Author Topic: One last good fruit tree spot in the yard. What would you pick if you were me?  (Read 1634 times)

chrobrego

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I have one last excellent spot for a fruit tree in my yard. I live in Orlando Fl (9b).  The problem is I can't decide what to put there.

I already have a ton of mangos (always a great choice), three lychee trees, four avocado trees, two saps, pitomba, jaboticaba, Barbados cherry, atemoya, guava, persimmon, Pakistan mulberry, sweet belle orange, limes, longan, white sapote and carambola -- all in the ground.  I was thinking a black sapote tree but it gets too cold here. Kwai Muk maybe? 

What would you put in that spot if you were in my place?

hammer524

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i'd go Kwai Muk, stands a little out of the pack

nullzero

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Probably go a Eugenia pyriformis (sweet selection) or Mexican garcinia.
Grow mainly fruits, vegetables, and herbs.

Rispa

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I would put Meyer lemon.

achetadomestica

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my 2 small seedling kwai muk froze off 2 years ago and only one came
back from the roots. last year it froze off again and is coming back again.
My point is it is cold sensitive also

johnb51

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Any interest in peaches?
John

TonyinCC

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Tropic Snow is a great early peach. Small to medium size fruit,relatively low fuzz exterior, white flesh with some pink. Small freestone pit,excellent flavor. ZERO pit cracking in my experience, I hate cracked pits. I grew Tropic Snow in the Charleston,SC area and was very pleased with it. Fruited early enough that it needed no fungicide sprays, but I did need to spray it with Imidan for Plum Curculio.(weevills) If that pest is not present, you may not need to spray it at all.
« Last Edit: June 22, 2022, 10:32:19 AM by TonyinCC »

Gulfgardener

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Wait, you have mangos, lychees, and longan in ground but it gets too cold for Black Sapote?  I thought they were more cold tolerant than mangos at least. Just trying to understand because maybe I got it all wrong. 

I recommend a nice fig tree that you can graft a bunch of varieties on to. They can take the cold and heat.

EDIT: I saw your other post about them being about as hardy as Jackfruit. Got it!
« Last Edit: June 22, 2022, 12:03:08 PM by Gulfgardener »

Timbogrow

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Might not be a bad idea to grow something for chop n drop there so you have biomass for your good trees. I'm glad I left some native trees and recently got the leaf bagger for riding mower. It's amazing the amount of material it picks up and you can use by your trees. Havnt bought mulch since I picked it up.

johnb51

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I recommend a nice fig tree that you can graft a bunch of varieties on to. They can take the cold and heat.
Figs are great if your soil doesn't have nematodes that attack the roots.  I'm not really sure how widespread the harmful kind are in Florida.
https://gardeningsolutions.ifas.ufl.edu/care/pests-and-diseases/pests/nematodes.html
« Last Edit: June 22, 2022, 01:46:09 PM by johnb51 »
John

Epicatt2

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Figs are great if your soil doesn't have nematodes that attack the roots.  I'm not really sure how widespread the harmful kind are in Florida.
https://gardeningsolutions.ifas.ufl.edu/care/pests-and-diseases/pests/nematodes.html

To the OP:  If you might should be leaning towards putting in a fig it is important to keep the ground around it thickly mulched  That is because, to thirve, the nematodes need the soil to be exposed to sunlight.  If the ground is kept heavily mulched it suppresses the nematodes. 

I read about a carpenter in Sarasota FL who mulched his fig trees with used kitchen doors and cabinet doors from remodeling jobs that he did.  His fig trees grew and produced well and did not get root nematodes.  (Just sayin' . . . . )

OK — HTH

Paul M
==

RS

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Sugar apple, pomelo, Avri or peluche loquat, rainforest plum...so many options!

johnb51

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Thanks, Paul, for the fig information.
John

bradflorida

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LSU purple fig was bred for nematode resistance.  Mine does great in the ground here in Sarasota, FL.
Brad

Epicatt2

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LSU purple fig was bred for nematode resistance.  Mine does great in the ground here in Sarasota, FL.

Good info to have, Brad, for those of us here in west central Florida about LSU Purple's nematode resistance.

I've been keeping mine in a 7-gallon pot and it grows well enough (better than my Brown Turkey and Green Ischia - also in pots).  I'm encouraged now to try the LSU Purple in the ground.  I'll still mulch it but mostly because my yard is so sandy that it drains quite quickly and the mulch will help hold some moisture in the soil.

What do you find is the most useful fertilizer for your figs in Sarasota, Brad?

TIA

Paul M.
==

johnb51

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I planted LSU Purple years ago, but in very sandy soil near the coast without heavy mulch.  It wouldn't grow after the first few months, and the roots never developed.  It might be worth trying again at some point.
« Last Edit: June 24, 2022, 02:54:26 PM by johnb51 »
John

Upurock

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Jamaican Cherry aka strawberry tree 👍
Mulberries: Pakistani, White Shahtoot, Thai Dwarf, Worlds Best, Jan’s Best, Valdosta, Maui
Banana: Dwarf Namwah, Ice Cream, Unknown
Mangos: Cogshall, Honey Kiss, Neelam, Ice Cream
passion fruit
Mysore raspberries
Evergl tomatos
Hass Avocado
Jamaican cherry
Barbados cherry
Sugar Apple

achetadomestica

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The compost attracts beneficial nematodes which eat the nematodes that eat the roots
of the fig. I fertilize with as much organics as possible along with keeping
mulch around the trees. I have a LSU purple that has been in the ground for 7-8
years and going strong. I also have a celeste that is surviving. I have lost other fig trees
over the years usually during the Winter. Another good thing about LSU purple is it
has produced figs pretty much year round. The figs that ripen June through September
are very washed out and often split. The rainy season ruins them.
if I moved to a new property and started over I probably wouldn't plant a fig in Florida.
If I did it would definitely be a LSU Purple

Plantinyum

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Not fammiliar with your climate ,desease pressure and so on, my votes would be cherimoya, dragonfruit, pomello, tamarillo, guava....  be sure to plant the better varieties of those. ..
« Last Edit: June 24, 2022, 02:32:17 AM by Plantinyum »

Tropheus76

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I am in East Orlando. Unless you have non-native topsoil, do not just plant a fig. Our nematodes are vicious and will devastate even the LSU purple. I tried it. If you have grey sand then dont waste your time. Even mulching around it and using a lot of organic material will not protect them. It works if the land was topped with non-sand but a little bit here and there as in the case of digging a hole and putting in good dirt wont work.

What can work if you really want figs is to cut the bottom of a 5 gallon bucket, dig a hole deep enough to place bottomless bucket with about 2 or three inches poking out above the ground level. Then fill it will good organic soil and plant the fig in that. Mulch heavily around it and ensure stuff from outside doesnt grow into the bucket or it will contaminate it and you will lose the tree.

I would plant peaches, scarlet plums, or more lychees. I am impressed with your tree list, I struggle in the winter with keeping my mangoes alive and lost my black sapote years ago.

K-Rimes

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Depends on how tall / how big the space, but a solid selection of eugenia planted in a ring would be a consideration of mine.

Fiddler

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Will macadamias grow in Orlando? They've become my favorite here in Sarasota County. I wish I had planted more of them fifteen years ago. My Beaumont was the best producer, but it caught some kind of fungal disease and quickly died a few years ago.

roblack

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Depends on how tall / how big the space, but a solid selection of eugenia planted in a ring would be a consideration of mine.

I have a mound of mulberry trees. Doing something similar with eugenias, but more spread out. Several smaller trees vs one medium-large tree?

Galatians522

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You have a lot of tropicals, I would hedge my bets by planting something that does not need freeze protection. Loquats are nice because they bear in the winter/early spring when there is not much other fruit. The trees are also very ornamental and fairly pest resistant (fruit flies and fire blight being the two main exceptions).