The Tropical Fruit Forum

My mulchi came from Jim West. It is slow growing but maybe not the slowest growing tree I have planted but it’s probably the slowest to fruit if anything I’ve ever planted. It’s around 20 years old and still has not flowered and I’ve got pretty good conditions. Jim was here last year and he just smiled about that.
He has it in production finally after I don’t how long. The fruit itself has a good reputation but I’ve never had the chance. The very few people I’ve spoken with who have eaten the fruit got it from wild trees, not cultivated ones.
Better be patient.
Peter

Not a weird topic.  Not so sure why you don’t just say in the header what you’re after.  With mango leaves especially this can work well if you are sensitive to smell and have an idea of what you are after.
Peter

It’s a tropical fruit and you’re not in the tropics.  There are many tropical fruits that are as hard to grow outside the tropics as mangosteen.  In the tropics it’s easy.  Just as easy as it id for you to grow stone fruit that I can’t grow here.
Peter

How are you making those extracts?
We soak chopped up vanilla in 60% alcohol for about six weeks, then strain it.  Are you talking about leaving the vanilla pieces in alcohol for 6 months or what are you doing?
We use 100 grams of vanilla per liter so it’s very expensive to make.  After we strain the vanilla out we temper the alcohol down to 40%.
I’d be interested to hear the details of your process.
Thanks, Peter

I sell a wide variety of tropical fruits.  The fruit with the widest appeal is easily mangosteen.
The tropical fruit with the most dedicated and determined customers is the durian.
Both of these fruits are truly tropical and heartily enjoyed.
Peter

That tool can make a cut that gives you a very clean fit. But it can be inconsistent. But what I personally don’t like is that the graft joint is very short.
Peter

While we were in the woods it was surprising how few bites we got. Not an issue at all in the field.  Jay had some issues at the hotel over an unscreened vent in his room.  But the collecting went smoothly.
Peter

You can air layer cacao for sure. You can probably, with very good practice, root cuttings.
Peter

Hi, I don’t really know anything about Tahaitensis.  I’ve never heard of anyone growing it here.  It has a good reputation internationally. But I’m wondering if it’s best for you as it is grown in the lowlands.  Still, I don’t see anything wrong with trying it. Everything is a bit of an experiment and you see what works.
Suerte!

I do have a lot of expat clients but they aren’t all US people there’s lots of Europeans and other Latins. The other half are Costa Ricans. Costa Rica has a culture of farmers markets held in most towns large or small. There is some government support for these markets.
Vanilla is a high end product that probably wouldn’t sell well if there weren’t expats or rich ticos but there is still lots to sell the people that aren’t likely to buy vanilla. Ticos are serious buyers of fresh fruit, chocolate, dried fruit, plants, lots of stuff.
Peter

For looking for the plinia costarricense you might look on Facebook for a guy named Roy Carballo. Roy has been to the tree you want to see and lives in San Ramon.
Suerte!

I can’t provide information on the p. costaricensis but Puerto Viejo is a good idea, that’s where I am at Finca la Isla which you can find on Googlemaps. Anther area that could be good is the southern Pacific side. There a good Thursday farmers market at San Isidro, general. The Puerto Viejo farmers market is Saturday morning. Puerto Viejo has fruit sold on the street, even durian in season. Your budget is limited as CR is kind of expensive. Hostels could be the way to go although you might find a farm stay.
Peter