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You probably got a hybrid or variation, but hard to say. Looks a lot like the flowers on the giant granadilla we grew a while back, don't think it was red either.
I may be the proponent of netting that skhan was referencing. I grow my citrus in containers under a protective netting. For sure it’s not aesthetically pleasing, but if you can get over that, citrus is not that hard in S. Florida. The one thing I have noticed with the netting is that the trees are more prone to fungal issues as the netting gets wet and retains moisture and restricts airflow. Here’s a pic of my Excalibur red lime with some fruit.
I have a Tango and a Sugar Belle in the ground covered in netting which will remain for 2-3 years, when hopefully the trees will be large and healthy enough to sustain the inevitable HLB psyllid damage and produce some healthy fruit.
Interesting, I’ve heard they can be pretty precocious for some growers in south Florida…I wonder who has had good productivity luck with young OS trees (assuming not many growers have OS trees over 5 years old)
FruitGrower and Flgarden, what problems did you have with the trees, e.g., growth habit, disease, etc.? Thanks!
P.S. if my coffee plants go, I'll add that to the list of trees I gave up on . . .
Citrus are one of the hardest types for me to grow. While I do not have to worry about HLB, I do have to make sure their potting mix is just right and constantly defend them from spider mites.
Sapindaceae are probably the most difficult for me. I've managed to keep one lychee alive long-term but with the exception of that lychee and the generally easy-to-grow Mamoncillo, I've killed many other plants in that genus. I've given up on growing rambutan or pulasan.
usually the tap root will coil itself in the pot, and cause the interior structure to malform to the point that they cannot transport water and nutrients efficiently-
Some species appear to be more resilient to this, maybe have a mechanism for stopping growth on the taproot? maybe just better at surviving off feeders?
Either way Artocarpus, Durio, and Canarium all seem to have this problem
Cerrado species IME also can have this problem as they have huge taproots to deal with the long droughts in their native region-
One of the major advantages to air layered plants for container growing is no taproot- also an old saying from bsbullie (i think is where I heard it) on here is that when shopping for trees at a nursery go for the smallest ones that haven't filled out the pot yet and put them in the ground immediately.
People typically go for the largest ones to get the most bang for their buck but root structure is very important to the long term health of some trees
Artocarpus always get too big too quick and choke themselves off
Most difficult to grow trees are
based on location...for example many struggle with cerrado species. Well if you live in the Brazilian cerrado, they grow wild.
Other example, mangosteen and durian. If you're in FL, they are gonna be hard to fruit and grow. If you're in Thailand, they're gonna be way easier.
For me, hardest are ultra tropicals so I don't mess with them. Other than that, nothings been too hard, just the cerrado species some are hard like plinia nana.
I have a few available.
Can try to grow from seeds are pretty easy
Thanks for all the replies!
Much gratitude for your post and offer FruitGrower. This helps me a lot. I will be contacting you in June for sure.
Gotta spot for a med to large tree, so even if it's hard to keep in check, won't be a problem.
Got a tree coming tomorrow =)
Hello everyone.
Is anyone growing Ma'afala (or any other breadfruit) in Miami-Dade or Homestead area? Any info on flowering and fruiting, harvest? Thinking of adding a tree and wanted to hear about other's experiences.
Also, how good is the fruit? I'm looking for something to cook with, and wondering how realistic it is to use breadfruit as a regular food source. Love potatoes, yucca, malanga, boniato, and all kinds of stuff like that, but not easy to grow them in my yard. Medium size tree would work.
Have eaten some in past while in the Caribbean, but has been a while.
In Florida it's best to dig a big hole and fill with potting soil or compost because the sand and shells here is junk other than a small amount in the mix.
We did an oak tree with a huge hole of potting soil like 20 years ago. It's huge now you would think it's 50 years old. Even my grapes don't want to grow in this sand. The pepper trees seem unstoppable though. They must take nutrients out of the air or something. Nothing in these shells and sand except calcium. Very low nitrogen and even if you fertilize it doesn't hold nutrients just washed into the waterways causing algae blooms. The plant will get a little. The compost will hold water and nutrients.
Thanks 1rainman. Glad you posted here.
Ive got a decent mango tree collection now but would like to add a few more trees.
Just curious if planting mango trees too close to septic tank or drain field could burn the tree or ruin my septic system.
Im aware that mango trees have long taproots but I’m not educated on their’ root systems well enough to answer this one.
How close is too close?
Thanks
Abe
I plugged in my address (St Petersburg, Fla) and it shows me in a green circle with the message: You are more than 5 miles from an HLB detection (colored boxes).
I guess the means that my citrus trees are relatively safe for now? I thought surely I would be in a hot zone.
Out of curiosity I plugged in my location and got the same message. I know for sure HLB is in my area as I have lost over a dozen trees to it, so I would be careful coming to the conclusion that your citrus is safe, just from that info.
Thanks for checking. I would like to see some other Floridians chime in with their results.
Incidentally, I received an email from a UF biologist letting me know the little wasps are being overnighted to me next Tuesday.
I plugged in my address (St Petersburg, Fla) and it shows me in a green circle with the message: You are more than 5 miles from an HLB detection (colored boxes).
I guess the means that my citrus trees are relatively safe for now? I thought surely I would be in a hot zone.
