Author Topic: What is the best lychee?  (Read 62988 times)

fruitlovers

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Re: What is the best lychee?
« Reply #50 on: February 14, 2012, 09:43:16 PM »
Thats incredible but I'll have to taste it to believe it.  I'm wondering why this wasn't all over the Chinese news as many Asians would be very interested in a Lychee that size even if it didn't taste too good.  Those huge Lychees look a little like Sweetheart but also a little like Emperor.  I wonder how large a Sweetheart or Emperor could get if it were grown on a full sized tree and you culled extremely heavily as in leaving only 1-3 fruit per panicle?  If anyone know where I can get this variety, please let us know! 8) :o :-X
Simon

I think most Asians, especially ones that are lychee fans and have tasted really superior lychee cultivars, would mostly be interested in quality, and not so much in quantity. Biggest of everything is really an American thing. Asians know that good things often come in small packages. I'm guessing they are gearing this giant for export markets, maybe Texas? HAHA
Oscar
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johnb51

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Re: What is the best lychee?
« Reply #51 on: February 14, 2012, 10:22:07 PM »
Thats incredible but I'll have to taste it to believe it.  I'm wondering why this wasn't all over the Chinese news as many Asians would be very interested in a Lychee that size even if it didn't taste too good.  Those huge Lychees look a little like Sweetheart but also a little like Emperor.  I wonder how large a Sweetheart or Emperor could get if it were grown on a full sized tree and you culled extremely heavily as in leaving only 1-3 fruit per panicle?  If anyone know where I can get this variety, please let us know! 8) :o :-X
Simon

I think most Asians, especially ones that are lychee fans and have tasted really superior lychee cultivars, would mostly be interested in quality, and not so much in quantity. Biggest of everything is really an American thing. Asians know that good things often come in small packages. I'm guessing they are gearing this giant for export markets, maybe Texas? HAHA
Oscar

You'd be surprised how many Asians live in Texas--Chinese, Vietnamese, Cambodians, Laotians, Thai, Indians, etc.  Millions more than in Hawaii.  But one thing for sure--you won't find any good ol' boy Texas rednecks eatin' lychees!
« Last Edit: February 14, 2012, 10:37:09 PM by johnb51 »
John

fruitlovers

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Re: What is the best lychee?
« Reply #52 on: February 15, 2012, 12:00:57 AM »
On my last visit to LA i went to an area called little Hanoi. It was like being in another country! Great place to hunt for tropical fruits. Found in some of their supermarkets fresh: jackfruit, mangosteen, durian, longan, and even some great mangos! One of the markets even had a stall next to it selling large 15 gallon sized trees of wax jambu, longans, lychees, some already with fruits, perfectly manicure, but very expen$ive.
Oscar
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JoeP450

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Re: What is the best lychee?
« Reply #53 on: February 15, 2012, 09:51:56 AM »
Thats incredible but I'll have to taste it to believe it.  I'm wondering why this wasn't all over the Chinese news as many Asians would be very interested in a Lychee that size even if it didn't taste too good.  Those huge Lychees look a little like Sweetheart but also a little like Emperor.  I wonder how large a Sweetheart or Emperor could get if it were grown on a full sized tree and you culled extremely heavily as in leaving only 1-3 fruit per panicle?  If anyone know where I can get this variety, please let us know! 8) :o :-X
Simon

Rob I meant texture of the skin of the fruit, my bad...

JoeP450

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Re: What is the best lychee?
« Reply #54 on: February 15, 2012, 09:54:43 AM »
I remember someone giving a presentation or something and mentioning going to China and seeing some very large lychees that were a few times larger than the largest ones here. I think it may have been Dr. Crane. Can't remember exactly who or when though.

What I do remember is that he said it was a new variety so maybe it will be more common in the future.

Simon that thing is so big it looks practically like a baby red annona! LOL!

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simon_grow

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Re: What is the best lychee?
« Reply #55 on: February 15, 2012, 12:06:29 PM »
The person in the link I posted was able to eat the fruit.  He didn't give a good description, only saying it was sweet but not super sweet.  Phase001 grew some golfball sized Sweethearts and he didn't even cull. 

Now that I think about it, those Giant Lychees don't look like Sweethearts at all.  The Sweethearts that I have eaten didn't have flattened out bumps even when they were ripe.  I have noticed that Emperors do get flattened out bumps when they are fully ripe.  Those Giant Lychees appear to have very flattened out bumps.  I wonder if I can pump up some supersized Sweethearts and Emperors by watering heavily and culling heavily like I mentioned earlier?  Does anyone have a full grown Sweetheart and Emperor so we can test this out? 
Simon

lycheeluva

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Re: What is the best lychee?
« Reply #56 on: February 15, 2012, 12:30:20 PM »
simon- wont watering heavily during ripening phase make the fruit taste watery

simon_grow

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Re: What is the best lychee?
« Reply #57 on: February 15, 2012, 01:11:46 PM »
I believe so Lycheeluva.  In orchard conditions, you are supposed to keep the trees well watered to size the fruit up.  Depending on the type of fruit, withholding water after the fruit has sized up is supposed to increase the sugar content, I guess, from the decreased amount of water in the fruit thus concentrating the flavor and sugars.  I would like to try to keep the fruiting trees well watered and give it lots of Potassium and also cull the panicles when the fruit are pea sized to see the size difference between fruit treated in this manner compared to normal fruit.  I'm just curious.

I just found out around a year or two ago that culling fruit like mandarins, Longan, Loquat when they are pea sized will drastically improve the overall size of the remaining fruit and also help with the flavor and sweetness of the fruit.  My friend has a Loquat tree that gives tons of smallish kinda sour fruit(it was grown from seed) every year and this year, I helped him cull about 1/2 of all the total fruit on the tree.  This year, his green fruit are already larger than his fully ripe fruit from last year and they appear to have several weeks left to grow.  From what I see now, his fruit may be approx. 1/3-1/2 larger than when he didn't cull and add Potassium. 
Simon

dongeorgio

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Re: What is the best lychee?
« Reply #58 on: April 25, 2013, 05:26:11 PM »
Did anyone discover what variety those giant lychee were?
George

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Re: What is the best lychee?
« Reply #59 on: April 27, 2013, 04:06:47 AM »
I believe the variety is called Erdon Lee.
Simon

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Re: What is the best lychee?
« Reply #60 on: June 15, 2013, 04:43:52 PM »
Today, after tasting Mauritius, Brewster, Kwai mai Pink (bosworth 3), Emperor, Hak Ip, Sweet Cliff, and Sweet heart....

I'd say Hak Ip was the best...but I'm sure some of the varieties I tasted weren't at peak ripeness.

A pic of 3 lychee varieties...Left Sweetheart, middle Brewster, right, Emperor.


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Re: What is the best lychee?
« Reply #61 on: June 15, 2013, 05:00:48 PM »
The best lychee is the one that's in my mouth right now.  ;)  The favorite here is probably Kaimana. Strange they are not more widely planted in Florida?
I'm sure all our lychees in Hawaii and Florida pale to the best ones in China, but not sure if i'll ever find out for sure.
Oscar

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Re: What is the best lychee?
« Reply #62 on: June 15, 2013, 05:30:11 PM »
Mauritius won the poll last year I think. What is known as haak yip here and in china is 20 to 22g,smooth skinned, very broad at the top and a dull red/maroon when ripe. From pix I have seen posted the American hak ip is something pretty different.

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Re: What is the best lychee?
« Reply #63 on: June 15, 2013, 05:35:43 PM »
There is a lot of confusion with identity of lychees in different countries/places. For example, Mauritius is supposed to be Kwai Mi, but it's different than the Kwai Mi that we have here. It's possible lychees transform after being grown in Africa for long time with a different climate from what they were originally in China. Also there is a lot of name confusion due to different languages, dialects, and lost and misplaced labels, for example Sweetheart.
Oscar

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Re: What is the best lychee?
« Reply #64 on: June 15, 2013, 05:40:18 PM »
Oscar that is true for Mauritius which is an African selection of tai so with slightly redder skin than tai so. Here Mauritius gets called tai so Mauritius. It is harder to account for with hak ip.

fruitlovers

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Re: What is the best lychee?
« Reply #65 on: June 15, 2013, 10:17:20 PM »
Oscar that is true for Mauritius which is an African selection of tai so with slightly redder skin than tai so. Here Mauritius gets called tai so Mauritius. It is harder to account for with hak ip.

If you look at literature you see that Tai so is a group of lychees, not one particular cultivar. This may be true of some others and may account for some of the confusion with names.
Oscar

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Re: What is the best lychee?
« Reply #66 on: June 15, 2013, 11:23:43 PM »
Hey Adam,
Did you notice a taste difference between the Sweetheart and the Hak Ip? Also, did they look different? Thanks

Simon

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Re: What is the best lychee?
« Reply #67 on: June 16, 2013, 01:07:34 AM »
The three lychee growers on Pine Island all feel that Hak Ip and Sweetheart are the same thing.   One of the growers said that two when two Chinese botanists saw the lychees he is growing (Hak Ips / Sweethearts), they both said that the fruit was Fei Zi Siu.

Upon researching the USDA accessions of lychees, they have a couple Hak Ip trees in their collection, and have pictures of each.  The fruits are more medium sized, have a medium sized seed, and have smooth skin.  They bear no resemblance to what we are calling Hak Ip here in Florida.  Seems as if the names got mixed up about 20 years ago, perhaps by the USDA in Florida?

The USDA in Hawaii is sending me some scion wood from their Fei Zi Siu lychee tree.   If I can get them successfully grafted, it will be interesting to compare them to my "Sweetheart" trees.

Brad
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Re: What is the best lychee?
« Reply #68 on: June 16, 2013, 08:29:59 AM »
Ah, the great lychee mystery!  I guess genetic testing would be the only solution.
John

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Re: What is the best lychee?
« Reply #69 on: June 16, 2013, 08:36:12 AM »
Hey Adam,
Did you notice a taste difference between the Sweetheart and the Hak Ip? Also, did they look different? Thanks

Simon

they were pretty much the same.  looks and taste...but sweetheart was more watered down...both excellent.
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Re: What is the best lychee?
« Reply #70 on: June 16, 2013, 08:06:42 PM »
I've been happy with my Brewster (likewise the neighbors, the mail carrier, the garbage pick-up guys....)    But it would be nice to have a lychee with a better ratio of fruit to seed.
Any suggestions for good tasting lychees with chicken lip seeds?

Yes, Hak'Ip. It has chicken tongue seeds. It's not as productive as Mauritius, but mine has so far had reliable production year after year.
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Lychee suggestions
« Reply #71 on: February 20, 2014, 11:22:22 AM »
I recently picked up a Mauritius lychee tree and I am looking for 2 more.  I am more concerned with reliability of fruit set than taste.

I am considering:

Brewster:  are they worth planting?

Sweetheart or Hak Ip:  anyone recommend either of these varieties?

Bosworth 3/Kwai Mai Pink:  I would like this but don't know how reliable it is.

Kaimana:  Heard good things but how often does it fruit (say, out of 5 years)?

Emperor:  is is reliable?

PIN website recommends kwai mai pink, Mauritius, Hak Ip, and Sweetheart.

I know some people disagree with the mango viewer from PIN.  what are your thoughts on the best 3 (or 4) trees to grow for enjoyment of lychees most years?

~Jeff

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gunnar429

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Re: What is the best lychee?
« Reply #72 on: February 20, 2014, 04:44:32 PM »
ok, so it looks like emperor is out due to lackluster taste reviews and difficulty to grow.

Let me know which ones fruit nearly ever year.  I agree with oscar that it isn't any good if it doesn't produce.
~Jeff

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simon_grow

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Re: What is the best lychee?
« Reply #73 on: February 20, 2014, 09:05:32 PM »
I would go with Kwai Mai or Kwai Mai Pink(Bosworth 3) and then a real Hak Ip, the one with smooth shell and medium seeds. These are all productive trees, not sure about how well they produce in Florida. I've only read that Bosworth 3 is productive in Hawaii. I know Kwai Mai and the real Hak Ip are productive in China. I believe Harry is the best person to answer this question. I like the flavor of these three varieties, all very sweet.
Simon

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Re: What is the best lychee?
« Reply #74 on: February 21, 2014, 07:12:59 AM »
Thanks, Simon.

What are the 3 most consistent trees to plant in FL without spraying?

1.  Mauritius

2. ???

3. ???

(the remaining 2 is between sweetheart, brewster, kwai mai pink, and Hak Ip

Can anyone growing these varieties help me pick the winners?
~Jeff

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