thousand population, so more than 20x more people, more highways, more housing, buildings. I would not say their ecosystem is in tact.

[slopat]

@happyhana. The B52s are scary when they buzz by you or bounce off your head!

Yeah, I miss buying fresh lychee in Hilo. Mango festivals etc. Time to visit my siblings again when covids over.

[johnb51]

PR is very densely populated, i think one of most densely populated places in USA. PR is about same size as island of Hawaii, but has 3.5 million people compared to our 150 thousand population, so more than 20x more people, more highways, more housing, buildings. I would not say their ecosystem is in tact.

Miami-Dade and Broward counties in South Florida are more densely populated than PR, and they're still more than 50% Everglades (virtually uninhabited).  And Oahu is even more densely populated.

[bovine421]

The area that I live in has the largest concentration of Puerto Ricans other than New York or Puerto Rico. The local news reports that Puerto Rico has suffered A series of unfortunate events. Its infrastructure is a Train wreck and will take over 10 years to rebuild it. It would probably only take a couple years anywhere else.

[Bush2Beach]

Yes , Hawaii is much too expensive , “Don’t do it”.
3 acres for $20k you say? No way ? Okay....

But if he's just waiting to hit the lottery....Anyway, it's an interesting conversation. The overall impression we get about Hawaii these days is that it's prohibitively expensive to locate there for anyone other than the wealthiest 1%.

[Bush2Beach]

Hawaii hands down has better Avocado cultivars than California.
A tasting at a neutral site like Oregon, Vancouver or New York where all the boutique cultivars from CA & Hawaii could be sampled side by side by top chefs and Avocado farmers would be something the world is ready for.
I’m a life long CA resident and my favorite CA Avocado’s are Jan Boyce, Reed, and Gillogoly.
I think Sharwil, Ota and a couple other lesser known Kona Avocado’s are better, tastier, better texture. I can eat them by themselves sliced which I do not enjoy so much with CA avocado.
Trying to find good named Avocado’s in Hawaii can be a needle in a haystack aka grower direct so unfortunately the store bought experience is not up to par with buying CA Hass in season in a store in CA.

Brad’s CA grown Sharwil is an exceptional fruit , I’m excited to see how his other Hawaiian cultivar’s do in SD county.

[fruitlovers]

Hawaii hands down has better Avocado cultivars than California.
A tasting at a neutral site like Oregon, Vancouver or New York where all the boutique cultivars from CA & Hawaii could be sampled side by side by top chefs and Avocado farmers would be something the world is ready for.
I’m a life long CA resident and my favorite CA Avocado’s are Jan Boyce, Reed, and Gillogoly.
I think Sharwil, Ota and a couple other lesser known Kona Avocado’s are better, tastier, better texture. I can eat them by themselves sliced which I do not enjoy so much with CA avocado.
Trying to find good named Avocado’s in Hawaii can be a needle in a haystack aka grower direct so unfortunately the store bought experience is not up to par with buying CA Hass in season in a store in CA.

Brad’s CA grown Sharwil is an exceptional fruit , I’m excited to see how his other Hawaiian cultivar’s do in SD county.

Right, except for the part about the good avocados being hard to find in Hawaii. You don't go to a supermarket! You go to a farmer's market. Real problem is that the cultivars are never labeled. You have to know what to look for.
In all fairness to California avocados, there are some excellent ones there also. It's just that what is 99% available are Hass. It's the obsession with Haas that is the problem. The really good cultivars are much harder to find in California than in Hawaii. I've lived very long periods of time in both places...unlike most commenting on this.

[Bush2Beach]

Oscar,  the Avocado’s at the farmers markets in Hawaii are unlabeled, not stem cut , and often stolen.
I’ve never seen anything labeled aside from “butter” , so yeah if you know how to ID cultivars based on experience you might be able to know what your getting more than the re-seller.
You can get good unlabeled Avo’s , but I don’t think Ota, Nishikawa, bumpy creamy or others are making it to any market as named varieties. Theres so many good ones. I’m hopeful the Avo festival can represent a wide selection for a tasting 1 year.

[fruitlovers]

Oscar,  the Avocado’s at the farmers markets in Hawaii are unlabeled, not stem cut , and often stolen.
I’ve never seen anything labeled aside from “butter” , so yeah if you know how to ID cultivars based on experience you might be able to know what your getting more than the re-seller.
You can get good unlabeled Avo’s , but I don’t think Ota, Nishikawa, bumpy creamy or others are making it to any market as named varieties. Theres so many good ones. I’m hopeful the Avo festival can represent a wide selection for a tasting 1 year.

Yes, and this is a problem for all fruits, not just avocados. Almost nobody labels cultivars of mango or lychee either. Vendors and buyers need to get better educated. Yes there is a big problem of theft right now, and i guess that's going to get worse, with the economic downturn.

[Mike T]

They are routinely labelled even in the supermarkets here. Reed,hass,wurtz, shepard and fuerte have been labelled ;lately and sold at different prices. Luckily theft of fruit is much of an issue here.

[voyager]

Never been to PR.
But, Hawai'i consists of a number of islands, and has various micro climates ranging from rain forests to deserts, all  in a sub tropical climate., disregarding the snowy mountain tops. 
I think PR would show much less versatility for growing.

[Mike T]

That was kinda my point also that PR would be like a climate subset of Hawaii unless you were comparing one island.

[canito 17]

Hi guys. Puerto Rico is an archipelago. Truly tropical with some microclimate. Our avocados are among the
best. Range from watery to high oil content . Oscar I remember you. Years ago I met you in Rincón.

[johnb51]

Hawaii is an archipelago.  How is PR an archipelago?  How many other islands besides Vieques?

[canito 17]

Google it! Today "El Nuevo Día " newspaper had this title. "I am the best thing to ever happen to Puerto Rico " (Donald J." Trump ).I remember when nobody wants his "Mis Universe " and we help him. 2 years in a row

[johnb51]

Google it! Today "El Nuevo Día " newspaper had this title. "I am the best thing to ever happen to Puerto Rico " (Donald J." Trump ).I remember when nobody wants his "Mis Universe " and we help him. 2 years in a row

Is he?  Or is he just playing to the Puerto Rican vote?
Ok, I grant you "archipelago."  But Hawaii is 137 islands!  Una gran differencia.

[canito 17]

Vieques, culebra municipalities and isla de mona, caja de muertos, monito,desecheo,Gilligan's island,San Juan capital and........

[bovine421]

Vieques, culebra municipalities and isla de mona, caja de muertos, monito,desecheo,Gilligan's island,San Juan capital and........

Gilligan's island? Can you buy cannabis and coconut cream pie's there? If so i want to go Is there any charter boats that go there?

[happyhana]

“often stolen”?!

My experience on Maui east side has been the opposite lately; boxes of free avocados can often be found at beach parks, post office and food trucks. Avocados at the local market are priced so low they’re almost free!

I suppose these trying times either bring communities together or have opposite effect. Now is a great time for those of us with productive land to help out where we can.

[fruitlovers]

“often stolen”?!

My experience on Maui east side has been the opposite lately; boxes of free avocados can often be found at beach parks, post office and food trucks. Avocados at the local market are priced so low they’re almost free!

I suppose these trying times either bring communities together or have opposite effect. Now is a great time for those of us with productive land to help out where we can.

This is an incredible avocado year, with many of the trees completely loaded. So there is a glut of them right now, and yes many people giving avocados away here also.

[voyager]

As a recent transplant from Arizona to Hawaii I miss living in a diverse whole native ecosystem that I imagine PR and CR have in abundance. What I don’t miss, and think is worth the extra Hawaiian expense, are all the plants and critters with their spines, thorns, fangs and poison at the ready. Pushing through tall grass here without fear is surreal.

Sounds like you've never lived in the Puna rain forest jungle.
I've been bit by a 6" centipede while working in the yard, very painful and a few weeks to fully recover.
Agreed, not many more things to worry about around here, but I now always use caution when moving through any vegetation and never walk barefoot when outside.

[happyhana]

Ouch! Good point. Haven’t lived in Puna, but I’ve heard about the fires ants, hidden lava tubes and semi slugs.

Centipedes here flee pretty quick, you’d get a very different reception from a 6 ft rattler!

[johnb51]

Ouch! Good point. Haven’t lived in Puna, but I’ve heard about the fires ants, hidden lava tubes and semi slugs.

Centipedes here flee pretty quick, you’d get a very different reception from a 6 ft rattler!

The white men must have brought rattlers, too, along with fire ants.  No way they're indigenous!