Author Topic: Trees Flowering  (Read 1588 times)

Millet

  • Moderator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 4798
    • Colorado
    • View Profile
Trees Flowering
« on: March 11, 2018, 05:02:59 PM »
My in ground Cara Cara (11-ft. tall X 11-ft. wide is in full flower, with approximately 80 of the flowers now fully open. This is the best flowering year since the tree was planted.   I foliar sprayed the tree with low biuret urea last January,  From the very beginning of flowering I have been very careful to keep the tree well watered.  A dry period during a tree's flowering, will GREATLY reduces the potential harvest. A dry tree will rapidly drop some or most of the its flowers depending on the duration of drought. In approximately 10 days to two weeks, the tree will go into the EARLY DROP period, dropping the flowers and small fruitlets that the tree does not have enough energy to bring the fruit to maturity, this is a normal procedure.  If every flower developed into a fruit, and the tree held on to the fruit, the tree would be crushed under its own weight.   After the early drop is complete, it is then important to once again foliar spray the tree with low biuret urea.  The second spray will both increase the size of the fruit, and help the tree to retains the maximum amount of fruit without diminishing fruit size.

Other trees now in full flower,  Dekpon (Flowers 20 percent fully open) Xie Shan (flowers now 30 percent fully open), Valentine (tons of flowers, only 10 percent fully open), marsh grapefruit (good flowering 20 percent fully open) and a small page mandarin that has a lot of flowers, but due to the young tree's size I will let it only set two fruit.   All of the trees listed in this post are in ground trees.
« Last Edit: March 11, 2018, 06:20:31 PM by Millet »

mikkel

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 568
    • Lueneburg, Germany Zone 7
    • View Profile
Re: Trees Flowering
« Reply #1 on: March 12, 2018, 03:33:15 AM »
Hi Millet, did you post pictures of yur trees somewhere? I am curious.
Thanks!

Luisport

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 3210
  • New in tropical fruit growing!
    • Fatima, Portugal
    • View Profile
Re: Trees Flowering
« Reply #2 on: March 12, 2018, 10:22:58 AM »
Almost all my citrus trees are flowering too...  ;D

brian

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 3355
    • Pennsylvania (zone 6) w/ heated greenhouse
    • View Profile
Re: Trees Flowering
« Reply #3 on: March 12, 2018, 10:31:20 AM »
Mine too.  Everything flushed at once, even the trifoliate seedlings and kumquats.  I've just started doing some grafts.

Yorgos

  • Sr. Member
  • ****
  • Posts: 306
    • USA, Houston, Texas USDA zone 9a
    • View Profile
Re: Trees Flowering
« Reply #4 on: March 13, 2018, 10:14:16 AM »
Oranges (moro, sanguinelli & toracco)  and satsumas (owari & xie shan) are blooming big time. Ujukitsu and the cara cara grafted onto it are blooming as well.  Meyer lemon, not so much this year and neither is the N33 navel orange grafted to it.  In-ground Rio Red grapefruit refuses to flower for the 4th year in a row (it had fruit when I planted it 5 years ago) though it is about 8 feet tall and lush. Too early for the meiwa and changshou kumquats to bloom.  They don't usually bloom around here until May, but they have leafed out very nicely after kicking their leaves due to the freezes we had. Bloomsweet grapefruit and chandler pomelo look to be taking this year off.  Kaffir lime hasn't bloomed either but that doesn't matter.

Peaches look good so the annual battle with the squirrels begins to see if I am able to harvest.  Pecans have not leafed out yet. Pomegranates haven't flowered and persimmons are beginning to bud. Fig looking strong as always. Loquats are fruiting late.  Usually I'm harvesting in March, but not this year. Brazos bell avocado grafted on to a hass volunteer rootstock expired due to cold or root stock death, not sure which.
Near NRG Stadium, Houston Texas. USDA zone 9a

spaugh

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 5126
    • San Diego County California
    • View Profile
Re: Trees Flowering
« Reply #5 on: March 13, 2018, 05:56:47 PM »
I was looking at my neighbors citrus trees today.  They are big mature trees and are completely loaded with fruit.  The guy does absolutely nothing for his trees.  No water, no fertilizer, no trimming, spraying or care.  He can't even eat citrus, he is missing about half of his teeth or more.  Guy is a total hillbilly, the rest of the yard is full of old cars and junk.  Made me think about this when I read the post about careful watering and pampering of citrus.  Doesnt seem that necessary for my neighbor.  I will snap some photos of his trees. 
Brad Spaugh