The Tropical Fruit Forum

I thought Mongongo was the tree that has seed coasts so think they only sprout after annual fires burn the shells...Maybe it's another plant but I know it's from Southern Africa and the shell has evolved to be so thick and hard it can withstand wildfires without harm.

Quote from: akanonui on July 29, 2016, 02:43:27 PM

Quote from: dwfl on July 29, 2016, 02:29:41 PM

Quote from: akanonui on July 28, 2016, 09:47:50 PM

It's funny because me here in Michigan have a fruiting and flowering miracle fruit bush, so, as long as you can bring it into a greenhouse during winter, you can grow almost anything almost anywhere.

Genuinely curious... Have you produced Sugar apples, soursop, mangoes, etc? By growing them outdoors in your Michigan summer and bringing them into your greenhouse during the looong winter? I know it can get warm and humid up there in summer

The Annonas haven't flowered yet, but should in a year or so and the mangoes I was growing just to use as rootstock. I have produced guavas, both cattley style and tropical, my miracle fruit is fruiting now but none are ripe, I have fruited Muntingia calabura, I have flowered Bunchosia americana but no fruit set, I have fruited barbados cherry, and I have a Grumichama that looks like it might start to flower soon, I had a loquat that fruited but it died because I left it out a little too late, I have turmeric, ginger and Suran that produce, and I have an orange tree that flowers every year but drops it's fruit for some reason. Most of my more rare stuff is new so it will take a while. Summer in Michigan lasts from May to September and is very hot and very humid. The fall and spring are usually tame, but then winter comes around and lasts from the end of November to March usually but can last longer, temps getting as low as -20F. I take my ultra tropicals inside around September, my subtropicals in around October, and I left my loquat out until December but there was a sudden cold snap that killed it. I have success and I have failures, but I learn from my failures and use them to plan what I'll do for next year.

Awesome... some success and fun experiments. Keep it up... Thank you for sharing.

Yeah, I hope to move to the tropics somewhere so I can grow the trees unhindered, but until then I grow in containers and bring in for winter.

Quote from: akanonui on July 28, 2016, 09:47:50 PM

It's funny because me here in Michigan have a fruiting and flowering miracle fruit bush, so, as long as you can bring it into a greenhouse during winter, you can grow almost anything almost anywhere.

Genuinely curious... Have you produced Sugar apples, soursop, mangoes, etc? By growing them outdoors in your Michigan summer and bringing them into your greenhouse during the looong winter? I know it can get warm and humid up there in summer

The Annonas haven't flowered yet, but should in a year or so and the mangoes I was growing just to use as rootstock. I have produced guavas, both cattley style and tropical, my miracle fruit is fruiting now but none are ripe, I have fruited Muntingia calabura, I have flowered Bunchosia americana but no fruit set, I have fruited barbados cherry, and I have a Grumichama that looks like it might start to flower soon, I had a loquat that fruited but it died because I left it out a little too late, I have turmeric, ginger and Suran that produce, and I have an orange tree that flowers every year but drops it's fruit for some reason. Most of my more rare stuff is new so it will take a while. Summer in Michigan lasts from May to September and is very hot and very humid. The fall and spring are usually tame, but then winter comes around and lasts from the end of November to March usually but can last longer, temps getting as low as -20F. I take my ultra tropicals inside around September, my subtropicals in around October, and I left my loquat out until December but there was a sudden cold snap that killed it. I have success and I have failures, but I learn from my failures and use them to plan what I'll do for next year.

It's funny because me here in Michigan have a fruiting and flowering miracle fruit bush, so, as long as you can bring it into a greenhouse during winter, you can grow almost anything almost anywhere.

Plantogram sells big plants that are sometimes in flowering already, but they are pretty expensive. If your heart is set on it, I would say go with that, but otherwise, I don't know.

That is very interesting. I actually can't see why they are arguing with you since the USDA zone map shows that you are correct. I still think cacao might be a plant that would be HARD but not IMPOSSIBLE to grow in the Bay Area, but in SoCal I thought I saw a tiny stretch of zone 11, so maybe it could survive outdoors there.

Quote from: akanonui on July 27, 2016, 08:07:50 PM

Quote from: Stan on July 27, 2016, 07:11:36 PM

JF  -... it was 64F three week ago in SF and freezing. I'm going to repeated again SF has the lowest summer temps in the USA

  You are deranged my man! LOL...I don't live in San Francisco.  You two don't get anything right!..what kind of experts are you?      

btw? Its 92f in Hayward right now.

It was 98f in Michigan last week, that doesn't show anything about winter lol

Well since you wanted me to volunteer to let bullie bullie me...what has Michigan in winter got to do with JF not being able to read Hayward Ca is not San Francisco Ca? How is it he brags of the "magical" soucal strip while being a total dope on bay area weather as all San Francisco?

Sorry if that came off rude, that wasn't my intention. What are your winter temps anyway? What kind of in ground plants can you grow and fruit? I am genuinely curious despite the other members arguing about your credibility.

I saw a plant for sale on eBay a little while ago for only $14.

JF  -... it was 64F three week ago in SF and freezing. I'm going to repeated again SF has the lowest summer temps in the USA

  You are deranged my man! LOL...I don't live in San Francisco.  You two don't get anything right!..what kind of experts are you?      

btw? Its 92f in Hayward right now.

It was 98f in Michigan last week, that doesn't show anything about winter lol

Wow, this is the most serious beef on this forum since the Mangifera debate lol. Clearly this isn't a big deal, you both are blowing this out of proportion.

Quote from: akanonui on July 26, 2016, 08:33:57 PM

Cola pachycarpa is a very interesting plant. It has nuts that once chewed will keep you awake for a while as they are a stimulant. The flesh of that Kola is also edible, with a pleasant sweet taste. Saba senegalensis has a spicy sweet taste, and is a relative of the Gardenia, so it stays relatively small and has pretty, nice smelling, white flowers. Anonidium mannii is still my dream plant and I would probably be putting one somewhere along with Kesusu(prainea limpato), kokum(Garcinia indica), cherapu(Garcinia prainiana), and a few other plants. But that's just me, I'm not trying to tell you what to plant. If I ever get land in a tropical area you can bet your life I'll be over crowding it with tropicals from all around the world, especially Borneo, Africa, and the Amazon.

Trust me, every plant you've mentioned thus far is on my radar, especially the new ones. It's not really a matter of if, but when. With limited resources, I have to prioritize and choose what to plant now and what to plant later. The good thing about still having empty space though is that the decisions aren't made in stone, and I'm still trying to decide what goes where, which ones to keep in a pot, and which new ones to acquire first. There's also my grandparent's yard, so I'm not completely spaceless. But to fit everything I want, I have to overpack them.

Does C. pachycarpa have a lot of pulp or only a little? Is it like Cacao in that respect, or more like a Longan? And can you swallow the seed, or just chew?

I almost bought A. mannii seeds once, but didn't go through with it. I had heard it was very variable, and I really wanted a confirmed good quality specimen. But I imagine the seeds being sent over are from the good ones, so I think I might go through with it somewhat soon.

From the Amazon, I have an order pending from Vitor. Naucleopsis ulei (said to be the best fruit he's tasted, and that's saying something given what he's tasted), Micropholis sp. and Rubus ulmifolius. He's loaded with species that are high on my wish list, but until I get a job and a good cash flow, I gotta keep my orders small and few... sparse.    I hope they clear up the shipping issues in Brazil soon. I gotta get my hands on those species!

I see what you're saying. And as for the Cola pachycarpa, the flesh is thin, but it has flesh surrounding each seed. I wouldn't eat too many seeds at once, it might cause heart issues since they have soo much caffeine

I went to Iquitos many years ago.
My luggage went to Quito, which had my malaria pills.
i got malaria when i got back (at least it waited for symptoms)
then was mis-diagnosed and almost died... (long story)

Anyway, it was before i was a fruit nut. I was there for the rainforest, to soak it in.
i stayed at some reserve on the Amazon
Food was amazing, fresh fish, fruits veggies every day.
I so wish i was into fruit then.
 I do remember soursop and what i think must have been eggfruit, or a relative.
been meaning to go back for 5 years, still havent made it.

Machu Picchu must have been a sight.

That same thing happened to someone in my group! His luggage went to Guayaqil and he had to re-buy everything it contained.