After so many years looking for that ever elusive firm flesh Rollinia, I finally found it!
Yep that sickly five year old tree barely getting any water growing next to my upland pond apple I have develop for the better of two decades and a half reward me with a fruit that insure its progey will goes on to the Tawain Annona Mafias... New Palace in Manalapa, Florida.
It start about five years ago Buying of scambay a seedling from now defunct seller from Hawaii. From the get go it grew poorly and had several die back, attack by every insects of Noah Ark or is it Monsanto Ark creation I have forget; my Alzhiemer kicking in so I will be short today! I curse myself from buying off scambay; been bamboozled by the Dorgon beast with weed seeds and the Hawaiian were selling this Choctaw Brave with counterfeit rollinia seedling it tormented this old fart for the better half a decade but felt more like half a century. I watch as Oscar, Berto, Noel, F&SP, Tradewind, Montososa Garden, etc seedlings shed and flush new leaves and thrive in my garden lush like a south beach model in a Brazilian bikini thong. I was about to kill this scambay Hawaiian counterfeit on my return this summer and fill its void with Soren's super fruitful Aruscha Soursop seedlings and give my Pond Snob pond apple more sun for a larger flesh tasty fruit.
The tree had this fruit dangling hidden behind the overcast of a Burmese Red Sugar apple, its golden hue caught my attention through its green scale infest leaves and twig! I scream to my wife, Honey come quick, the ugly tree you hate have finally gave us fruits! We harvest split it up and devour that in no time. My wife favorite Desert is Key Lime pie and said it taste like lemon meringe or key lime pie but firm and just right amount of sweet kisses and salivating tartness like our Meyer Lemon.
Now its seem loaded with flowers but with thicker ugly leaves.
We had bumper crop of Phet Pakchong this year, three trees produce a wopping 142 lbs of great looking fruit but tasteless do in part to the early in the year drought and now they are pregnate with water and bearing late now. See the Thai Atemoya at fotos at bottom. Sadly I regret to cut all three phet pakchong trees down to replace it with the new discovered firm flesh rollinia. Now this rollinia got the finest redneck fertilizer that the postal service can send & I have been drinking a lot of coconut to increase the peepee ratio for my brewing of the fertilizer. The Rollinia now has thousand of flowers. But where are the mealy bug and green scale on this tree the last five years? I think my neglect because this ugly thing originally turn me off, could have produce sooner. Now I know its a water hog and heavy feeder, with vigor & good health it seem to fight disease and best better and like a fine wagyu beef; I am still dumb found that it taste like key lime pie and seem to have a meyer lime taste and smell to the flesh.
I am going to cull my rollinia collection to make room and develop this firm flesh rollinia. I have notice Berto and Oscar rollinia more drought resistance, so I will develope and Select a less water hog Rollinia with firm aroma flesh like this Scambay Rollinia. I am going to see what it next fruit will be like before I firm up my rollinia culling. Maybe the 60 years drought we had early could make the fruit firmer, so let be cautious and see. I am still looking for all type of firm flesh rollinia to ad to my breeding. The soft flesh rollinia although delicious didnot fire unami imagination like this firm rollinia I was luckily enough to gamble & purchase it on Ebay from Hawaii of all place! Aloha Micah!🌴😄🌋