Pouteria sapota in Socal

[JF]

I am seeing more Mamey's in Socal lately. With these pix I hope to encourage folks in Socal to plant them out.....they take awhile to fruit but eventually they will. My Magana has two good size fruits after 5 years this one is a 12 year old seedling that has been fruiting for 5 years.



 

[fyliu]

So 5 to 7 years to fruit. That's encouraging. I started mine last year but it's not grown much after I put it in the ground.

[goosteen]

That's a great looking tree!   Which variety do you think does the best here?

[FlyingFoxFruits]

thanks for sharing JF...

this is more exciting to some people than a UFO sighting

[fyliu]

There must be more of these around here. I've seen them sold for $1.99/lb. Unless they get them shipped from Mexico for 50 cents.

[FlyingFoxFruits]

There must be more of these around here. I've seen them sold for $1.99/lb. Unless they get them shipped from Mexico for 50 cents.

lol let me know if you can find usa grown mamey in CA for $2 per lb (retail)

[fyliu]

They were in a Mexican market...

How do people eat these? They're so big. I gave up on buying them again after getting too full every time I eat them.
Also, are they supposed to be sweeter? The shakes made from the are much better than the plain fruits.

[JF]

They were in a Mexican market...

How do people eat these? They're so big. I gave up on buying them again after getting too full every time I eat them.
Also, are they supposed to be sweeter? The shakes made from the are much better than the plain fruits.

I got Patin from the state of Guerrero MX .079lb at Superior Market 3-4 years ago
Anything from Homestead is ridicules price sometime $3.99lb

[sapote]

They were in a Mexican market...

How do people eat these? They're so big. I gave up on buying them again after getting too full every time I eat them.
Also, are they supposed to be sweeter? The shakes made from the are much better than the plain fruits.

Hi, I am sure if the fruits were ripen properly then they would be sweeter than those found in supper market. Just like apricot that the fruits were picked green hard for transportation and so they tasted like water.

Sapote

[sapote]

The tree in the photo looks like a Loquat, especially the leaves and the tree form. Are they related?

I did have a seedling and it was growing fast the first year, but got killed by a cold winter. I like to eat Mamey -- it tasted similar to Sapodia but less latex and of course much bigger. I so far have not seen a tree with fruit yet, in southern Cal.

Sapote

[greenman62]

The tree in the photo looks like a Loquat, especially the leaves and the tree form. Are they related?
Sapote

not related.
well, everything is related at some point. but, you have to go pretty high up on the tree
for loquat and Pouteria, so not in the same family.

Loquat is in Rosids //Eudicots
Pouteria is Angiosperms /Eudicots

i have both Mamey and loquat. the color of the leaf is different, but the shape, and growth tips are very similar.

thanks for sharing JF...

this is more exciting to some people than a UFO sighting

Unidentified Fruiting Object = UFO

[Delvi83]

Loquat is a Rosacea, the same family of Apple, Pear, Cherry etc...it is far from Pouteria...

[JF]

here is my Magana after 5 year it's hold good size fruit should be ready to harvest by August 2016.This tree flowered the first year on the ground but never set fruits until September 2013

[fyliu]

Wow JF, all your plants look so healthy! Mine look like they're just surviving.

[JF]

Wow JF, all your plants look so healthy! Mine look like they're just surviving.

Thanks Fang

Mamey sapote is not easy to fruit in SoCal I have it in a good spot and I have babied it for a long time.

[michsu]

Here's mine just a month or two in the ground..  these are the new leaves actually.. and a 2nd set is just coming out.. This was taken last month, so the 2nd set is coming in good.. so it seems to be at least a set of new leaves a month..  It hasn't gone past the 1st winter yet, so I'm nervous about that since it's so small.. wow JF, your tree is much bigger.. I hope to get to that size and get some fruit at least.. 

[BrianL]

What do you guys recommend as far as varieties in SoCal or is it to early to say?

[fyliu]

Someone in the CRFG facebook group just posted a fruiting mamey in San Fernando. The fruits are smaller than Frank's. But we're getting greater numbers now.

[JF]

Here's mine just a month or two in the ground..  these are the new leaves actually.. and a 2nd set is just coming out.. This was taken last month, so the 2nd set is coming in good.. so it seems to be at least a set of new leaves a month..  It hasn't gone past the 1st winter yet, so I'm nervous about that since it's so small.. wow JF, your tree is much bigger.. I hope to get to that size and get some fruit at least.. 

michsu

that's how mine looked 5 years ago do a search in the Garden web forum. Mine bloomed that first year and has never looked back, Good luck!

Guys I would recommend Magana and Pace those are the varieties I have. Mamey sapote seems to grow and bloom well in Socal the problem is setting fruits. Mark Lee of Chula Vista has a Magana that has set plenty of fruits but they aborted during spring cause he doesn't have the heat units. MY Magana has been setting fruits for a while but aborting them. Quail Garden and Exotica have had Mamey flowering for years but they don't set fruit. My theory is that you have to be in a practically frost free climate with high heat units or it's going to fail like it does in SD. LA Basin, and I don't mean the valley goosteen that's way too cold,  has a much warner climate than SD. 

[JF]

Someone in the CRFG facebook group just posted a fruiting mamey in San Fernando. The fruits are smaller than Frank's. But we're getting greater numbers now.

Fang, I have seen seedlings in Bell, South Gate Pico Rivera Santa Ana Orange that have a yearly crop....and the one in the pic is in El Monte.

[Delvi83]

here is my Magana after 5 year it's hold good size fruit should be ready to harvest by August 2016.This tree flowered the first year on the ground but never set fruits until September 2013

Did it need more than 1 year to ripe fruits? Very good photos....i really like it also as ornamental plant

[JF]

I think 18 months

[carcarlo]

Hi JF and everyone , Great pics. beautiful plants.In the last few years here in Tampa Mamey from Homestead was priced at $ 5.99 to $6.99 a lb. and higher,  but I had the pleasure of stuffing myself this year when a local supermarket had them for $1.99 a lb and the following week they had them for $.99 a lb I have to tell u I gained 5 lb with those shakes. I think they are growing plenty of Mamey and Sapote down in S. Florida, and the prices are starting to  stabilized some where around $ 2.00 a lb.
18 Months wow that's a long time!! But then again I have a Canistel Pouteria tree that the Freezes have killed down to the ground  several times, and it's just producing fruit for the first time in 35 years.
CaribbeanCarlo
CarlosO

[JF]

Hi JF and everyone , Great pics. beautiful plants.In the last few years here in Tampa Mamey from Homestead was priced at $ 5.99 to $6.99 a lb. and higher,  but I had the pleasure of stuffing myself this year when a local supermarket had them for $1.99 a lb and the following week they had them for $.99 a lb I have to tell u I gained 5 lb with those shakes. I think they are growing plenty of Mamey and Sapote down in S. Florida, and the prices are starting to  stabilized some where around $ 2.00 a lb.
18 Months wow that's a long time!! But then again I have a Canistel Pouteria tree that the Freezes have killed down to the ground  several times, and it's just producing fruit for the first time in 35 years.
CaribbeanCarlo
CarlosO

Hi Carlos
The fruits in the pictures will be ready next summer. We get a lot of Mamey's here from Guerrero y Chiapas.  We also get them from Homesteads. Prices are about the same here those shakes are unbelievable. Canister grow well here my mom has one growing in here yard that we hope to fruit next year.

[carcarlo]

Hi JF do you know if the shoots from the mother tree will produce fruits quickly, or will  they produce in 3 to 6 years like seedlings.
Carlos O

[NewGen]

I had  the pleasure of eating a  few Mamey sapote in Miami, liked it a lot. Then when I got back to CA, bought some from a Mexican market called Vallarta, and also from a more mainstream market Smart & Final, the fruits were hard as a rock in the store, I let them sit for over a week before I could detect any softness. When I cut them open, saw a  lot of  hollowed out areas and molds in the rest. Horrible!

I don't have any Mamey plant, but do have a green sapote (Pouteria viridis), about 2' tall in a 5 gallon pot. Got the fruit from a friend, it's been a couple years but I recall it was a good tasting fruit. How does green sapote compare to Mamey?

Thanks
Trung

[nelesedulis]

Very good

[fyliu]

back to CA, bought some... the fruits were hard as a rock in the store... Horrible!

You can do the scratch test on the skin. If it's easy to scratch and it's orange, it's good. However, my fruit from Jons was still not as sweet as I like.

[Delvi83]

I think 18 months

A lot...i thought Strawberry tree and Carub were among those need more time for ripening fruits, but this fruit could be a record

[fyliu]

I think 18 months

A lot...i thought Strawberry tree and Carub were among those need more time for ripening fruits, but this fruit could be a record

I think avocado can be something like 18 months as well.

Carob? I see many trees around but I thought it's fruits every year like "normal" fruits. This year all the green pods were eaten by squirrels. Last year there were lots of brown ones at the end of the year.

[Delvi83]

Yes, Carob....here in Italy are called Carrubi. They ripe in fall, 1 year after flowering....
Are you sure for Avocado? may be it depends on the variety...

Anyway Pouteria sapote seems a very nice tree....how cold-tolerant is? is it like a Mango?

[fyliu]

Yeah, I think it might depend on the variety for avocado. I'm just starting to grow it and still learning.

[michsu]

whew, at least I started.. 5 years is sure a while to wait..  and that's with your skills.. mine will probably take 10 or 20 years.. hopefully mine would end up like yours.. I actually got a "Cepeda Especial".. hopefully that's a good cultivar too.. You had said "heat units"? Is our place too cool to grow these kind of things? During those 100s in the last few months, my rollinia even started burning around the edges.. isn't that too hot for it instead of cool? 

michsu

that's how mine looked 5 years ago do a search in the Garden web forum. Mine bloomed that first year and has never looked back, Good luck!

Guys I would recommend Magana and Pace those are the varieties I have. Mamey sapote seems to grow and bloom well in Socal the problem is setting fruits. Mark Lee of Chula Vista has a Magana that has set plenty of fruits but they aborted during spring cause he doesn't have the heat units. MY Magana has been setting fruits for a while but aborting them. Quail Garden and Exotica have had Mamey flowering for years but they don't set fruit. My theory is that you have to be in a practically frost free climate with high heat units or it's going to fail like it does in SD. LA Basin, and I don't mean the valley goosteen that's way too cold,  has a much warner climate than SD.

[JF]

michsu
You live a stone thrown from me your climate is perfect 
We are now growing Mamey Colorado from Yucatan in SoCal the finest Mamey in the world. Hope to make some trees soon

[michsu]

1 month update... looks like it's growing 

September 2015



October 16 2015 - a few days ago

[JF]

1 month update... looks like it's growing 

September 2015



October 16 2015 - a few days ago

They grow and bloom in fall. My Mamey Colorado has some leaf burn from the brutal heat waves but it's flowering. In 3-4 year we should have yucatan Colorado in SoCal !

[marklee]

Hi JF and everyone , Great pics. beautiful plants.In the last few years here in Tampa Mamey from Homestead was priced at $ 5.99 to $6.99 a lb. and higher,  but I had the pleasure of stuffing myself this year when a local supermarket had them for $1.99 a lb and the following week they had them for $.99 a lb I have to tell u I gained 5 lb with those shakes. I think they are growing plenty of Mamey and Sapote down in S. Florida, and the prices are starting to  stabilized some where around $ 2.00 a lb.
18 Months wow that's a long time!! But then again I have a Canistel Pouteria tree that the Freezes have killed down to the ground  several times, and it's just producing fruit for the first time in 35 years.
CaribbeanCarlo
CarlosO

Hi Carlos
The fruits in the pictures will be ready next summer. We get a lot of Mamey's here from Guerrero y Chiapas.  We also get them from Homesteads. Prices are about the same here those shakes are unbelievable. Canister grow well here my mom has one growing in here yard that we hope to fruit next year.

Frank,
My canistels set fruit great every year along with green sapote, my "cinnamon apple Sapote is flowering right now, and I am going to try Ross sapote one more time. I think I planted it in the ground to early and it was too small and it didn't survive. I have about 100 Mamey seedlings a couple feet tall, so I want to find a more cold tolerant variety and graft them up and maybe get them going here. I think Pace and Magana just don't cut it here near the coast. Supposedly on TT they advertise a more cold tolerant Mamey, probably nothing special.

[starch]

Frank,
My canistels set fruit great every year along with green sapote, my "cinnamon apple Sapote is flowering right now, and I am going to try Ross sapote one more time. I think I planted it in the ground to early and it was too small and it didn't survive. I have about 100 Mamey seedlings a couple feet tall, so I want to find a more cold tolerant variety and graft them up and maybe get them going here. I think Pace and Magana just don't cut it here near the coast. Supposedly on TT they advertise a more cold tolerant Mamey, probably nothing special.

marklee,

What are you max temperatures in summer? I am looking at the green sapote, and am really thinking about one. For my environment, the Mamey is out, I get way too cold. But the green sapote is reputed to be more cold tolerant than the Mamey. But how does it handle the heat? I am wondering if that might be the real limitation for me.

[michsu]

Hi JF,

what do you get it to bloom so fast? Yours is a little bigger than mine.. Thanks. Is it all the compost that you use on the ground?

[marklee]

Frank,
My canistels set fruit great every year along with green sapote, my "cinnamon apple Sapote is flowering right now, and I am going to try Ross sapote one more time. I think I planted it in the ground to early and it was too small and it didn't survive. I have about 100 Mamey seedlings a couple feet tall, so I want to find a more cold tolerant variety and graft them up and maybe get them going here. I think Pace and Magana just don't cut it here near the coast. Supposedly on TT they advertise a more cold tolerant Mamey, probably nothing special.

marklee,

What are you max temperatures in summer? I am looking at the green sapote, and am really thinking about one. For my environment, the Mamey is out, I get way too cold. But the green sapote is reputed to be more cold tolerant than the Mamey. But how does it handle the heat? I am wondering if that might be the real limitation for me.

Mstarch,

I only get to the low 90's a couple of times a year, using shade cloth when they are young should be helpful.

Mark

[JF]

Frank,
My canistels set fruit great every year along with green sapote, my "cinnamon apple Sapote is flowering right now, and I am going to try Ross sapote one more time. I think I planted it in the ground to early and it was too small and it didn't survive. I have about 100 Mamey seedlings a couple feet tall, so I want to find a more cold tolerant variety and graft them up and maybe get them going here. I think Pace and Magana just don't cut it here near the coast. Supposedly on TT they advertise a more cold tolerant Mamey, probably nothing special.

marklee,

What are you max temperatures in summer? I am looking at the green sapote, and am really thinking about one. For my environment, the Mamey is out, I get way too cold. But the green sapote is reputed to be more cold tolerant than the Mamey. But how does it handle the heat? I am wondering if that might be the real limitation for me.

Mstarch,

I only get to the low 90's a couple of times a year, using shade cloth when they are young should be helpful.

Mark

Hi Mark

Let's solve this. I have access to two local mature mamey fruiting seedlings 4-6 miles from Newport Beach. These are totally adapted to our climate and they are not inland like La Habra or El Monte. Let's graft all your seedlings next August. Here is my grafted magana fruits have been on the tree for more than 6 months