I notice there is increasing availability of sapodilla for sale at Asian and Hispanic supermarkets around LA and Orange Counties.  They have sticky labels on them with nispero/chico.  They come in different sizes some egg size, some larger, indicating that they are different varieties.  The one thing they have in common is that they are very green, hard to the touch and have no scent at all.  They are not cheap.  A recent visit to the supermarket finds them at $7.99 per pound.

My question is if any forum members have bought them.  Are they worth it and will they ripen properly on the counter?  Thanks for your input.

I love reading your post and your sprouting system using sand.  Please keep us posted.

Once they sprout and multiply, how much sugarcane are you planning to propagate?

Beautiful garden and such healthy looking trees.  Where did you get the yellow dragonfruit?

I second recommendation to grow from seeds.  I too have ordered from Aloha Seeds.  You get more variety and the seeds germinate and grow well in Southern California.

I have a mature Sweetheart in the San Gabriel Valley area.  I have had it in the ground for about 11 years.  It is now about 7-8 ft tall and about that size wide with a large drooping canopy.  No matter how to try to shape it, the new growth keeps drooping to the ground especially when they hold fruits.  The first 6-7 years, I would get inconsistent blooming and may be lucky to get one fruit.  The last 2-3 years, the blooming is more regular.  Right now, there are many panicles of flower buds, even with the dry winter that we have had.  Last year, I had a good harvest.  I think the cool spring in May and early June 2017 helped the fruitlets to hold.  Usually, the heat of late May to early July just beat up on the fruitlets and they would drop like flies.  As you know by now, growing lychees in Southern California is a challenge.  If it would be easy, you would have seen locally grown lychees in the markets some time ago. 

Your tree being 4 ft tall is just too young.  I would just enjoy it growing and give it time.  If you are like me, you would get rewarded in due time.  Surprisingly, my lychee tree has grown quite well.  The major wind storm 6 years ago caused some large branches to break.  But it has recovered well since then.  The tree branches are quite weak.  A heavy sustained wind can easily snap a branch or two.  Good luck.

Where can we get a hold of any of the tree variety that you mentioned, Frank?  Thanks for your input.

I often wonder how the commercial cherimoya orchards get fruits to harvest.  I.e., do they have to rely a lot on hand pollination to ensure fruit setting?

I know it was not the goal of the author of this post, but I find it interesting to get reports of cherimoya prices elsewhere outside of California.  The Farmers Markets in the San Gabriel Valley have consistently had prices in the $8-9/lb.  Some of the fruits are small like the runts of the litter.

Thanks for the advice.  I will buy some manilla rootstock plants and wait for the late spring to enquire about mango scions.

Jbaqai,

For a tree that is in pot, your tree looks so healthy and green.  What and how often do you fertilize your tree?

Mikey,

According to the information in this link https://www.crfg.org/pubs/ff/cherimoya.html, cherimoya requires chilling for 50-100 hours to thrive.

Since we are on this topic, can someone here confirm or refute that atemoya actually is superior to Na (in taste, texture, size)?

Thanks for the input.

Simon,

I bought some California-grown Keitt mangos from Wong Farm at the Pasadena Farmers Market last weekend.  I talked to the vendor and he told me that Keitt should be available for another 2 weeks.  I bought two mangos at $6/lb, not cheap but I wanted to try California-grown mango.  I also bought some last year.  I kept the mangos for about 2-3 days until they felt a little soft to the touch.  I thought this year's Keitt tasted better than last year.  The vendor had several boxes stacked 5-6 high.  If you really want them, come to the Pasadena Farmers market this weekend.  It is held on Saturday morning on the parking lot of Pasadena High School, FYI.