Cutting or Air layering on Sapodilla advice

[Si Duong]

Which technique is better and more affective for propagating Sapodilla by Cutting or Air Layering?
I have one central leading branch on the plant and I want to trim it down so instead of wasting it, I would like to know if I can make it into another plant. Please help.  Thanks

[Pasca]

I don't have an answer for you and am curious what forum members would say to answer your question.  I just envy you for wanting to trim your sapodilla.  Here I am, I cannot get my Makok to grow enough in Southern California, let alone have the luxury to think about trimming my tree. 

[achetadomestica]

Most trees I see for sale are grafted or seedlings, I notice that top tropicals is selling airlayered trees
so it must be possible. If you are going to prune it anyway why not try? 

[sunny]

I don't have an answer for you and am curious what forum members would say to answer your question.  I just envy you for wanting to trim your sapodilla.  Here I am, I cannot get my Makok to grow enough in Southern California, let alone have the luxury to think about trimming my tree.

makok is no sapodilla. is spondias.

[achetadomestica]

I don't have an answer for you and am curious what forum members would say to answer your question.  I just envy you for wanting to trim your sapodilla.  Here I am, I cannot get my Makok to grow enough in Southern California, let alone have the luxury to think about trimming my tree.

makok is no sapodilla. is spondias.

I have a sapodilla that is called a makok. It is a small productive tree that has the sweetest fruit
I have ever eaten,

[Samu]

Don't know about air layering or cutting as a propagation method for Sapodilla. But last June I grafted one Silas wood scion unto a 1 foot seedling (seed from store bought fruit)  and it's now planted in the ground:



By the way, "Makok" is another common variety of Sapodilla...

[Si Duong]

I don't have an answer for you and am curious what forum members would say to answer your question.  I just envy you for wanting to trim your sapodilla.  Here I am, I cannot get my Makok to grow enough in Southern California, let alone have the luxury to think about trimming my tree.

It also grow super slow here in SF area. It will be hurt if I throw away a year of growing so that's why I am asking if I can propagate it into a new plant.

Why I want to trim my plant? because I want to keep it low so I can protect it in the winter much easier.

[Si Duong]

Don't know about air layering or cutting as a propagation method for Sapodilla. But last June I grafted one Silas wood scion unto a 1 foot seedling (seed from store bought fruit)  and it's now planted in the ground:

I know grafting is good way to go but I don't have root stock. BTW, couple years ago I did try to air layering the Alano and I successed but when I separate it from the Mother plant and It grew very well for while and I don't know why it died.  Sapodilla is very slow rooting.

By the way, "Makok" is another common variety of Sapodilla...

[Mike T]

Makok is a common sapodilla and in Thailand makok farang are ambarellas which are called hog plums in my neck of the woods. Sapodillas don't seem to take from cuttings and marcots can be done but don't seem to be easy. Grafting is the usual propagation method. Seedling are not worthwhile. 

[Aina Exotics]

i was talking to lynn at frankies nursery and she said they do their chico by airlayers starting in spring thru summer. If they do air layers there then id imagine it can be as successful as grafting or atleast quicker. protect em from the sun with foil for sure. Seedlings do grow quite slow so id imagine it would be worth it to find a airlayer process that works.  good luck

[achetadomestica]

i was talking to lynn at frankies nursery and she said they do their chico by airlayers starting in spring thru summer. If they do air layers there then id imagine it can be as successful as grafting or atleast quicker. protect em from the sun with foil for sure. Seedlings do grow quite slow so id imagine it would be worth it to find a airlayer process that works.  good luck

Good to know spring is time to airlayer. I just wondered after you remove the layer
of skin around the branch wouldn't there be a lot of milky crap. Do you wash off with
a hose before you wrap in sphagnum? It has to be messy?

[fruitlovers]

I think cuttings would only be possible in a mist house and using rooting hormones. Air layers work but are very slow to root. Seedlings are even slower. Grafting is fastest way to propagate them, but not easy due to all the latex they leak when you cut them. Makok is a cultivar name of sapodilla that tends to be semi dwarf, with long pointed fruits.

[pineislander]

Plenty of Sapodilla airl ayers are being grown by my neighbor, at the former location of Treehouse Nursery Bokeelia, SW Florida.

[fyliu]

Airlayering was difficult for me too. I did 4 this year and none of them worked.
Seedlings grow pretty fast though. My grafting of sapodilla is very slightly better.

[Vernmented]

I harvested about 15 Alano sapodilla about a month ago. Most of them were well rooted. They might have been on for two months or so. I used long fiber sphagnum and I think I put a little rooting hormone on but that probably isn't necessary.

I don't know if this works for all cultivars but I have seen other people air layering Alano.

No problems. I prefer grafting most things though because I believe if you have a healthy air pruned seedling for a rootstock you will have a much stronger tree.

[dragon]

Airlayering was difficult for me too. I did 4 this year and none of them worked.
Seedlings grow pretty fast though. My grafting of sapodilla is very slightly better.

I did airlayer on 3 branches and they all died.i plan to do on one branch this spring instead of 3 at the same time like last year .

[Si Duong]

I harvested about 15 Alano sapodilla about a month ago. Most of them were well rooted. They might have been on for two months or so. I used long fiber sphagnum and I think I put a little rooting hormone on but that probably isn't necessary.

I don't know if this works for all cultivars but I have seen other people air layering Alano.

No problems. I prefer grafting most things though because I believe if you have a healthy air pruned seedling for a rootstock you will have a much stronger tree.

I did try air layering on the Alano before and rooted very well.  It takes long time to root though.  This time, I will try to do on my Silas Woods sapodilla. I hope it will work too.

[barath]

I had two nursery-grown Sapodillas, one Silas Wood and another Alano, from different sources, but both had/have very ugly grafts, with cracking bark and bulging of the trunk in the graft area.  The Alano fruited and then died (in a container -- I shouldn't have let it); the Silas Wood is doing fine but still has a really ugly graft.  Is that normal?  I've been wondering whether air layering would be a better option.

[raimeiken]

I tried two air layers this year and none grew any roots so far, after 2-3 months.

[fyliu]

I tried two air layers this year and none grew any roots so far, after 2-3 months.

Easy to airlayer plants like lychees take 2-3 months. I think it's safe to says sapodilla is in the hard group.
Another plant in the hard group is Michelia champaca. It takes around 6 months in my weather. Atemoya takes around 6 months also, but nobody in their right mind goes that route. Maybe sapodilla is meant to be a grafted tree since the seedlings grow pretty fast.

[BrianL]

Probably better to try grafting especially since your in NorCal.   

[fruitlovers]

I tried two air layers this year and none grew any roots so far, after 2-3 months.

Easy to airlayer plants like lychees take 2-3 months. I think it's safe to says sapodilla is in the hard group.
Another plant in the hard group is Michelia champaca. It takes around 6 months in my weather. Atemoya takes around 6 months also, but nobody in their right mind goes that route. Maybe sapodilla is meant to be a grafted tree since the seedlings grow pretty fast.

All the seedling i've grown of sapodilla are super slow!

[Vernmented]

I had two nurseries Sapodillas, one Silas Wood and another Alano, from different sources, but both had/have very ugly grafts, with cracking bark and bulging of the trunk in the graft area.  The Alano fruited and then died (in a container -- I shouldn't have let it); the Silas Wood is doing fine but still has a really ugly graft.  Is that normal?  I've been wondering whether air layering would be a better option.

My graft unions look good.

[marklee]

I attempted about 10 airlayers on a friends tree here in San Diego and waited at least six months and nothing rooted, even with a paste of Hormex 45. Part of the problem may have been the person didn't water the tree enough.

[fyliu]

Maybe sapodilla is meant to be a grafted tree since the seedlings grow pretty fast.

All the seedling i've grown of sapodilla are super slow!

Maybe I have a different definition of fast. Sapodilla grows slow relative to other trees here. I consider 1 yo, 1-1.5 ft seedlings to be pretty fast.