Thai Sweet Tamarinds.

[Jackfruitwhisperer69]

Hi,
Here's my Thai Sweet Tamarind,


This seedling will make three years this year. I will probably plant the tree this year or in the begining of next year.

The tree takes the cold very well, with not much problems. The only problem i have encountered is that the tree is mildly susceptible to powdery mildew in winter(because of the rain), which can cause some leaves to drop.

[nullzero]

Steven,

The tree is looking super healthy, love the picture  .

[Jackfruitwhisperer69]

Steven,

The tree is looking super healthy, love the picture  .

Hi Nullzero,
Thanks for your kind words I try my best to insure the well being of them seedlings

I bet all fellow members a million dollars...that planting seeds and looking after trees is the best hobby in the WORLD not less addictive than other hobbies...but, it's the best !

[Ethan]

Beauty of a tree Steven, it'll be nice to see it really take off once it hits the ground.

good luck,
-Ethan

[Jackfruitwhisperer69]

Beauty of a tree Steven, it'll be nice to see it really take off once it hits the ground.

good luck,
-Ethan

Hi Ethan,
  Hopefully, when the tree is planted in its permanent location...really takes off like a rocket

Thanks, Ethan

[Recher]

I lost my grafted sweet cv.

My seedling is old now, flowers but has never been really happy in the warm wet subtropics with good draining soil.

i have always believed the big limitation with a lot of plants e.g. Anona squamosa is the cold soil in winter and the pathogens therein

Maybe not always but for a long time.

[red durian]

Where I live, climate charts show between 11 and 22 days/month with rain, 81mm to 325mm per month.  A tamarind tree in the horticultural park has fruit that can be enjoyed right off the tree.  It is sweet and a bit tart and bears lots of fruit in this fairly consistently rainy place.

[Recher]

Where I live, climate charts show between 11 and 22 days/month with rain, 81mm to 325mm per month.  A tamarind tree in the horticultural park has fruit that can be enjoyed right off the tree.  It is sweet and a bit tart and bears lots of fruit in this fairly consistently rainy place.

EXACTAMUNDO... no cold soil in winter

[Jackfruitwhisperer69]

Where I live, climate charts show between 11 and 22 days/month with rain, 81mm to 325mm per month.  A tamarind tree in the horticultural park has fruit that can be enjoyed right off the tree.  It is sweet and a bit tart and bears lots of fruit in this fairly consistently rainy place.

EXACTAMUNDO... no cold soil in winter

Hi Dr Recher,
There are two big trees in the Botanical Garden, that flowers quite good and I have seen flowers in winter too. Though, since we don't have wet summers, I have never seen pods on them. Maybe, they need cross pollination to set fruit...them trees are about 20m apart.

[Mike T]

I have see tamarinds do alright in rainfall zones getting between 800mm/yr and 4000mm/yr (32 to 160inches) so long as there is a strong summer rainfall peak and a winter/spring dry seaon.I don't know how they would go in a winter rainfall peak zone or somewhere that gets high rainfall year 'round.They also prefer sandy and loose soils to denser high clay content soils.

[Jackfruitwhisperer69]

I have see tamarinds do alright in rainfall zones getting between 800mm/yr and 4000mm/yr (32 to 160inches) so long as there is a strong summer rainfall peak and a winter/spring dry seaon.I don't know how they would go in a winter rainfall peak zone or somewhere that gets high rainfall year 'round.They also prefer sandy and loose soils to denser high clay content soils.

Hi Mike,

Your nailed it! The other tree is in a location where the soil is heavy clay. The other trees like carambola, longan, gumixama, mango...don't mind the soil...though, the tamarind tree don't look so happy

[fruitlovers]

I have see tamarinds do alright in rainfall zones getting between 800mm/yr and 4000mm/yr (32 to 160inches) so long as there is a strong summer rainfall peak and a winter/spring dry seaon.I don't know how they would go in a winter rainfall peak zone or somewhere that gets high rainfall year 'round.They also prefer sandy and loose soils to denser high clay content soils.

Rains year round where i live in Hawaii, 3200 mm/yr., with heaviest rains usually in winter. Tamarinds can still fruit, but if too much rain when pods are ripening the pods will just rot. Some years though the crops are pretty good. I notice though that my little tamarind trees are not very happy in heavy rain. That is in a clay soil which probably makes the problem worse.

[gunnar429]

Bsbullie, 
1.  Do you have any knowledge or information regarding which of the varieties that excalibur has are the best (or better yet a review of the ones you know/have heard about)?
2.  Is it possible to prune them to keep them small (not so much concerned about the height but want to control the spread laterally.  In other words, I am thinking of planting 2 tamarind varieties in the suicide strip between sidewalk and the street but I don't want them to shade out the entire strip as I have other trees/shrubs in mind for that area as well. 
any info you can provide is greatly appreciated!
~Gunnar

[LEOOEL]

I have one grafted Sweet Tamarind tree that I bought from Excalibur. It's been in the ground for about 5 years and produced 2 fruits for the first time last year. It's a very interesting tree, at night, the leaves fold.

[gunnar429]

Leo, How large/small do you intend to keep it?

Still looking for someone to review the different types from excalibur.  Do you remember which variety you purchased?

[davidgarcia899]

Is this tamarind sweet. Because cubans have a saying that goes alone the lines that there is no such thing as a sweet tamarind.

[plantlover13]

I have wanted to grow tamarind for a while, but i can't find anything about if sweet tamarinds come true from seed. Do they? if they do, then i can buy the whole pods they sell at the store and plant the seeds. Otherwise, if air layering is necessary of something. i might as well stick with the much cheaper sour kind.

[fruitlovers]

I have wanted to grow tamarind for a while, but i can't find anything about if sweet tamarinds come true from seed. Do they? if they do, then i can buy the whole pods they sell at the store and plant the seeds. Otherwise, if air layering is necessary of something. i might as well stick with the much cheaper sour kind.

I've heard that the sweetness is maintained in plants produced from seed.
Yes David they are really sweet.

[plantlover13]

I have wanted to grow tamarind for a while, but i can't find anything about if sweet tamarinds come true from seed. Do they? if they do, then i can buy the whole pods they sell at the store and plant the seeds. Otherwise, if air layering is necessary of something. i might as well stick with the much cheaper sour kind.

I've heard that the sweetness is maintained in plants produced from seed.
Yes David they are really sweet.

Hmm, thanks. I think i'll go for. it. Didn't want to spend 4 years on something that would be sour anyway.

[HMHausman]

The Thai tamarind you get at the Asian market are incredibly sweet.  I find the regular sour tamarinds only good for prepared foods....too sour for my taste to eat out of hand.  I bought a supposedly sweet tamarind from Lara's nursery in Miami.  I don't know if the tree was a seedling (it seems to grow like one). I can tell you that the fruit from this tree is not sweet at all.  Mine is sour as my other tamarind tree. Not sure if this is a mix up or if the sweet characteristic is not carried through to seeds.  Perhaps someone could check with Lara's as to what they have sold (seedlings, layers, etc.).  I would think my tree is at least 10  or so years old.  I never followed up with them to advise about my experience.  Julian was a member of the forum, perhaps he can comment if he reads this.

[LEOOEL]

Leo, How large/small do you intend to keep it?

Still looking for someone to review the different types from excalibur.  Do you remember which variety you purchased?

I like fruit trees to make use of all the space that's above where it's planted. So, if I can help it, I don't want/plan to prune it at all.

I'll try to keep this brief. For some years I had been asking Pine Island to obtain Sweet Tamarind (and 'Alphonso' mango). One day, they told me that out of several hundred, only about two trees survived the trip from overseas. They planted those two surviving trees, and although I tried to bribe them    to sell me an air layer, they told me I had to wait, and so I did. The tree is now growing really happy with no problems. It's growing fast, tall and quick. I guess I'm now waiting for it to get more established and hopefully have heavy consistent production of fruit. And, yes, the fruit is sweet like the store bought kind. And, other than it being sweet, I don't know what variety it is, or if there's more than one variety.

[fruitlovers]

Leo, How large/small do you intend to keep it?

Still looking for someone to review the different types from excalibur.  Do you remember which variety you purchased?

I like fruit trees to make use of all the space that's above where it's planted. So, if I can help it, I don't want/plan to prune it at all.

I'll try to keep this brief. For some years I had been asking Pine Island to obtain Sweet Tamarind (and 'Alphonso' mango). One day, they told me that out of several hundred, only about two trees survived the trip from overseas. They planted those two surviving trees, and although I tried to bribe them    to sell me an air layer, they told me I had to wait, and so I did. The tree is now growing really happy with no problems. It's growing fast, tall and quick. I guess I'm now waiting for it to get more established and hopefully have heavy consistent production of fruit. And, yes, the fruit is sweet like the store bought kind. And, other than it being sweet, I don't know what variety it is, or if there's more than one variety.

Yes there's more than one variety, like most things botanical. I have 2 cultivars of sweet tamarind i brought from Thailand: Sea Thong and Poa Kay Thong.

[gunnar429]

Is anyone in Florida growing tamarinds successfully (a decent amount of fruit set)?

[KarenRei]

Anyone have any clue how big tamarind trees need to get before they start fruiting, and whether there's any tricks to help encourage them?  I've got a couple trees in my grow room that are up to "bush" size - they're not super-fast growers (less than half the rate of my acerola, for example), but they've been growing steadily.

I know tamarinds *can* get huge, but how big do they *have* to be?

[davidgarcia899]

Is anyone in Florida growing tamarinds successfully (a decent amount of fruit set)?

I believe I am