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Topics - zands

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151

Tropical Fruit Discussion / Mini-mangoes in Vietnam

« on: September 08, 2012, 01:56:10 PM »

This is from the Daley's nursery facebook page. Daley's is outside of Brisbane Ausralia. Are these mangoes or ma-prang?

from facebook>>>
I don’t know which cultivar they are or where they are grown; I buy the fruit in the market here in Nth Vietnam. The fruit might come from Sth Vietnam or could be imported from China or other SE Asian countries. I’d like establish some of these trees in Australia so if anyone knows if they are available in Australia, please let me know.
April 5, 2011 at 12:14am · Like

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1535606764971&set=o.136114716791&type=3&theater

152

Tropical Fruit Buy, Sell & Trade / Big Jim Loquat -- any Florida nurseries that have it?

« on: September 07, 2012, 10:56:40 AM »

Big Jim Loquat -- any Florida nurseries that have it?

I have wild or seedling loquats near me I can forage that are landscape plantings at a condominium complex. But it would be nice to have a larger variety at home. Thanks!

Jim Neitzel, considered by many to be the dean of San Diego County rare fruit growers. This man bred and came up with this large loquat named after him.
http://www.sandiegoreader.com/news/2012/aug/22/cover-made-san-diego/?page=2

More on the Big Jim http://hanburyhouse.com/big-jim-loquat/

You can see how large it is compared to a USA quarter. The feral ones I can get are the size of a quarter or a bit more.

zzzZZZZ

153

Tropical Fruit Discussion / September Keitt tree says extend don't pretend

« on: September 03, 2012, 11:33:44 AM »

Extending the mango season
September 3rd today and my neighbor said it was the best year his 20ft Keiit tree had. His tree is about 10 years old. Only had 6 fruits last year so it must have been saving for this year. There are still 50-60 fruits on the tree. My guess is these last fruits are 15% of the total which I have seen earlier. One fruit was eaten by animals....Going to clean it up and try it later

Photo above you can see perennial peanut as a ground cover here. His backyard is covered by it and boniato vines too in a small section. His peanut comes from the great Bill Whitman's yard when he visited years ago with the Broward rare fruit club. Just one peanut sample from Mr Whitman's yard is what Keitt neighbor started with. http://www.amazon.com/Decades-Tropical-Fruit-William-Whitman/dp/0971140200/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1346687252&sr=8-1&keywords=bill+whitman+fruit

More Keitt tree yard pix

154

Tropical Fruit Discussion / Papaya pugging

« on: August 02, 2012, 10:15:16 AM »

I have three papayas that were left in pots too long. They were getting tall and leggy without many leaves. So I pugged them yesterday. They have no leaves now. They are one inch diameter where I pugged. Should I protect the top with an aluminum foil cap secured with a rubber band? Because water will pool at the top and maybe rot it? Papayas are segmented like bamboo and water will pool in the tippy top since I pugged

Should I just let them be?
If I can get some leaf growth I will be planting them

Thanks!

155

Tropical Fruit Discussion / What mango varieties do you still have left on your trees?

« on: July 21, 2012, 07:55:59 AM »

Lets face it, you may have a diverse collection with lots of nice tastes but they mostly came in, in a 7 week period from late May to July 15th (roughly speaking). The peak of South Florida mango season is over. Most of your trees are finished for the year. At this moment I have no ripe mangoes to eat (kind of pissed) though I do have a Kent tree with a few unripe ones. Reason I am asking is to fill in this gap.

I have a Gold Nugget but the fruits are 3-4 weeks away
Neelam but a month away from ripeness

What mangoes do you have right now that you can eat and for the next few weeks into mid August. You can call these mid season mangoes or mid to late season mangoes. Thanks!

156

Tropical Fruit Discussion / 10 Health Benefits of Mangos

« on: July 20, 2012, 07:21:03 PM »

http://www.care2.com/greenliving/10-health-benefits-of-mangos.html

Mangos taste so good that people forget they are also healthy! Discover how the “king of fruits” can help you, plus fascinating trivia and a few mango cautions and concerns.

Health Benefits:

1. Prevents Cancer:
Research has shown antioxidant compounds in mango fruit have been found to protect against colon, breast, leukemia and prostate cancers. These compounds include quercetin, isoquercitrin, astragalin, fisetin, gallic acid and methylgallat, as well as the abundant enzymes.

2. Lowers Cholesterol:
The high levels of fiber, pectin and vitamin C help to lower serum cholesterol levels, specifically Low-Density Lipoprotein (the bad stuff)

3. Clears the Skin:
Can be used both internally and externally for the skin. Mangos clear clogged pores and eliminate pimples. (Read more on page 5.)

4. Eye Health:
One cup of sliced mangoes supplies 25 percent of the needed daily value of vitamin A, which promotes good eyesight and prevents night blindness and dry eyes.

5. Alkalizes the Whole Body:
The tartaric acid, malic acid, and a trace of citric acid found in the fruit help to maintain the alkali reserve of the body.

6. Helps in Diabetes:
Mango leaves help normalize insulin levels in the blood. The traditional home remedy involves boiling leaves in water, soaking through the night and then consuming the filtered decoction in the morning. Mango fruit also have a relatively low glycemic index (41-60) so moderate quantities will not spike your sugar levels.

7. Improved Sex:
Mangos are a great source of vitamin E. Even though the popular connection between sex drive and vitamin E was originally created by a mistaken generalization on rat studies, further research has shown balanced proper amounts (as from whole food) does help in this area.

8. Improves Digestion:
Papayas are not the only fruit that contain enzymes for breaking down protein. There are several fruits, including mangoes, which have this healthful quality. The fiber in mangos also helps digestion and elimination.

9. Remedy for Heat Stroke
Juicing the fruit from green mango and mixing with water and a sweetener helps to cool down the body and prevent harm to the body. From an ayurvedic viewpoint, the reason people often get diuretic and exhausted when visiting equatorial climates is because the strong “sun energy” is burning up your body, particularly the muscles. The kidneys then become overloaded with the toxins from this process.

10. Boosts Immune system
The generous amounts of vitamin C and vitamin A in mangos, plus 25 different kinds of carotenoids keep your immune system healthy and strong

157

Tropical Fruit Discussion / Mostly front yard photos

« on: July 18, 2012, 11:59:45 AM »

A few photos from my front yard mostly.

old pine tree just cut down by my friend and I. The seedling mango on the right was being shaded by it, as you can tell from the way the branches grew where there was more sun shining on the mango's right side

pine sap oozing out of stump

desert rose -- adinium

front yard streetwise banana fruiting

my best shaped tree -- 10 ft high Carrie planted 2008, a 3 gallon from Lowe's. It would be larger but I did not fertilize in 2008,2009,2010 due to imbibing Fairchild garden advice to only give mangoes potassium

Planted last week....Lula avocado. Looks awful due to being in pot to long because I did not know where to plant it. To revive this I planted it with lots of Walmart $1.40 composted cow manure which is 50% sand (I measured it) anyway. Also gave it Excalibur 8-3-9 on planting day. Lots of nitrogen I know

Red Jamaican given to me. Hard to tell but two small pups in this photo. About 18" tall. I am looking forward to this getting large and beautifying my front yard. Small edible bananas too.

Muscadine on wire trellis. Ison black variety from bought at Bender's Grove tag said Pine Island nursery..... plus another unknown variety muscadine from Home Depot. I cemented in these wood posts. It is a continuation of the neighbor's ficus hedge with its invasive roots which I will deal with. Neighbor's bananas in the background.

Pina Colada mango. A Zill from Jeff Hagen. Looks scraggly but give it time

Hey you get offa my cloud and get offa my lawn. These signs come down when the mangoes are finished. Gold nugget aka golden nugget mango. Birds like to stand on mangoes and peck downward at the fruit. So I placed CD's on the mangoes to try and prevent

south facing wall muscadine. Southland variety bought at Bender's Grove plus a Home Depot unknown muscadine

I propped up this fruiting banana. Do it early before your tree keels over from weight of fruits. As the banana bunch gets larger it will pull down your tree. Also after all the young bananas have shown themselves, cut off the remaining red thing hanging from them. This "red thing" takes food from your bananas and helps weigh down, pull down your banana plant

158

Tropical Fruit Online Library / Turning wood chips into compost by Jean Pain

« on: July 16, 2012, 08:58:26 AM »

http://burlingtonpermaculture.weebly.com/uploads/4/2/8/9/4289790/anotherkindofgarden.pdf

Another kind of garden

The methods of Jean Pain

159

Tropical Fruit Discussion / Iron Sulfate foliar sprays for chlorosis

« on: July 11, 2012, 07:39:37 AM »

Impacts
Application of chelated iron to the soil has become a standard practice for growing tropical and subtropical fruit trees in calcareous soils. However, chelated iron is extremely expensive. In subtropical and tropical fruit orchards in south Florida, chelated iron can represent up to 80% of the total fertilizer cost and up to 50% of the total agricultural chemical costs for subtropical and tropical fruit production. There is obviously a need for a cheaper alternative to the application of chelated iron for preventing or alleviating iron deficiency in fruit crops grown in calcareous soils. Foliar applications of weak acids or weak acids combined with iron sulfate is a much cheaper alternative to chelated iron for preventing iron deficiencies in subtropical fruit and tropical fruit crops. Thus there is the potential to significantly reduce production costs thereby making the subtropical and tropical fruit industry more globally competitive. In addition to the tremendous costs associated with soil applications of chelated iron, soil applied iron chelates can be easily leached from the root zone if irrigation is excessive. Leaching of chelated iron away from the root zone not only wastes very costly iron fertilizer, but also has the potential for polluting the groundwater aquifer, which in south Florida is only a few meters below the soil surface. Therefore, in addition to potential huge financial savings, this research has the potential to reduce environmental pollution from leaching of soluble iron from the soil into the groundwater.

More here>>>>>>

http://www.reeis.usda.gov/web/crisprojectpages/0203864-foliar-acid-applications-to-prevent-iron-deficiency-in-tropical-fruit-crops-grown-in-calcareous-soils.html

Summary>>>
A foliar of iron sulfate plus an acid such as citric or sulfuric can be very effective and less expensive than the iron chelates used at the roots or as a foliar. Chelated iron can be 80% of fertilizer expenses in tropical and subtropical fruit orchards

Here is the rest of this study>>>>

Goals / Objectives
The overall objective of this project will be to evaluate foliar applications of weak (citric, ascorbic and dilute sulfuric) acids as cost-effective alternatives to the current standard practice of applying very expensive chelated iron to calcareous soil to prevent iron deficiency in tropical and subtropical fruit trees. The specific hypotheses to be tested are: 1)foliar applications of weak acids will decrease the pH of the leaf apoplast of trees grown in calcareous soils, thus increasing the bioavailability of iron and preventing or eliminating iron deficiency 2)incorporating the spraying of weak acids into an orchard management program will provide a more cost effective means of preventing iron deficiency in subtropical and tropical fruit crops than the current practice of applying chelated iron to the soil.
Project Methods
Greenhouse experiments will be conducted with common commercial cultivars of one to two-year-old avocado (Persea americana Mill.), carambola (Averrhoa carambola L.), lychee (Lychi chinensis L.)and pond apple (Annona glabra L.) trees. Plants will be purchased from commercial nurseries. Trees will be transplanted from the nursery media into pots containing Krome very gravelly loam soil that has been collected in the field at TREC. After three months, trees of each species will be divided into the following treatments: 1) foliar application of ascorbic acid and no iron applied to the soil, 2) foliar application of citric acid and no iron applied to the soil, 3) foliar application of dilute sulfuric acid and no iron applied to the soil, 4) no foliar application and no iron applied to the soil, and 5) no foliar acid application and chelated iron applied to the soil at a recommended rate (0.5 oz/tree). Orchard experiments will also be conducted at TREC with avocado (cv. Booth 7 on seedling rootstocks), carambola (cv. Arkin on Goldenstar rootstock) and lychee (cv. Brewster). Treatments applied to orchard trees will be the same as those applied to the plants in the greenhouse except that foliar sprays will be applied to orchard trees every two weeks with an air-blast sprayer for two consecutive years. In greenhouse and orchard experiments, leaf chlorophyll index will be measured periodically from mature (hardened off) and young (recently fully expanded) leaves of each tree with a SPAD chlorophyll meter. The pH of the leaf apoplast will be measured with an ion-selective microelectrode. Concentrations of Fe3+ and Fe2+ and total extractable iron in the leaves and total extractable iron in the soil will be determined in the greenhouse and orchard experiments. Immediately before imposing treatments and one year after treatments are applied, height and trunk diameter of trees in each treatment in the greenhouse will be measured. Greenhouse trees will harvested about one year after initial treatment applications and dry weights of leaves stems and roots of plants in each treatment will be determined. In the orchard experiment, trunk diameter (10 cm above the soil surface) will be measured before treatments are imposed, after one year and just prior to termination of the experiment. Fruit from trees in each treatment in the orchard will be harvested when fruit are mature and fruit number and weight per tree will be determined. Economic analyses will be performed at each stage of the assessment to ensure that the technologies tested and generated are cost effective and sustainable.
Progress 09/15/06 to 09/14/07

Outputs
The following treatments were applied to carambola, lychee and avocado trees in orchards in southern Florida: 1) foliar application of ascorbic acid - 2 g/L, 2) foliar application of citric acid - 2 g/L, 3) foliar application of sulfuric acid - 100 mg/L, 4) foliar application of ascorbic acid plus iron sulfate 5) foliar application of citric acid plus iron sulfate, 6) foliar application of sulfuric acid plus iron sulfate, 7) chelated iron applied to the soil, and

no iron or acid applied to the plants. However, treatments 2 and in an avocado orchard, trees received all treatments except for treatments 1 and 3. In the carambola and lychee orchards all foliar applications of acid plus iron sulfate resulted in leaves that were as green or greener (as determined with a SPAD meter) than those of the soil-applied iron treatment and greener than the control treatment that received no iron applications to the foliage or soil. The effects of the acid plus ferrous sulfate treatment were greatest with ascorbic and sulfuric acids for both species. The effects of foliar sprays on re-greening of leaves were first visibly detectable after two foliar applications of acids plus ferrous sulfate. For carambola and lychee, total leaf iron concentration and ferrous iron concentration in the leaves were greater for all of the acid plus iron foliar applications and soil iron application treatment than the controls or the acid only foliar treatments. There were no statistically significant differences in sap pH among treatments. Treatments in the avocado orchard were initiated later than treatments in the lychee and carambola orchard because it took time for avocado trees in an orchard to become sufficiently chlorotic for the study. In the avocado orchard, after six treatments, foliar sprays of ascorbic acid plus iron sulfate resulted in leaves that were as green as those of plants receiving soil applications of chelated iron. There were no statistically significant differences in leaf sap pH among treatments. However, ferrous iron concentrations in the leaves were greater in the soil applied iron or foliar acid plus iron treatments than in all other treatments. Total leaf iron concentration in avocado was highest for the sulfuric acid plus ferrous sulfate and citric acid plus ferrous sulfate than the other treatments. Preliminary economic analysis for carambola, lychee and avocado orchards indicated that foliarly applied acids plus ferrous iron is a much cheaper alternative to the current standard practice of applying chelated iron to the soil.

Impacts
Application of chelated iron to the soil has become a standard practice for growing tropical and subtropical fruit trees in calcareous soils. However, chelated iron is extremely expensive. In subtropical and tropical fruit orchards in south Florida, chelated iron can represent up to 80% of the total fertilizer cost and up to 50% of the total agricultural chemical costs for subtropical and tropical fruit production. There is obviously a need for a cheaper alternative to the application of chelated iron for preventing or alleviating iron deficiency in fruit crops grown in calcareous soils. Foliar applications of weak acids or weak acids combined with iron sulfate is a much cheaper alternative to chelated iron for preventing iron deficiencies in subtropical fruit and tropical fruit crops. Thus there is the potential to significantly reduce production costs thereby making the subtropical and tropical fruit industry more globally competitive. In addition to the tremendous costs associated with soil applications of chelated iron, soil applied iron chelates can be easily leached from the root zone if irrigation is excessive. Leaching of chelated iron away from the root zone not only wastes very costly iron fertilizer, but also has the potential for polluting the groundwater aquifer, which in south Florida is only a few meters below the soil surface. Therefore, in addition to potential huge financial savings, this research has the potential to reduce environmental pollution from leaching of soluble iron from the soil into the groundwater.

Publications
Crane, J.H., B. Schaffer, W. Montas. 2007. Effect of ascorbic acid plus ferrous sulfate on leaf greeness of carambola (Averrhoa carambola L.) Trees. Proc. Fla. State Hort. Soc. (in press).Crane, J.H., B. Schaffer, Y.C. Li, E.A. Evans, W. Montas, C. Li. 2007. Effect of foliarly-applied acids and ferrous sulfate on iron nutrition of avocado trees. Proc. VI World Avocado Congress, Vina del Mar, Chile (in press).
Progress 09/15/05 to 09/14/06

Outputs
For subtropical and tropical fruit crops in calcareous soil, foliar applications of weak acids with or without iron sulfate were tested as alternatives to applying expensive chelated iron to calcareous soil to prevent iron deficiency. In a greenhouse study, avocado (Persea americana), carambola, (Averrhoa carambola), lychee (Litchi chinensis), and pond apple (Annona glabra) trees in pots containing calcareous soil received the following treatments: 1) foliar application of ascorbic acid - 2 g/L, 2) foliar application of citric acid - 2 g/L, 3) foliar application of sulfuric acid - 100 mg/L, 4) foliar application of ascorbic acid plus iron sulfate 5) foliar application of citric acid plus iron sulfate, 6) foliar application of sulfuric acid plus iron sulfate, 7) chelated iron applied to the soil, and

no iron or acid applied to the plants. The same treatments were applied to carambola, lychee and avocado trees in orchards. However, because deionized water was used for greenhouse treatments and well water was used for orchard treatments, the concentrations of acids were adjusted for the orchard treatments to achieve the same pH as in the greenhouse experiments. Various spreader/stickers were tested with each acid plus iron sulfate formulation prior to initiating the treatments. All spreader/stickers tested except Freeway resulted in brown spots on the foliage indicating poor spreading and absorption of iron. Therefore, Freeway was added to all of the foliar treatments. Also, prior to initiating treatments, all treatments were tested for phytotoxicity and none was observed. Treatments were applied at 2-3 week intervals. Leaf chlorophyll index, a measure of leaf greenness, was measured periodically from five mature and five young leaves of each tree with a SPAD chlorophyll meter. The pH of the leaf sap, total iron concentrations in the leaves and soil and ferrous iron concentrations in the leaves were determined periodically. For carambola and lychee trees in the greenhouse and orchards, all foliar applications of acid plus iron sulfate resulted in leaves that were as green or greener than those of the soil-applied iron treatment and greener than leaves of the controls. All foliar acid treatments without iron resulted in leaves that were slightly greener than the controls but not as green as the other treatments. In the greenhouse study, avocado and pond apple in the control treatment did not show any symptoms of iron chlorosis, so there were no significant effects of the foliar acid treatments with or without iron sulfate. Avocado treatments in an orchard have just been initiated and data will be collected soon. Leaf and soil iron concentrations are still being analyzed from greenhouse and orchard studies. Preliminary economic analysis indicated that foliarly applied acids plus ferrous iron is a much cheaper alternative to the current standard practice of applying chelated iron to the soil.

Impacts
Application of chelated iron to the soil has become a standard practice for growing tropical and subtropical fruit trees in calcareous soils. However, chelated iron is extremely expensive. In subtropical and tropical fruit orchards in south Florida, chelated iron can represent up to 80% of the total fertilizer cost and up to 50% of the total agricultural chemical costs for subtropical and tropical fruit production. There is obviously a need for a cheaper alternative to the application of chelated iron for preventing or alleviating iron deficiency in fruit crops grown in calcareous soils. Foliar applications of weak acids or weak acids combined with iron sulfate is a much cheaper alternative to chelated iron for preventing iron deficiencies in subtropical fruit and tropical fruit crops. Thus there is the potential to significantly reduce production costs thereby making the subtropical and tropical fruit industry more globally competitive. In addition to the tremendous costs associated with soil applications of chelated iron, soil applied iron chelates can be easily leached from the root zone if irrigation is excessive. Leaching of chelated iron away from the root zone not only wastes very costly iron fertilizer, but also has the potential for polluting the groundwater aquifer, which in south Florida is only a few meters below the soil surface. Therefore, in addition to potential huge financial savings, this research has the potential to reduce environmental pollution from leaching of soluble iron from the soil into the groundwater.

Publications
Publications

Crane, J.H., B. Schaffer, W. Montas. 2007. Effect of ascorbic acid plus ferrous sulfate on leaf greeness of carambola (Averrhoa carambola L.) Trees. Proc. Fla. State Hort. Soc. (in press).
Crane, J.H., B. Schaffer, Y.C. Li, E.A. Evans, W. Montas, C. Li. 2007. Effect of foliarly-applied acids and ferrous sulfate on iron nutrition of avocado trees. Proc. VI World Avocado Congress, Vina del Mar, Chile (in press).

Outputs
OUTPUTS: Iron deficiency is a major problem of many tropical tree species grown in calcareous soils. Applying chelated iron to calcareous soil is efficacious but very expensive. The effects of foliarly applied organic acids and organic acids plus ferrous sulphate (Fe) on iron nutrition of avocado, carambola and lychee trees in calcareous soil was investigated in southern Florida. Trees in orchard and greenhouse studies received the following foliar treatments: ascorbic acid (AA alone), ascorbic acid plus FS (AA+Fe), citric acid plus FS (CA+Fe), and sulphuric acid plus (SA+Fe). Additional treatments were chelated iron (EDDHA-Fe) applied to the soil 3 times at 27-28 day intervals and a control receiving no iron or acid (CNT). All foliar treatments included the organosilicone adjuvant, Freeway. Later, additional tests were conducted comparing soil applications of chelated iron to foliar applications of ferrous iron with and without the organosilcone adjuvant and the solution adjusted to various pHs. Data collection included total and ferrous iron content in leaves, leaf greenness as determined with a SPAD meter, plant growth, and yield. In general, applications of weak organic acids were only slightly effective at reducing iron deficiency. However, foliar applications of iron sulphate combined with the organosilicone adjuvant was almost as effective at preventing or eliminating iron deficiency as soil applications of chelated iron. Foliar applications of ferrous sulphate with no adjuvant were not effective at preventing iron deficiency and all other adjuvants tested resulted in phytotoxicity or poor absorption of foliarly applied iron. Economic analysis indicated that foliar acid-iron treatments were about 60 to 88% less costly than soil applications of chelated iron. Further tests are underway to determine the best application rates and timing of foliar sprays for preventing iron deficiency to tropical fruit crops growing in calcareous soil. Future studies will also focus on a combining of soil applications of chelated iron with foliar iron sulphate sprays to determine if combining the two would be the best compromise between cost effectiveness and prevention of iron deficiency. Results have been disseminated to growers and extension workers through workshops, field demonstrations, presentations at state, national and international horticultural meetings and publications in non-refereed journals. Results will eventually be published in refereed journals after some additional data are collected. PARTICIPANTS: Bruce Schaffer, P.I., Project coordinator and designer. Responsible for oversight of all aspects of the project Yuncong Li, Co-PI., Coordinator of nitrogen analysis. Jonathan Crane, Co-P.I., Management of field applications and field data collection Chunfang Li, Senior Biologist, Assisted with data collection and data analysis and maintenance of experimental plots. Wanda Montas, Senior Biologist, Assisted with data collection Mike Gutierrez, Research Technician, Assisted with data collection TARGET AUDIENCES: Tropical fruit growers and extension personnel in areas with calcareous agricultural soils. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: The methodology for sap pH collection was too variable to be scientifically useful. Therefore, data for this variable was not collected after the first year. During the first 2 years of the study, there were several hurricanes and storms that significantly reduced fruit yields in the field. Therefore, yield data was not collected until the last year for the study. however, we will continue treatments and continue to collect yield data for at least 2 years after this study is terminated.

Impacts
Application of chelated iron to the soil has become a standard practice for growing tropical and subtropical fruit trees in calcareous soils. However, chelated iron is extremely expensive. In subtropical and tropical fruit orchards in south Florida, chelated iron can represent up to 80% of the total fertilizer cost and up to 50% of the total chemical cost for subtropical and tropical fruit production. There is obviously a need for a lower cost alternative to the application of chelated iron for preventing or alleviating iron deficiency in tropical and subtropical fruit trees grown in calcareous soils. Thus there is potential to significantly reduce production costs and thereby make the subtropical and tropical fruit industry more globally competitive. In addition to the tremendous costs associated with applications of chelated iron to orchards, chelated iron can be leached from the root zone if irrigation is excessive. Leaching of chelated iron away from the root zone not only was very costly iron fertilizer, but also has the potential for polluting the groundwater aquifer, which in south Florida is only a few meters below the soil surface. Therefore, in addition to potentially huge financial savings, this research has the potential to reduce environmental pollution from leaching of soluble iron from the soil into the groundwater.[/size][/font][/left]

160

Tropical Vegetables and Other Edibles / Good organic vegetable gardening videos

« on: July 06, 2012, 10:06:09 AM »

http://www.youtube.com/user/Reaganite71/videos

He has a sense of humor plus good advice

161

Tropical Fruit Discussion / Vermiculite or perlite for potting soil?

« on: July 05, 2012, 09:40:29 AM »

Which do you use?
Here is one discussion
http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/load/rmgard/msg0421444930650.html

this potting soil will be used for mango transplants, not for pot culture, but pot culture comments are appreciated too

162

Tropical Fruit Buy, Sell & Trade / Nice Mombin trees available at "Cookie Monster" nursery, aka jacote and hog plum

« on: July 03, 2012, 11:28:49 AM »

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spondias_purpurea

LINK to his nursery Talk to Jeff's wife Elsy. She has very nice mombin trees aka jacote aka hog plum that grow a large size fruit with sweetness and no sourness. Mombin, A very nice fruit that is peaking right now in S Florida. I ate some at his place....never had any before. They are listed as a mango relative in one well known book

163

Tropical Fruit Discussion / Fairchild --- The perfect perimeter mango. No one will take them

« on: June 26, 2012, 01:24:23 PM »

Here are three Fairchild. Two fell yesterday and one was taken off tree. They will all be ripe in a day or two. No one steals them even though one tree is ten feet from the street. Small green mangoes do not excite people. Green translates into unripe. I have had Glenns and Kent taken this year, Keitt taken in 2011, but no Fairchild.

July 2012 update. 5 Haden taken, one premature Kent, one Glenn. Zero Fairchild taken.

So for front yards etc....I like Fairchild
Anyone have other favorite stealth mangoes?

164

Tropical Fruit Buy, Sell & Trade / Good deals on garden items at Walmart

« on: June 24, 2012, 06:16:18 PM »

Made in USA!
50¢ for either one. I really like the simple hose shut-off valves..... They allow you send a stream of water about 20ft. They act like a spray nozzle. I bought some of each because plastic gets broken and the sun will deteriorate it

I also noticed WalMart has composted cow manure for only $1.24 a bag plus 40lb bags of conventional 10-10-10 fertilizer for $11. I bought a few bags of the cow manure and some 10 10 10........Both less expensive than at Home Depot. 10-10-10 is good on bananas, on lawns, probably papayas. You can frequently sprinkle some on a compost pile to make it ready sooner. The nitrogen in it breaks down your brown materials such as leaves and wood chips.
This 10-10-10 has quick release nitrogen so can burn plants and no minors such as iron, copper zinc. It is not a premium (more expensive) fertilzer like Excalibur's 8-3-9 and the Citrus, Avocado, Palm fertilizers you will find at Lowes and Home Depot that are recommended for mangoes and other fruit trees

Walmart garden centers vary from store to store. One that is further from me has the hard to find pine bark fines used in potting mixes. It is sold as pine bark mulch @ $3 a large mulch sized bag, same size bag as the other mulches

165

Tropical Fruit Discussion / Nam Doc Mai #4 flushing.... Keitt tip pruning too

« on: June 23, 2012, 09:11:00 AM »

This tree didn't fruit this year which is bizarre since it is 12 ft tall. So some of that energy is going into growth and flushing. On all this not yet hardened new growth I scratched off the tiny terminal bud with a pointed knife as a way of tip pruning it. To get further branching out from that point. An experiment, shall see what happens

A larger Glenn mango tree is behind it with a few new growth flushes. The fruits were good, not washed out.

166

Tropical Fruit Discussion / Analysis of fruit tree fetilizers from Excalibur and Home Depot

« on: June 21, 2012, 12:41:32 PM »

Here is what these premium fruit tree fertilizers have as far as NPK numbers (nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium) and minor elements such as iron and copper. All their nitrogen is coated for slow release so harder to burn plants plus nitrogen available every day. Your typical 10-10-10 and 6-6-6 have quick release nitrogen

prices---- Excalibur 50lbs for $20
Both Home Depot fertilizers are 40lbs for $18

NPK 8-3-9 from Excalibur nursery Palm Beach plus the same is available from some county rare fruit clubs

the following in percentages >>>>>

magnesium 3.0 sulfur 5.74 calcium .60 manganese .49 copper .05 iron .63 zinc .50 boron .05 molybdenum 00%

Note---- this 8-3-9 has slow release potash. Plus iron is in the form of iron oxide

from Home Depot their Vigoro brand of fertilizers

citrus & avocado NPK 6-4-6 (also used for mangoes)

the following in percentages >>>>>

magnesium 1.0 sulfur 6.0 boron .02 copper .05 iron 1.0 manganese .05 molybdenum .0005 zinc .05

from Home Depot their Vigoro brand of fertilizers

palm and ornamentals NPK 8-4-8 fertilizers (would probably be good for your fruit trees)

the following in percentages >>>>>

magnesium 1.1 sulfur 3.0 boron .02 copper .05 iron .8 manganese 1.0 molybdenum .0005 zinc .05

167

Recipes / Watermelon rinds --- keep them and juice them

« on: June 17, 2012, 09:24:54 AM »

Don't chuck your rinds!!
Most of the time I keep the rinds and juice them. Today I juiced them with half a lemon (lime is better) then stirred one tsp of 30,000 unit cayenne into it. Go to an Indian grocery for cayenne at a good price. Ginger and apples juice well with these rinds

After stirring it in let sit the juice sit for at least 10 minutes for the cayenne to diffuse
I have not tried it yet but this lemon+watermelon+ ginger juice would be good at night with a shot of gin, vodka or Jim Beam

I don't slobber saliva over my watermelon. I cut away the red meat from the rind then eat with a fork or spoon. Mangoes, another story, there is no avoiding getting mango juice on your hands and face

A good thing?

It's all good

168

Tropical Fruit Discussion / Heavy mulching of neighbor's Keitt mango tree

« on: June 13, 2012, 10:03:23 AM »

Not my yard!!

But this guy near me uses loads of wood chips from tree trimming crews. As much as one foot thick. He uses horse manure and compost but no NPK fertilizers
--Below you will see his Keitt mango tree
--Jamaican red banana and little pups poking out of mulch
--Sunflowers

Red banana

pups pups pups

pup or puppy?

Keitt dripping with mangoes

More dripping

Heavily mulched mango tree. 12" deep mulch in most places.

Heavily mulched mango tree

Here is the chipped trees from a tree trimming crew dropped off in his driveway a few months ago. Used to mulch his trees keitt mango, canistel, hap ip lychee and lula avocado and banana

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Last two photos are from my place--
Banana climbing above roof. Langra Barnarsi mango in foreground

My best mango tree this year. Haden mango with about 35 fruits but I wish it had more. Planted in 2008. Was bought in 7 gallon size from Spyke's nursery. Small Neelam in the background

169

Tropical Fruit Discussion / Anyone using 20-20-20 Water Soluble fertilizer from Southern Ag?

« on: June 05, 2012, 06:34:52 PM »

label--- http://www.southernag.com/docs/labels_msds/sol20.pdf

This also has chelated micronutients:
boron
manganese
copper
molybdenum
iron
zinc

More >>> http://www.amazon.com/Southern-PowerPak-20-20-20-Fertilizer-micronutrients/dp/B00725LGAO/ref=lh_ni_t

******* Seems to me this would make a great foliar for fruit trees and it is not expensive

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another similar product>>>>>>

Ingredients in Miracle-Gro 24-8-16 (NPK) Water Soluble All Purpose
Plant Food (fertilizer), Available anywhere:

Nitrogen (N) - 24% (3.5% Ammoninacal N, 20.5% Urea N)
Available Phosphate (P) (P2O5) - 8%
Soluble Potash (K) (K2O) - 16%
Boron (B) - .02%
Copper (Cu) - .07%
Iron (Fe) - .15%
Manganese (Mn) - .05%
Molybdenum (Mo) - .0005%
Zinc (Zn) - .06%

Derived from: Ammonuium Sulfate, Potassium Phosphate, Potassium
Chloride,Urea, Urea Phosphate, Boric Acid, Copper Sulfate, Iron EDTA,
Manganese EDTA, Sodium Molybdate, and Zink Sulfate.
see: http://www.regulatory-info-sc.com

170

Tropical Fruit Buy, Sell & Trade / Bali Red Lotus ||| wanted -- tubers or seeds

« on: June 05, 2012, 12:29:09 PM »

Is anyone growing this? Can it be grown in a pot or does it need a pond?

thanks!

171

Tropical Fruit Discussion / Change of venue to West Palm Beach for 4th Global Mango Conference.

« on: June 03, 2012, 10:08:52 PM »

http://mangoworldmagazine.blogspot.com/2012/05/imo-announces-change-of-venue-for-4th.html

By Will Cavan
Executive Director
International Mango Organization (IMO)
Vista, California

www.mangoworldmagazine.blogspot.com

CINCO DE MANGO

Saturday May 05, 2012

After one year of planning, The Government of Trinidad & Tobago has unilaterally changed the previously agreed upon date for the 4th Mango festival and IMO Global Mango Conference that was originally scheduled for the weekend of June 28-July 01, 2012.

The decision was made without consultation and has been set for the weekend of 5-8 July 2012.

As a result the IMO has been forced to reshedule the venue for the 4th Global Mango Conference.

The new site for the event will be:

Marriott Hotel
1001 Okeechobee Boulevard ·
West Palm Beach, Florida 33401 USA

The focus of the event will be the history of Mango in USA with an emphasis on Caribbean cultivars.

Visits to local Mango Production are scheduled in addition to the previously scheduled Day Conference.

Here is the letter from the IMO:

Mrs. Gia Taylor - Gaspard
President
Network Rural Women Producers (Trinidad & Tobago)

Dear Gia;

The decision made by the Ministry of agriculture in Trinidad & Tobago to change the date of the mango festival has put the IMO in a very awkward position.

Our Global mango conferences are supported by members of the International mango Community and we are not able to change dates without causing major disruption to the schedules of both our speakers and attendees.

After much thought and consternation, the IMO regrets to inform you that we must change the venue of our event and will not be participating with your organization this year.

Please bare in mind that this decision was not taken without consulting various sources and supporters of the IMO.

The IMO has spent more than one year in consultations with your organization and patiently waited for a firm commitment from you before announcing the date for our Global Mango Conference.

On January 30th of this year, we were given that date by you and we went forward accordingly.

Last month you announced the unilateral date change by your Government for your mango festival.

This behaviour is unacceptable and rather irresponsible, not to mention inconsiderate of the IMO's condition as a partner in the event.

We wish you success with your Mango festival.

Sincerely,

Will Cavan
Executive Director
International Mango Organization (IMO)
Vista, California

172

Tropical Fruit Discussion / At what length are you tip pruning and tipping hardened or un-hardened growth?

« on: June 02, 2012, 11:23:11 AM »

Mango tip pruning is the most common though I understand other fruits trees can be tip pruned

The title says it all. Fairchild Gardens say tip at 20". People here have posted about tipping at as little as 6" and doing it on a non-hardened flush
What new flush branch length are you tip pruning at? and.....
Tipping hardened or non-hardened growth?
Also tip at how many leaf nodes in the new growth??
Are you tipping trees besides mango? Are you trying to grow a small bushy avocado or other fruit tree this way?

173

Tropical Fruit Discussion / Advice for judging canistel ripeness & when to pick them

« on: May 31, 2012, 02:19:59 PM »

I am posting this for a friend. He has an 8 year old tree. Variety unknown and if grafted unknown. He bought it at the Broward Rare Fruit club so it is probably grafted. Sometimes he waits for more ripeness, then the fruit falls off and animals eat it. So any tips are appreciated and he will read them here

Thanks!

174

Tropical Fruit Discussion / Claims they are Haden seedlings

« on: May 30, 2012, 05:50:37 AM »

Just read that the Glen mango is (allegedly) a Haden seedling http://www.foodista.com/food/F5PSXWSL/glenn-mango

Numerous Florida mangoes have been described as Haden seedlings. I am beginning to doubt this.. My theory is these are seedlings of any kind that were planted and yielded a good-excellent mango that got filtered through rare fruit clubs on up to Zill and Pine Island where they got propagated to the peasants & proletariat

175

Tropical Fruit Buy, Sell & Trade / Aldi in SE Florida had $3.99 seeded watermelons

« on: May 20, 2012, 08:40:44 AM »

Seeded watermelons are getting harder to find in Broward County...Target gets them in. Publix rarely. Winn Dixie gets them. My local Walmarts used to but now only have seedless

These at Aldi (store locator) are nice firm watermelons. Aldi seems to have some good quality control on them. Weight is about 15-20 lbs. I have bought three so far this year and not one dud. Seeded watermelons are the real deal. Don't waste time on the seedless. Don't throw out the rind. Juice it with some apple and ginger or by itself