Longan in the Tropics

[jcaldeira]

Does Longan grow well in tropical environments?  It's unclear to me from Julia Morton's description in the Fruits of Warm Climates book whether it needs chilling similar to Lychee.

Also, advice on it's resistance to wind and need for shade when young would also be appreciated.

Thanks, John

*** mod edit:  corrected last name ***

[Guanabanus]

I have not heard of Longan's fruiting in the tropics.

[fruitlovers]

Most longans are sub tropical, so do need some cool weather in winter to fruit. But there are a few types of longan that fruit well in tropics, like Diamond River and Ping Pong. The sub tropical types can also be forced to fruit by using potassium chlorate. They are fairly wind and sun resistant. For good fruit production its best to have whole tree canopy in full sun.
Just got through processing fruit harvest from 2 very little trees of Diamond River. Bagged fruits in one gallon zip lock bags. Ended up getting 12 gallons of fruits off the 2 trees.

[Guanabanus]

Good to know!

[jc]

That's a fruit report I haven't heard at all this summer. Anyone in florida get a a longan crop this year?

[fruitlovers]

Diamond River is nice because it fruits consistently and heavily every year here.

[digigarden]

i have a tropical longan and a lychee, selections from the taiwan experimental station.

[Mike T]

My town is the warmer limit for the main commercial varieties and they are on par with Kwai mai pink and Tai so lychees.17 latitude on the coast is the quoted limit in Australia and they crop every second or third year but at 15 latitude it more like every 5 or 6 years years.At 17 latitude here the main longan commercial area is at 450m altitude and quite dry (1000mm/yr).Minimum winter temps that routinely get 4c to 10c are best but if you don't get less than say 13c or 14c in winter biew kiew and kohala aren't worthwhile.In coastal areas 22 to 28 latitude is pretty ideal here.They will be lovely big non-productive trees.

[jcaldeira]

Thanks, all.  I bought Longan seeds but have no idea what variety they are.  Seems that my best shot is planting it up on a hill where it's a little cooler.

[fruitlovers]

Thanks, all.  I bought Longan seeds but have no idea what variety they are.  Seems that my best shot is planting it up on a hill where it's a little cooler.

Next time make sure to ask for Diamond River seeds. Forget what batch yours came from.

[Colombo973]

Here in French Guiana, we have longan cultivars that fruit very well under equatorial climate.
Season will start in few weeks and i could offer seeds for trade once available if someone interested by.

[xshen]

Diamond River is nice because it fruits consistently and heavily every year here.

Hi Oscar,

How well will Diamond River produce in So Cal weather? We have two 12 feet tall kohala that only produced a few fruit this year.  We are looking for another longan tree that'll provide a consistent crop each year.

[fruitlovers]

Diamond River is nice because it fruits consistently and heavily every year here.

Hi Oscar,

How well will Diamond River produce in So Cal weather? We have two 12 feet tall kohala that only produced a few fruit this year.  We are looking for another longan tree that'll provide a consistent crop each year.

I don't know. Don't know if they've been tried? Would be worth experimenting with the Diamond River. My guess would be that they would not produce well as they come from more tropical places. But often the results will be the opposite of what you would guess, so worth trying. Another consideration would be how could hardy they are? Will they resist a frost?

[simon_grow]

xshen, Ong's nursery down in Linda Vista has Diamond River Longan trees and Quang told me that they fruit well here.  He had several small trees holding fruit last year if I remember correctly.  Have you tried giving your Kohala Longan trees a little drought stress about a month before you expect flowering?  A fertilizer high in P and K may also be beneficial.  I also like to give my trees foliar and soil drenches of liquified seaweed/kelp.  I had two small Kohala trees, one of them in a pot and they were both holding pea sized longan.  I gave my potted Kohala away but my in ground tree which I planted last year is still holding fruit that are now about 1/3 inch in diameter.  I keep my Longan tree well watered when it is holding fruit. 
Simon

[xshen]

Simon/Oscar, thanks for the tips.  I haven't tried the drought stress but I'll keep that in mind next year

Simon, do you know if Ong still have any diamond river or other consistent bearing longans on hand?  We still plan on going down to SD to take advantage of our annual pass to Seaworld.

[simon_grow]

Hey xshen, I haven't visited his nursery in a while but he usually carries quite a bit of varieties. Last I visited, he had Kohala, Biew Kiew, Sri Chompoo, Diamond River and something else I can't remember. As far as I know, most Longan cultivars flower consistently here in San Diego but some people have trouble with their trees holding fruit. I believe the fruit drop is mainly due to under watering in most cases. I water my in ground Kohala about every two days. I'm just experimenting this year. I probably don't need to water this much but I really want to see if my one year in the ground Kohala that is only a out 3 feet tall can actually bring some fruit to maturity.

My Kohala actually flowered on all three of its branches but I removed the fruit from all three branches when they were pea sized but my tree the. Flowered off the main trunk and I decided to leave it. It looks very strange. I'll try to post some pictures later.
Simon

[swfruittreeaddict]

I know they fruit in Hawaii

[simon_grow]

John, from my little experience, in dry climates, new growth on Longan are sensitive to dry strong winds although they are not as sensitive as Lychee. Damage appears to be much less notable if there is high humidity.

Here is a pic of the strange panicle on my Kohala coming out of the main trunk


Here is another picture showing the size of the fruit.

[micah]

Diamond River is nice because it fruits consistently and heavily every year here.

Hi Oscar,

How well will Diamond River produce in So Cal weather? We have two 12 feet tall kohala that only produced a few fruit this year.  We are looking for another longan tree that'll provide a consistent crop each year.

I don't know. Don't know if they've been tried? Would be worth experimenting with the Diamond River. My guess would be that they would not produce well as they come from more tropical places. But often the results will be the opposite of what you would guess, so worth trying. Another consideration would be how could hardy they are? Will they resist a frost?

i got a seedling of the diamond river longan from Oscar and its got its first bunches of fruit on it now...the tree is maybe 18ft high. small fruits so far..i tried a couple, very sweet, nice.  how big do they get when ripe? any noticable difference in color when ripe? it is 6 -8 years old...no other longan of mine is fruiting right now as well. i have the biew kieu and sir champoo.

[fruitlovers]

Diamond River is nice because it fruits consistently and heavily every year here.

Hi Oscar,

How well will Diamond River produce in So Cal weather? We have two 12 feet tall kohala that only produced a few fruit this year.  We are looking for another longan tree that'll provide a consistent crop each year.

I don't know. Don't know if they've been tried? Would be worth experimenting with the Diamond River. My guess would be that they would not produce well as they come from more tropical places. But often the results will be the opposite of what you would guess, so worth trying. Another consideration would be how could hardy they are? Will they resist a frost?

i got a seedling of the diamond river longan from Oscar and its got its first bunches of fruit on it now...the tree is maybe 18ft high. small fruits so far..i tried a couple, very sweet, nice.  how big do they get when ripe? any noticable difference in color when ripe? it is 6 -8 years old...no other longan of mine is fruiting right now as well. i have the biew kieu and sir champoo.

Diamond River fruits get same size as other longans, and turn brown when fully ripe like other longans. They also seem to hold pretty well on the tree even after being fully ripe.