Author Topic: My tropical/subtropical garden in Fresno.  (Read 1933 times)

DSotM

  • Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 138
    • Fresno, ca 9B
    • View Profile
My tropical/subtropical garden in Fresno.
« on: April 25, 2019, 01:49:50 PM »
Hi guys,

For the past two years I’ve been adding tropical fruiting plants to my yard. There’s not much documentation for Central Valley exotic fruit growing, so hopefully my limited results can help or inspire some others in my climate area.

We experience 108s regularly in the summer and 28f is a typical absolute low in the winter.

I’ve learned a lot in my short time growing. I killed a couple mangoes, huge papaya that I grew from seed :(, and a white sapote last year from overwatering.

The link is an album on imgur, I’m not sure if there’s a more appropriate way to post images.

http://imgur.com/a/4bxeHkc

I have a jackfruit and a June plum waking up from frost damage. If anyone has an idea of what the tall, mature banana varieties are I’d love to know. I bought them on Craigslist and have no idea if they are edible. I’ve removed a handful of them and replaced them with named cultivars. Some of the smaller bananas are goldfinger, dwarf namwah, dwarf cavendish, dwarf lady finger, and dwarf Mysore. I’ve got dragon fruit crawling up my queen palms that seem to get enough protection from their canopy and residual heat to make it through winter without damage. Passion fruit have tons of flowers and fruit forming. My ice cream mango is in full bloom and the mango in the front yard is a Valencia pride, also blooming with fruitlets. My avocado is mexicola, shaded from afternoon sun by my banana stand.

Tropic white guava is against my home and under an eve. Keitt mango and Hass avocado are against the concrete west facing wall, closely sheltered by my house opposite of it. I’ve got a Jamaican cherry flushing in the front yard. Capulin cherry with fruitlets also against my west facing wall.

Please ask if you have any questions on what plants I’ve posted or care I’ve put into them. The layout of posting an album make it difficult to post a description for each photo, but I did just want to document this for future reference. Thanks!

tve

  • Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 121
    • Santa Barbara, CA
    • View Profile
    • Intro post
Re: My tropical/subtropical garden in Fresno.
« Reply #1 on: April 25, 2019, 03:56:43 PM »
Looking nice! Lots of plants in a small space :-). What types of bananas are you growing? Do you plan to protect them in the winter?

DSotM

  • Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 138
    • Fresno, ca 9B
    • View Profile
Re: My tropical/subtropical garden in Fresno.
« Reply #2 on: April 25, 2019, 04:41:53 PM »
I’m not sure what variety the large ones are. The smaller ones are goldfinger, dwarf namwah,  dwarf lady finger, and dwarf Mysore. I don’t plan on protecting them, their pstems are typically hardy to my light frosts.

tve

  • Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 121
    • Santa Barbara, CA
    • View Profile
    • Intro post
Re: My tropical/subtropical garden in Fresno.
« Reply #3 on: April 25, 2019, 05:10:31 PM »
Interesting, I'm curious to see your experience. I'm in the Santa Barbara mountains at 2100'. Low this past winter was 29F-30F. I have a young/small Goldfinger in the ground and it looked pretty bad. It was a young plant, just 2' tall, and almost everything turned to mush. One sucker made it and the second largest pstem. The largest pstem didn't. The plant is on a slope, so not a cold air drain, but it's not anywhere near buildings or asphalt. It is in front of a huge south facing boulder, but we had cold & wet weather when we hit the low temps, so virtually no solar gain during the day. (Interestingly, our lows are typically a tad higher than much further down the mountain and in the foothills because cold air drains up here.)

NateTheGreat

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 501
    • SF Bay Area, 9B
    • View Profile
Re: My tropical/subtropical garden in Fresno.
« Reply #4 on: April 25, 2019, 10:27:11 PM »
How many winters have these been through?

DSotM

  • Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 138
    • Fresno, ca 9B
    • View Profile
Re: My tropical/subtropical garden in Fresno.
« Reply #5 on: April 25, 2019, 11:23:27 PM »
Aside from the large bananas just one winter.

Tve my goldfinger was only a few feet tall this weekend, in complete open location. The leaves died but the pstem held up, but eventually died back when the suckers started more vigorous growth. I think this year with full size pstems and having two rather than one that it’ll be just fine. I’m surprised to hear your lows are that low in the Santa Barbara thermal belt

NateTheGreat

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 501
    • SF Bay Area, 9B
    • View Profile
Re: My tropical/subtropical garden in Fresno.
« Reply #6 on: April 26, 2019, 02:10:12 PM »
Aside from the large bananas just one winter.

Good luck. I can tell a lot of time and money went into this. I suspect the tall bananas are a hardier ornamental type.

spaugh

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 5126
    • San Diego County California
    • View Profile
Re: My tropical/subtropical garden in Fresno.
« Reply #7 on: April 26, 2019, 03:34:23 PM »
Is it a mulberry and loquat planted a foot apart?
Brad Spaugh

DSotM

  • Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 138
    • Fresno, ca 9B
    • View Profile
Re: My tropical/subtropical garden in Fresno.
« Reply #8 on: April 26, 2019, 06:30:47 PM »
Aside from the large bananas just one winter.

Good luck. I can tell a lot of time and money went into this. I suspect the tall bananas are a hardier ornamental type.

I’ve assumes so, which is why I’ve replaced them with named varieties. They do lose their leaves

DSotM

  • Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 138
    • Fresno, ca 9B
    • View Profile
Re: My tropical/subtropical garden in Fresno.
« Reply #9 on: April 26, 2019, 06:31:44 PM »
Is it a mulberry and loquat planted a foot apart?

Nice eye. The loquat was a relic from my father in law’s house when he moved and the mulberry is supposed to be a dwarf everbearing. I plan to keep them both as bushes

DSotM

  • Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 138
    • Fresno, ca 9B
    • View Profile
Re: My tropical/subtropical garden in Fresno.
« Reply #10 on: January 09, 2020, 12:49:37 PM »
Here are some updates shots from around my garden during winter. Passion vine completely filled in my trellis and pergola. Got a fruit off ice cream mango and Valencia pride.