What is your favorite ilama (A. diversifolia)?

[gunnar429]

I have never been fortunate enough to try an ilama, but have liked most of the annonas I have tried so I am wondering which ilamas you think are must-haves.

Thanks!

[FlyingFoxFruits]

I have never been fortunate enough to try an ilama, but have liked most of the annonas I have tried so I am wondering which ilamas you think are must-haves.

Thanks!

most of the named varieties available in FL are going to be good...

I have only tasted Guillermo...it was what I'd call upper echelon, outstanding, soil your trousers tasty....sit in a lawn chair with a shotgun, and wait for a racoon at 4 am so they don't steal your fruit, finger licking good.

[gunnar429]

Adam, do you sell guillermo?

[bsbullie]

As Adam said, all of the varieties available from any if the known Florida sources are excellent.   It ranks amongst the yops in terms of annonas.

[FlyingFoxFruits]

Adam, do you sell guillermo?

no I don't have that one grafted yet.

I had some seeds for sale earlier in the year....and I planted about 50 to sell as seedlings....I'm still waiting for them to pop up...it's been about 1 month so far.

I do have some genova reds that I'm grafting now onto pond apple....I haven't tasted genova red but I'm sure it's as good, or better than guillermo...I wonder how different they actually taste??

the best way I can describe guillermo was a cross between a san pablo custard apple and a guanabana...I could eat like 3 pounds of illama meat.

[Kona fruit farm]

Hey guys I've only heard of Ilama but never seen or tasted one... I'm intrigued.  What does it Taste like?  I only know it's an annona but in that family a Rollinia tastes much different than a soursop which tastes totally different from a cherimoya/atemoya etc.   What would you guys compare it to?  Also size wise how big are they? (Fruit and tree)  I have 3 acres of land here in Hawaii and was wondering if this tree was worth planting?

Thanks guys!!

[Guanabanus]

Ilama seedlings may take a decade to fruit.

[TREESNMORE]

I use Ilama seedlings for rootstock for Ilama.

[Mike T]

I received some red Genova seeds on this forum from Sheehan and Tomas and I planted 3.I see one of the 4 feet tall seedlings has its first flower bud.They sure are fast and thrive on neglect.

[murahilin]

I received some red Genova seeds on this forum from Sheehan and Tomas and I planted 3.I see one of the 4 feet tall seedlings has its first flower bud.They sure are fast and thrive on neglect.

Cool. Glad to see the seedlings doing well and fruiting so quickly. Keep us updated on the fruit quality.

[Mike T]

Thanks for those seeds Sheehan and it must have been 2 and a half years ago.They are spread around my local area now.

[jmc96]

I received some red Genova seeds on this forum from Sheehan and Tomas and I planted 3.I see one of the 4 feet tall seedlings has its first flower bud.They sure are fast and thrive on neglect.

Mike, do you remember if it was red Genova you sent me 2-2½ years ago?

[Mike T]

Yes from the same batch and I kept 3..................

Wait a minute it is all coming back to me now.There were 2 good red varieties and a green and the seeds got mixed.Most were red genova and that red flower bud I hope means a red variety.

[Mike T]

Jmc that one in the pot doesn't look like ilama.I received some red sarteneja bullocks heart at the same time.Are you sure it wasn't those?

[Felipe]

Ilama seedlings may take a decade to fruit.

This is a seedling (seeds from unknown origin) which is already fruiting. I'm not sure about the age, but it should be around 4-5 years, not older.

[jmc96]

Jmc that one in the pot doesn't look like ilama.I received some red sarteneja bullocks heart at the same time.Are you sure it wasn't those?

It easily grafted onto Cherimoya rootstock if that is any clue to go by.
I labelled it A. Diversifolia, can't remember anything else about it, have to wait for the flowers and fruit for proper ID, any of the above=named will be exciting. I'm going to take the top off if and when it goes dormant, which it has not done to date, so there will be plenty of scion material to spread around if it's a good species. As a side note, that's why I learnt to green graft, this thing is always in growth mode.

[bsbullie]

Felipe - how big is that fruit?  Looks different than most ilama that i have seen.

[Guanabanus]

That last picture is definitely an Ilama, and it resembles the skin type of the 'Guilhermo'.

'Genova Red' has a smoother skin, but that does not necessarily mean that all seedlings from it will resemble it.

Anything produced by sex--- even when the mother tree has sex with itself --- varies.

[bsbullie]

That last picture is definitely an Ilama, and it resembles the skin type of the 'Guilhermo'.

'Genova Red' has a smoother skin, but that does not necessarily mean that all seedlings from it will resemble it.

Anything produced by sex--- even when the mother tree has sex with itself --- varies.

Thanks, Har.

[FlyingFoxFruits]

Wow is that  annona reticulata actually in that small pot, without being rooted into the ground?

What size is the pot? 3-5 gal?

That's impressive !!

I received some red Genova seeds on this forum from Sheehan and Tomas and I planted 3.I see one of the 4 feet tall seedlings has its first flower bud.They sure are fast and thrive on neglect.

Mike, do you remember if it was red Genova you sent me 2-2½ years ago?

[jmc96]

Yes, it's a 10" or 3gal  in your money. It has spent it's whole life in coco=peat and fed a weak hydroponic mix with the odd clear water flush. The seedling has grown well in the 2 odd years of it's existence. Originally from a batch of seeds from Mike T,  we are debating whether it's in fact an Ilama or something else. It's overdue for an upsize, that's for sure.

Wow is that  annona reticulata actually in that small pot, without being rooted into the ground?

What size is the pot? 3-5 gal?

That's impressive !!

I received some red Genova seeds on this forum from Sheehan and Tomas and I planted 3.I see one of the 4 feet tall seedlings has its first flower bud.They sure are fast and thrive on neglect.

Mike, do you remember if it was red Genova you sent me 2-2½ years ago?

[FlyingFoxFruits]

definitely not illama...would bet the farm it's reticulata.

it's a beautiful specimen....you could really prune the hell out of it.

I had one that fruited in a 15 gal, but about half the size of yours and 5yrs old!!

crazy!  the seedlings are highly variable.

[FlyingFoxFruits]

JCM96

you get the award for most impressive containerized annona tree I've seen on the forum!

I wish all my 3 gals looked like that!! haha...

and think of all the labor and $$ you've saved by not putting it in a bigger pot!

most people would have gone from a 3 to a 7 to a 15 to a 25gal to get a tree that big!

[jmc96]

Thanks for the encouragement, Adam. I grow a lot of stuff this way, I have to, to compete with Mike T in Z-12, lol.  The new poly-house will lift production to new heights.
 This pic is an east Java A. Squamosa of same vintage ~2 yrs and the pineapple plants are in 1gal pots.

JCM96

you get the award for most impressive containerized annona tree I've seen on the forum!

I wish all my 3 gals looked like that!! haha...

and think of all the labor and $$ you've saved by not putting it in a bigger pot!

most people would have gone from a 3 to a 7 to a 15 to a 25gal to get a tree that big!

[murahilin]

Thanks for the encouragement, Adam. I grow a lot of stuff this way, I have to, to compete with Mike T in Z-12, lol.  The new poly-house will lift production to new heights.
 This pic is an east Java A. Squamosa of same vintage ~2 yrs and the pineapple plants are in 1gal pots.

JCM96

you get the award for most impressive containerized annona tree I've seen on the forum!

I wish all my 3 gals looked like that!! haha...

and think of all the labor and $$ you've saved by not putting it in a bigger pot!

most people would have gone from a 3 to a 7 to a 15 to a 25gal to get a tree that big!

Amazing looking plants in containers.

What soil and fertilizer do you use?