Mystery Tree - Chempedak x Jackfruit? from Excalibur?

[Sleepdoc]

I have a " mystery tree" that I was hoping to get some new opinions/insight on.  I have brought this tree up for discussion in previous years, but now it is holding fruit, which has brought me to ponder it's origin and genetics once again..

Background:  I was given this tree by fellow member jsvand in a 3 gallon container.  When I first planted it, it was not in great shape, probably having been in the 3 gallon for some time.  It had a tag on it from the Broward Rare Fruit Council which read " Chempedak".  I had little hope for the tree, being a chempedak which are notoriously tough to grow here in S.Fla.  The tree however has done quite well over time.  It has been a strong grower and has not seemed any more sensitive to the cool winters than my other Jacks.  Early on, I posted photos of the tree and most experts including Oscar commented that is was most likely a cheena, as the leaves were not "hairy" enough to be a true chempedak.  Add all the previous up, and I had also come to the conclusion that this has to be either 100% Jackfruit, or a cross Jak x Chempedak. 

I have been anxiously awaiting the tree to flower and fruit, and this year I am happy to say the tree is holding 2 fruit.  To add to my excitement, the fruit definitely look different than any of my other Jacks.  They are long and cylindrical, with a yellow color.  Leads me to believe ( or hope) at this point that these have a lot of chempedak DNA in them. 





One interesting point that Brandon brought up to me this weekend at the BRFC sale is as follows :  Excalibur sometimes has trees that are put up for sale at the BRFC.  Especially Jacks and the like.  Sometimes Excalibur has some very interesting things in the works.  Which brought me to wonder if this tree is from Excalibur, and if so, could Rob find out any info on it?

Anyway, on to the pictures, and hopefully some expert opinions ....

[BENDERSGROVE]

Looks like Cheena to me. Don't always go by how it's tagged.

[ben mango]

you'll know it when it starts to smell. and they should be easy to open

[bsbullie]

Clint - is it grafted or seedling?   Richard did have some champedak years ago and does have large cheena tree at the nursery.   It does look like the cheena fruit his tree produces. Is there any hair on the leaves?  Can you post close up pictures of the leaves, top and underside and i can compare to the cheena at Excalibar.

[Sleepdoc]

Clint - is it grafted or seedling?   Richard did have some champedak years ago and does have large cheena tree at the nursery.   It does look like the cheena fruit his tree produces. Is there any hair on the leaves?  Can you post close up pictures of the leaves, top and underside and i can compare to the cheena at Excalibar.

It is a seedling.  I will try to get some close up pics sometime today.  Thanks !

[Beni]

This is nangkadak. People call Nangkadak in my country. This is cros NANGKA (jackfruit) x CEMPEDAK. So have name NANGKADAK. I have some tree Nangkadak. 
Great my friend. You are succes to cros them. 

[Coconut]

Yuup thats why I love Excalibur Secret Lab, they  are so busy  & mislabelling things had offered me great benefits  over the decades for those with eyes for the unusual bargains!  Clint please let me know how this taste, congratulation on your gem!  Its paid to haunt these rarefruit council sales for rejects that could offer a diamond in the rough like my Whitman fiberless from BRFVC. 👻👻 I stop farting for a week and snuck into the Palm Beach tree sale and swipe all the Baccuarea Macrophylla seedlings, more healthy than mine with out being recognize! They had some healthy Santol, Mangosteen, kepel which I already have & the Mangosteens disappear into some Biker dude embrace with more tattoos than a Van Gogh painting! How is your Baccuarea doing?

[Sleepdoc]

Yuup thats why I love Excalibur Secret Lab, they  are so busy  & mislabelling things had offered me great benefits  over the decades for those with eyes for the unusual bargains!  Clint please let me know how this taste, congratulation on your gem!  Its paid to haunt these rarefruit council sales for rejects that could offer a diamond in the rough like my Whitman fiberless from BRFVC. 👻👻 I stop farting for a week and snuck into the Palm Beach tree sale and swipe all the Baccuarea Macrophylla seedlings, more healthy than mine with out being recognize! They had some healthy Santol, Mangosteen, kepel which I already have & the Mangosteens disappear into some Biker dude embrace with more tattoos than a Van Gogh painting! How is your Baccuarea doing?

Very true ... it's fun to find a hidden treasure    

My Baccuarea got burnt to a crisp one cool morning   None left ..

[Sleepdoc]

[Future]

Looks great.  Sign me up to ensure this DNA is dispersed across the Atlantic...

[RichardN]

Nice looking cheena jackfruit. How old is the tree? Please post a picture inside of fruit when open . Would love to see the color. Excalibur has underground experimental lab. You need to have a level nine clearance to enter the room. They have armed guards with machine gun to guard the room... They have cows with 6 legs growing mangos and jackfruit on their back... Lol that is why I love this place...Will always buy from them.. Thank you Excalibur

[Jsvand5]

Wow. Quite a change from when I gave it to you. Glad some fruit have come from it. Hope it tastes good.

[Mike T]

Cheena here is not usually so elongate but it sure does look like a cross.They are so variable because Jacks and chempas are so diverse.The crosses vary from having spectacular quality fruit to quite ordinary fruit and the trees seem closer in hardiness to jackfruit. Foliage of young seedlings is nearly always hairy and this reduces with some going pretty smooth when seedlings grow a little and others staying sandpapery for while.
It looks like that one is easy to peel and has low latex.How good is the taste compared to good jackfruit?

[Sleepdoc]

Wow. Quite a change from when I gave it to you. Glad some fruit have come from it. Hope it tastes good.

Thanks !  Keeping my fingers crossed for taste ...

Cheena here is not usually so elongate but it sure does look like a cross.They are so variable because Jacks and chempas are so diverse.The crosses vary from having spectacular quality fruit to quite ordinary fruit and the trees seem closer in hardiness to jackfruit. Foliage of young seedlings is nearly always hairy and this reduces with some going pretty smooth when seedlings grow a little and others staying sandpapery for while.
It looks like that one is easy to peel and has low latex.How good is the taste compared to good jackfruit?

Good info.  I have no idea on the fruit quality or latex levels.  This is its first season holding fruit.  I'm guessing it will be 3 months or so until maturity and ripening.... We'll see

[Mike T]

I mistakenly took ben mangoes shot as one ripe one from the same tree.If that is the case and looking at the pix again I would not be ruling out a pure jack just yet.The grand opening will reveal all.

[bsbullie]

Just checked the trees and spoke to Richard,  it is most likely a seedling from a cheena. He did graft some of the cheena and planted some seeds from it also.  Very confident in saying not a champedak.

[Sleepdoc]

I mistakenly took ben mangoes shot as one ripe one from the same tree.If that is the case and looking at the pix again I would not be ruling out a pure jack just yet.The grand opening will reveal all.

Yeah - the reveal - can't wait

Just checked the trees and spoke to Richard,  it is most likely a seedling from a cheena. He did graft some of the cheena and planted some seeds from it also.  Very confident in saying not a champedak.

Thanks for checking Rob.  I hope it ends up being good !

[Jsvand5]

Cheena here is not usually so elongate but it sure does look like a cross.They are so variable because Jacks and chempas are so diverse.The crosses vary from having spectacular quality fruit to quite ordinary fruit and the trees seem closer in hardiness to jackfruit. Foliage of young seedlings is nearly always hairy and this reduces with some going pretty smooth when seedlings grow a little and others staying sandpapery for while.
It looks like that one is easy to peel and has low latex.How good is the taste compared to good jackfruit?

Good info.  I have no idea on the fruit quality or latex levels.  This is its first season holding fruit.  I'm guessing it will be 3 months or so until maturity and ripening.... We'll see
[/quote]

Just make the fruit ripen in August when I'll be down there.

[Sleepdoc]

I was out of town for a few days and yesterday I returned home to find the fruits softening on my Cheena tree.  The larger of the two already had a brown bullseye spot on it indicating it was likely over - ripe.  That is the fruit pictured above.  The second and smaller fruit was a day or two behind in ripeness, and much closer to its peak. 

Brandon came over to sample Fruit #1.  It was a complete pleasure to open up and clean this fruit.  One slice vertically down the fruit and it just peels open.  Cleaning is a breeze, in stark contrast to the crispy/crunchy jackfruit which can be laborious.  This easy cleaning characteristic is very desirable IMO, and adds to the overall experience.  This fruit was without a doubt a bit past its prime in ripeness.   Taste wise Brandon and I both agreed it was good to excellent, with Brandon ranking it higher than I did.  As a comparison fruit, we had a crispy Excalibur (grafted) Jak as a control.  Brandon thought the Cheena was better than the Jak, I thought the Jack was better.  I would rate the texture as a medium to soft, about a 3 ( 1 being crispy, 10 being a hairball) on the sleepdoc gag scale. 

Future stopped by today with 2 of his friends to sample fruit #2.  Again, truly excellent cleaning characteristics.  One slice and pull it open, exposing all of the interior.  20 seconds and its all there, the entire fruit ready to be eaten.  It may have been a day too ripe, but much closer to its prime than fruit #1.  As far as taste and texture, it was definitely better than fruit #1.  I really liked this one. All 4 of us enjoyed quite a bit of the fruit. The edible portion is quite large, with thick flesh and little rag.  Latex levels are low.

I don't have any pics of fruit # 2.  I think Future snapped a shot of it, hopefully he can add it to the post. 

Anyway, it's not a mystery anymore - its definitely a Cheena, and a keeper.

PSS - These put on some size when mature - I would guess 35lb for the first fruit, 25lb for the second

[bsbullie]

[Mike T]

I think there is little doubt it is a cross and it appears to be leaning towards jackfruit parentage a feather more than chempadak.

[bsbullie]

Yes, its definitely a Cheena.  Soft texture with good flavor.  For me, i have a tough time getting past that soft texture.

[Sleepdoc]

Yes, its definitely a Cheena.  Soft texture with good flavor.  For me, i have a tough time getting past that soft texture.

Yeah, this one is not too bad as far as texture goes.  I can eat it without gagging, but there is a component to the consistency that pushes my limits a little bit.  I certainly have had Jaks that i cannot tolerate and have to spit out due to texture.  It is definitely an individual/personal thing.  Brandon is a champ when it comes to texture tolerance - I think he could eat a hairball coated with raw oysters if it tasted good.

That Cheena Richard is holding looks great.  Perfect personal size. 

[Future]

I concur it was a great fruit.  More soft than firm and I very much enjoyed the taste, texture and relative low level of latex.  A beauty of a fruit.  One of my friends described it as an...orgy of fruit as we groped and ate.  I will post pictures in the morning.  The children of this tree will prosper!

If anyone can think of a better way to start a fruit feasting trip, do tell!  My friends were ultra impressed. Thanks Sleepdoc!

[ben mango]

Yes, its definitely a Cheena.  Soft texture with good flavor.  For me, i have a tough time getting past that soft texture.

That Cheena Richard is holding looks great.  Perfect personal size. 

ya definitely , lunchpack size lol. these fruits are good but i still prefer cempedak