The Tropical Fruit Forum
Tropical Fruit => Tropical Fruit Discussion => Topic started by: savemejebus on February 26, 2015, 11:07:14 AM
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Just planted this Sweetheart lychee last year - it's not in a great spot, doesn't get a ton of sun, and is still small scraggly - yet when walking around today I noticed the below. Am I crazy or is that what lychee flowers look like? And why the heck is this little fella flowering when my two larger, bushier lychees aren't doing squat?
(http://s16.postimg.cc/rpuo8aygh/IMAG0158.jpg) (http://postimg.cc/image/rpuo8aygh/)
(http://s16.postimg.cc/t666qg1dd/IMAG0161.jpg) (http://postimg.cc/image/t666qg1dd/)
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maybe the smaller trees don't need as much energy to bloom/fruit? I expect a larger tree needs to store more energy from sun/fertilizer/water to "activate" all the blooms.. Or maybe the sudden cold temps we have been having switching out with the normal temps? I hear cold temps help the mango trees bloom too..
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You're eyes are not deceiving you ;)...Congrats!
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That is not bloom. That is fruit set!
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wow, how do you guys get so big trees? That size would be my 4th or 5th year or something of growing from a 3 gallon.. is it better buy a 7 gallon one then? I saw that other post about $20 or $25 3 gallon mangos, however, if we buy it here in CA (even online), it would be at least $60+.. and $100+ for a 7 gallon one (including shipping)..
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Wow, nice. Don't surprises like these just make your day?
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Are you guys (gals included) telling me that my Mauritius also having fruit set???
(http://s24.postimg.cc/8zoya291d/IMG_0241.jpg) (http://postimg.cc/image/8zoya291d/)
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Are you guys (gals included) telling me that my Mauritius also having fruit set???
(http://s24.postimg.cc/8zoya291d/IMG_0241.jpg) (http://postimg.cc/image/8zoya291d/)
That is definitely a bloom spike! How much of it will end up as fruits remains to be seen :) :-\
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Oh.., ok Pug, thanks for your response.
I was hoping you'll say the same thing you said to Jebus :D
To my untrained eyes, my flowers look identical to his, albeit less "anthlers" showing.
I got mine also last Fall in 15G pot; so if some end up as fruit(s), should I keep a few, or remove them?
So much to learn...
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Are you guys (gals included) telling me that my Mauritius also having fruit set???
(http://s24.postimg.cc/8zoya291d/IMG_0241.jpg) (http://postimg.cc/image/8zoya291d/)
I see lots of female blooms, but not much, actually no male bloom. You do not have fruit set as of yet. The beginning of fruit set appears like a side view of a crown. Are there male blooms elsewhere on the tree?
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After looking at the picture from lycheesonline, now I see what you mean.
No, I don't see anything that resemble the male flower shown on that website...
So, what's happening? You think my tree is still too young? Any info is valuable
to me, thanks Harry!
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The female and male blooms tend to alternate every 2 weeks or so. So if you have a single tree there's pretty much no overlap time for it to be self-pollinated. When the tree gets much larger, the branches will be less synchronized and you'll see more self-pollination and fruit set.
So the recommendation is to get more than one tree, prune them at the same time and hope it causes them to bloom around the same time.if you're in FL or HI your tree will grow up fast and it's safe to ignore what I said above.
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Well, when I bought that tree, they didn't tell me about the need to buy 2... >:(
Ok, instead of getting another tree, can I also graft a lychee (any variety?) scion on it and accomplish the same thing?
Thank you FYLIU for your explanation and advice, I really appreciate it!
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Sam, you don't need two trees for fruit but having another variety that has different bloom cycle may increase fruit set on both varieties. Lychees don't really need to be thinned as they will naturally drop what fruit they can't handle.
Simon
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Thanks you Simon, I really appreciate you sharing your knowledge; and
congrats to you and your tree, Jebus!
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Samu, I wouldn't give up on yours yet...maybe the male flowers are just late to the party ;)
Good luck!!
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Yeah I only said it helps when your tree is small. It would be interesting if it did bear fruit this year. Maybe flower cycles will overlap on some varieties or you might have neighbors with a tree. Treat it well and you might get a surprise.
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Thanks pug and fyliu
for your optimistic view
Yes, I treat my plants with vigor
Besides trying to learn their unique behavior
But if they can only whisper
Then my job would be a lot easier...
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A good YouTube video to find the diff b/w male and female flower
http://youtu.be/wSe33jKLDd8 (http://youtu.be/wSe33jKLDd8)
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That's a high quality youtube video! Thanks for posting it, joji!
Hope, I will see those male flowers on my tree too, while the female
ones are still "available", someday...
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(http://s15.postimg.cc/9fmoyojiv/IMG_0320.jpg) (http://postimg.cc/image/9fmoyojiv/)
Since Pug and Harry asked about the male flowers, I've been checking the blooms every day...lol!
Today, this is what I observed, do I have male flowers now? Also, look like some "bulgings" present
on the female flowers, are they the ones??!
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Not an expert by any means...but those look like male flowers to me.
I took your picture and zoomed in on what appears to be a couple of lychee fruits :)
(http://s3.postimg.cc/5e8j08zlb/Samu_lychee_tree.jpg) (http://postimg.cc/image/5e8j08zlb/)
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(http://s3.postimg.cc/5e8j08zlb/Samu_lychee_tree.jpg) (http://postimg.cc/image/5e8j08zlb/)
The blossoms with the multiple extensions with yellow tips (pollen) are male. The ones with only one extension and are sort of hooded and more round are female. The zoomed in shot of green is a fruit in early formation.
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Wow...thanks a lot Pug, Harry, Simon and Fyliu for your valuable comments!
Hope those baby fruits will live to maturity this Summer... :D
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wow, how do you guys get so big trees? That size would be my 4th or 5th year or something of growing from a 3 gallon.. is it better buy a 7 gallon one then? I saw that other post about $20 or $25 3 gallon mangos, however, if we buy it here in CA (even online), it would be at least $60+.. and $100+ for a 7 gallon one (including shipping)..
Mimosa in East LA had 15 gallons lychees for $90 in the Feb sale. Don't know if they will still give you the same price or not. I bought a Sweetheart and a Mauritius. My Sweetheart has taken off in this heat! Blossoming, new bright leaves and stems. My Mauritius on the other hand has shown me nothing except a little sunscald on the leaves.
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I thought I posted this yesterday...but I don't see it?
With talk about 2 different varieties of Lychee possibly helping with pollination I decided to put my small potted Hak ip next to my inground Mauritius tree...the bees are buzzing around both trees like crazy! ...certainly can't hurt.
(http://s28.postimg.cc/qkgohu4ft/20150316_115341_resized_1.jpg) (http://postimg.cc/image/qkgohu4ft/)
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I thought I posted this yesterday...but I don't see it?
With talk about 2 different varieties of Lychee possibly helping with pollination I decided to put my small potted Hak ip next to my inground Mauritius tree...the bees are buzzing around both trees like crazy! ...certainly can't hurt.
Yes, seems like the bees (there are usually 2 bees) are constantly buzzing around both male and female flowers all day long on my Mauritius...somehow the flowers seem to act like magnets to them...I recently planted a Brewster next to it, it's flowering now but mostly not open yet, and hardly any bees working on them atm. Pug, look like your Mauritius is a lot larger than mine, how old is it and did you prune it too?
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My Mauritius is 4 years old. Planted it February. 2011. I prune mine once a year in July as per the recommendation of lychees online.com I'm very fortunate it's fruited 3x since I planted it. The only time it didn't flower/fruit was the first year I planted it. Which was fine since I wanted it to grow that first year.
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Thanks Pug, Cheers!
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You're welcome Samu...below is the link I was talking about from lycheesonline...
http://lycheesonline.com/HowToGetTreeToFruit.cfm
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I bookmarked that webpage on my computer now.
And also, just alerted myself on my smart phone to do this pruning
regiment in July... ;)
Thanks again Pug, for that useful info; you've been so helpful!
Happy growing! :D
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There's definitely no guarantees but I figured it...can't hurt!?! The only problem might be the timing of when your fruits ripen? You might have to do yours a little later...you'll have to let me know.
I'm not sure any of the blooms on my Hak ip are getting pollinated inspite of the many bees buzzing around, not sure if I have any female flowers? :(
Close up of one of the Clusters...after really zooming in the picture of the blooms...I think I see one baby lcyhee,lol...
(http://s23.postimg.cc/er1ylpyev/IMG_5132.jpg) (http://postimg.cc/image/er1ylpyev/)
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Great that you see one baby fruit, even though I am not able to determine with certainty that I see the female flowers on your picture -nor that one baby lychee- ; but hope they'll show up soon in big numbers!
By the way, I am wondering if it is possible to do manual pollination, if one would just "rub" or brush them lightly with tiny brush (as you would on Cherimoyas) the males (from your Mauritius) to the females (from Hap ip) flowers?
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Samu, I'm sure you can hand pollinate Lychee with good success. Someone here that lives up North that grows indoors in the winter have had success hand pollinating them before...but for me it will be a waste of time since I have SO many bees already doing a great job. My problem really seems to be the lack of female flowers and without them all the bees in the world won't do me any good :(
I'll update and take a picture "if" I see actual lychee fruitlets in a few weeks...wish me luck!
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Looking forward to see the pictures!
Good luck, Pug!
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I found this nice Video on Lychees on Youtube...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9Io7qFnkms
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Watched the video, now I can visualize what Brewster lychee fruit looks like...
As far as taste, only when the local Asian markets sell them; oh wait,
I once tasted a homegrown lychee from a lone street vendor near Honolulu,
but it's been a long time, so I forgot how the fresh lychee fruits taste like.
Can't wait to taste my own... :)
Thanks for the link!