Green Caimito Blooming

[Guayaba]

Just in time for The Day of the Dead! I hope this doesn't portend a bad ending for the tree. I am just surprised that I was able to get it to bloom so rapidly. This was originally a 3 gallon air layered plant that I bought in February, and expected it to take another year or so before it would bloom.  I am just curious if fall and early winter are the normal times for Caimito to bloom in other subtropical/tropical areas?  I noticed some other posts with similar bloom times, but wondered if it varies more in the tropics.

[Mikey]

My is starting to bloom

[Guayaba]

My is starting to bloom

Is this a first time bloom for yours as well?  I am just trying to figure out what the bloom cycle would be normally and see what to expect in future years as the tree matures. I just planted mine this last summer, so it has a number of hurdles ahead of it.

[Lory]

Here they bloom in october and you harvest in february-march.
I envy you so much my caimito seedlings are 4 years old and really big but no flowers yet.... 

[CGameProgrammer]

I have a caimito originally from TopTropicals that is a decent size yet has never flowered. So a month ago I bought a much smaller caimito from Ong's nursery that had lots of flower buds and now they are all blooming. I'm hoping I get some fruit set but it might be early, especially since the tree is probably still adjusting to the soil.

Anyway I think some of them are just runts that will never flower so I plan to chop up the first one.

[Bananaizme]

    Maybe you could take a limb from your tree that blooms and graft it onto your other tree.

William

[gozp]

Here they bloom in october and you harvest in february-march.
I envy you so much my caimito seedlings are 4 years old and really big but no flowers yet.... 

u have 3 years to go...

[mangaba]

Green caimitos germinated from seedlings take 6-8 year to flower  and fruit. That is my experience

[Guayaba]

Here they bloom in october and you harvest in february-march.
I envy you so much my caimito seedlings are 4 years old and really big but no flowers yet.... 

Don't envy me too much.  My Caimitos would never be as large as yours in four years. I have another seedling purple Caimito and it is only a little over 3 feet tall after three years from seed.  It should take the full 8 years to flower at the rate it grows here in California.

[JF]

Caimitos are very difficult here. Ask Mark Lee from Chula Vista his flower and drop every year. Only ones I've seen consistently producing are in Orange County Cypress.

[Lory]

I'll just be patient and patient and patient...
Growing fruit trees is the art of waiting isn't it? 

[marklee]

Yeah, I have yet to see a cainito fruit outside in California. They just flower too late in the year to hold fruit. I have a large one in my greenhouse that may hold fruit this year.

[JF]

As Mark said the timing is off in our climate but it’s possible to fruit under the right microclimate
http://tropicalfruitforum.com/index.php?topic=15910.msg269795#msg269795

[Guayaba]

Yeah, I have yet to see a cainito fruit outside in California. They just flower too late in the year to hold fruit. I have a large one in my greenhouse that may hold fruit this year.

When does the tree tend to drop the fruit? Late December into January when the temperatures get really cold?