Kitchen Rubbish - The Secret to Annona Fruit Set?

[Cookie Monster]

A couple of months back, a Vietnamese fellow was visiting, and I was telling him about my bad luck with annona fruit set. He told met that the secret is to put rotting fruit at the base of the tree, which attracts some sort of pollinator. He said that what he does is to simply plant a carambola right next to his annonas (the carambolas fall and rot).

So, I tried it. We now toss all of our fruit scraps at the base of my Lisa atemoya. Right now I have a dozen fruits, and practically every flower is setting. The tree has only been in the ground for about 18 months, so 12 fruits (with more in the way!) is fairly impressive, especially considering that I've never had any luck with annonas in the many years that I've grown them.

I know part of the success is due to excellent car by Har in addition to the fact that this is a tree grafted by Zill's HPP and is on cherimoya rootstock.

Has anybody else had similar experiences?

[Seadation]

Hi Jeff, I have been doing the same with my gefner every small mango that fell from my trees went under my tree and even though I am hand pollinating when I can I am noticing an increase in the number if fruits my tree had and when I go to hand pollinate I am seeing the pollinators already in the flowers.

[GwenninPR]

I was told that is the secret for cocao trees also.  And it works for me.
 I will try it around the annonas!

[TropicalFruitHunters]

Well, they say to hang rotting meat in paw-paw trees to attract flies!  Every now and again, I will get these tiny little "beetles" for lack of any other description that has been found inside my annona flowers.  I've noticed that I get fruit set without hand pollination when these are around.  Next time I find one, I'll take a pic and see if anyone can identify.

[Patrick]

I have noticed tiny flying beetles when collecting pollen as well.. They seem to pollinate, but not a whole lot.  Maybe the smell of fermenting fruit mimics the smell of the flowers.

[Future]

Dr. Campbell of Fairchild recommends this for mango trees.  Hoverflies in particular are attracted if I recall.

[SWRancher]

Thanks for the info, I have to try this with my Lisa Atemoya and sugar apple trees.

[Dexter_FTG]

Sounds like an easy fix. I get super excited everytime any of my annona's start to bloom.... only to watch the flowers fall again and again without setting fruit. Even though I take rejection well, I'm excited to try it and hope for the best!

[Guanabanus]

Sounds good.   Then to keep the fruit set from being dropped, maintain soil moisture and mineral nutrition, including Boron and Zinc.

[Coconut]

A couple of months back, a Vietnamese fellow was visiting, and I was telling him about my bad luck with annona fruit set. He told met that the secret is to put rotting fruit at the base of the tree, which attracts some sort of pollinator. He said that what he does is to simply plant a carambola right next to his annonas (the carambolas fall and rot).

So, I tried it. We now toss all of our fruit scraps at the base of my Lisa atemoya. Right now I have a dozen fruits, and practically every flower is setting. The tree has only been in the ground for about 18 months, so 12 fruits (with more in the way!) is fairly impressive, especially considering that I've never had any luck with annonas in the many years that I've grown them.

I know part of the success is due to excellent car by Har in addition to the fact that this is a tree grafted by Zill's HPP and is on cherimoya rootstock.

Has anybody else had similar experiences?

Yes I know that guy Michael, he is probably one of the best annona breeder & exporter of jumbo size Annona to Japan & China High end Market. He said in Japan he can get 50.00 per fruit for his Red & Green Dragon.  He has in Vietnam a thousand hectares in just a. Squamosa Chewy & he is back in Vietnam now adding on another 5 K hectares.  He gave me one of your wife Marie's edible flower vines.  He is crazy always looking & grabbing anything to put in his mouth.  Yeah I send him & his billionare friends from Taiwan, folks in the black Mecedes SUV over to you guy, cause a friend told me you have the best tasting giant Jaboticaba & they want to try it!  I have been learning alot of secret from him; those folks are the most successful fruit plantation owners & real down to earth!  Michael bought a runt luc Mangosteen from you.  When he saw my twenty Luc Mangosteen he decide to give to me for Bonsai!  You folks really make them Welcome, Unfortunately I am left with Baby sitting their impulse buy from you.  I hope they finish their Mansion so I can Evict like 50 plants they bought from a few other place in Miami.  Michael mention about you dumping pile of mulch all over your back yard, he like the ideas, so you help him too. Thankyou for babysitting them for the day!  They like your wife extraordinary way of  doing business.  I am sure when their Taj Mahol finish here in Florida, they see you again! 

[Cookie Monster]

Yes, that's the guy! He said he had a sugar apple that produces fruits weighing 2 pounds!

The flower vine is called loroco. Flowers and leaves are edible.

A couple of months back, a Vietnamese fellow was visiting, and I was telling him about my bad luck with annona fruit set. He told met that the secret is to put rotting fruit at the base of the tree, which attracts some sort of pollinator. He said that what he does is to simply plant a carambola right next to his annonas (the carambolas fall and rot).

So, I tried it. We now toss all of our fruit scraps at the base of my Lisa atemoya. Right now I have a dozen fruits, and practically every flower is setting. The tree has only been in the ground for about 18 months, so 12 fruits (with more in the way!) is fairly impressive, especially considering that I've never had any luck with annonas in the many years that I've grown them.

I know part of the success is due to excellent car by Har in addition to the fact that this is a tree grafted by Zill's HPP and is on cherimoya rootstock.

Has anybody else had similar experiences?

Yes I know that guy Michael, he is probably one of the best annona breeder & exporter of jumbo size Annona to Japan & China High end Market. He said in Japan he can get 50.00 per fruit for his Red & Green Dragon.  He has in Vietnam a thousand hectares in just a. Squamosa Chewy & he is back in Vietnam now adding on another 5 K hectares.  He gave me one of your wife Marie's edible flower vines.  He is crazy always looking & grabbing anything to put in his mouth.  Yeah I send him & his billionare friends from Taiwan, folks in the black Mecedes SUV over to you guy, cause a friend told me you have the best tasting giant Jaboticaba & they want to try it!  I have been learning alot of secret from him; those folks are the most successful fruit plantation owners & real down to earth!  Michael bought a runt luc Mangosteen from you.  When he saw my twenty Luc Mangosteen he decide to give to me for Bonsai!  You folks really make them Welcome, Unfortunately I am left with Baby sitting their impulse buy from you.  I hope they finish their Mansion so I can Evict like 50 plants they bought from a few other place in Miami.  Michael mention about you dumping pile of mulch all over your back yard, he like the ideas, so you help him too. Thankyou for babysitting them for the day!  They like your wife extraordinary way of  doing business.  I am sure when their Taj Mahol finish here in Florida, they see you again! 

[Coconut]

He lie to you Jeff, he had stuff bigger unknown yet to the world. He has develop 24k golden pine apple tasting chewy with pink flesh & it is pure A. squamosa) he mention Zanzibar or Madagascar where he got the parents & he is going to call it Golden Arrowana.  Yes being the perennial sceptic person  I put in two  Taiwanese everbearing Golden honey starfruit one under my Petch Pakchong & the other under my Nua thong.  It is no kitchen rubbish, my petch Patchong in front of house have no fruit, the nua thong & petch patchong in back with fermenting starfruits have ton. Of fruit set like over thirty without hand pollination.  I am going to leave the front pet Pakchong alone from star fruit so I can hand cross it with Big Eyes. I just hope the HOA not sending letter about the smell of moon shine in the back off house...dam noisy Nazi I have living in Boac Raton! 

What is even a joy was my Whitman Worthless Fiberless soursop have set a dozen fruit where none last year for a 25 foot tree that done nothing for five years, I am renaming it Whitman Fiberless, let us see if this repeat during the second season cropping, that this kitchen rubbish is not just a one time phenomenon.  I am sure when you produce that much sugar apples hand pollination would be a major cost. Oh he mention you have never been apple to grow a. Squamosa in your place due to it being a swamp??  I might have a swampy chewy self pollination A. Squamosa apple that can handle wt feet better than most for your swampy nursery best jabo for a trade; its not pond apple, although I am close to getting a tasty pond that so dam seedy. 

You got that best tasting Jabos that they rave taste better than PIN or F&SP that they visited for a trade? The one they said your wife pull several ton out from a bottomless freezer that could fit a body or two. Michael is an exciting guy but when he get this excited about a jabo fruit eaten for the first, like the Grim Reaper, I am deathly interest in it.  My red jabo just flowering so I like to grow another one with large fruit?

Whitman fiberless

[Cookie Monster]

HAHAHAH we fill our freezer with fruit over the summer when it's plentiful and then my wife makes smoothies for the rest of the year :-)

I'm not sure why the annonas do so poorly in my yard. I think it's due to the oolitic limestone 6 inches or so beneath the soil. The canal also seems to generate a lot of fog which leads to fungal issues. The lisa on cherimoya rootstock is the first one to actually grow and produce full sized leaves for more than the first year.

Good news on your soursop!! I tore my soursop out years ago because it failed to produce. This time, I'll give the new one plenty of kitchen garbage :-).

Our jaboticaba is just the normal jabo (forget the scientific name), but it's probably 30 years old. My wife watered it a lot to get the fruits bigger :-).

[Coconut]

Jeff there is so many strains of sugar apples from so many countries.  The stuff sital from India I swear they grow in the desert & thrive without water. The chewy from mekong delta grow very well on alluvian & oolith soils, they are humid like the Darien of Panama. I ran in to some of the so called chewy from cambodia, its not swamp adaptable.  I learn not to read too much in a country name but dig deeper for the details. I spray my place with water to keep humidity  high year round to get good natural fruit set without hand pollination, seem go keep a year round pollinating beetles populations..  My soil is oolith six inch under too but I am not in the flood zone, in fact its in the high spot of Boca raton.  S. Annona like it on the dry side but strain develop in the Mekong can handle them.  I have five Boca Chewy Aqua, a sub selection of Golden chewy grown next to a pond in  fruity acres royal palm incorporate.  Perhaps we can field trial at your London Fog nursery to see if it could produce a boat load for your bottomless freezer!

[Cookie Monster]

HAHAHAH that would indeed be awesome! I love annonas. If I can find one to fruit on my property, I'll be the happiest kid in romper room!

[Coconut]

Kool Jeff give me month to repot one for you! 

[Cookie Monster]

Whoo hoo!!

Kool Jeff give me month to repot one for you!