Fruit trees I gave up on

[eggo2]

This is an interesting topic lol.  There's been a few trees where I just completely gave up on.

Around 20 years ago I got 2 longan airlayer varieties from Florida at a time where usually u could only find Kohala here.  It was Sri Champoo and Edaw. It was directly from the man that first brought it from Thailand and introduce it to Florida. For the life of me, I can't remember his name but if anyone knows, let me know.  In all, that time I was never able to get a single ripe fruit from them, blooms profusely, but barely held fruit and when it did the fruit never quite ripen. To this day, I still don't know why as I hear other had successes in California. Well I topworked both trees about 4 years ago. I get fruit from those top work now, ahah.

Another was ilama. Maybe 15 years ago i obtained some seeds.  Babied the few seedlings that I got. Got 1 to live. Grafted that seedling branch onto my cherimoya. Took a few years but it flower. It was a pain to pollinate as it didn't accept any other Anona pollens.  When I did get fruit, it tasted like a sweet potato to me. But kept waiting for it to get better or maybe I thought I did something wrong.  Gave up on it a couple years ago and topworked the branch. I just leave it at just bad luck and poor variety ahah.

[fruitnoob]

My loquat tree is slated to go to make room for my jujube. I bought the loquat tree because I heard it was one of “preppers” fruit trees. when the tree fruited last year, the fruits tasted so sour it was disappointing.

Highly recommend topworking it, or trying them when they are only dark orange. Loquat is an absolute keeper and there are some excellent varieties. Cannot fathom replacing it with jujube personally...

Loquat is a keeper because it is the only tree that ripe in early spring.  A good cultivar tastes great.

I would not recommend planting jujube because of suckers and invasive roots.  It is worse than bamboo.

Update: I decided to keep the loquat tree after reading comments from K-Rimes and seng. Today, my wife picked about a dozen of fruits off the tree and they tasted so sweet and flavorful. The tree is a keeper now.
Thanks folks.

[Mike T]

When it comes to disappointment with fruit trees nothing delivers like Eugenias in terms of fruit low quality and sourness compared to descriptions offered when you got them. For those hooked on pain grow mangabas, I did. Seedling sapodillas, durians, lansiums and a few other species including cambuca and giant mulchi can offer a different kind of disappointment as the years roll by and no fruit appear.
Growing cold climate stuff in a hot area can test patience also like CORG and all its perturbations. Yes feijoa and tamarillo, babaco and so many others are mongrels in a warm climate. Cassowary you can grow dwarf brown turkey and genoas and even get the occasional fruit with full sun and excellent drainage. Dwarf regular and shathoot mulberries can be grown also and even have a few fruit. BTW sunbirds mainly eat insects and the honeyeaters have long tongues to get nectar.

[Kankan]

Chopping:

Arabian White Guava-Hard and tastes like pine cones...really all guavas except lemon and strawberry guava. The others just aren't sweet and juicy enough.

Pitomba-slowly die

Sweet limes-insipid. Not sure I get sweet limes. Its like nonsalty salt...whats the point?

Tamarillo-Cant keep them alive.

Suruga persimmon-fruit falls off fully formed but still green?

Sunberry ( Solanum oocorum )-If you think Kei apples are dangerous these things are lethal. 2 years and grew to massive plant with hypodermic needles all over...and no fruit.



Maybe Chopping:

Valentine Pummelo-just sweet, no distinct flavor.

Dragon fruit that require hand pollinating. Aint nobody got time for that!

[Julian R]

When it comes to disappointment with fruit trees nothing delivers like Eugenias in terms of fruit low quality and sourness compared to descriptions offered when you got them. For those hooked on pain grow mangabas, I did. Seedling sapodillas, durians, lansiums and a few other species including cambuca and giant mulchi can offer a different kind of disappointment as the years roll by and no fruit appear.
Growing cold climate stuff in a hot area can test patience also like CORG and all its perturbations. Yes feijoa and tamarillo, babaco and so many others are mongrels in a warm climate. Cassowary you can grow dwarf brown turkey and genoas and even get the occasional fruit with full sun and excellent drainage. Dwarf regular and shathoot mulberries can be grown also and even have a few fruit. BTW sunbirds mainly eat insects and the honeyeaters have long tongues to get nectar.

I am currently chasing the Cambuca dream.  My tree is somewhere between 1-2 years old and about a foot tall.  One day I'll get some fruit on it hopefully, but in the meantime, man they are just beautiful trees - the day it produces a fruit will just be a bonus for me!

[brian]

I had no idea cambuca was notoriously long to fruit until I read this thread and went digging.  Mine is about 2ft tall... long way to go I guess.  Maybe I'll get lucky and get one of the early fruiting ones.

[Mike T]

In saying that I have a fruiting cambuca and 4 others that flowered for the first time recently. My big one is over 4m tall and was last to flower and the fruiting one was 1.5m when it started.

[K-Rimes]

My loquat tree is slated to go to make room for my jujube. I bought the loquat tree because I heard it was one of “preppers” fruit trees. when the tree fruited last year, the fruits tasted so sour it was disappointing.

Highly recommend topworking it, or trying them when they are only dark orange. Loquat is an absolute keeper and there are some excellent varieties. Cannot fathom replacing it with jujube personally...

Loquat is a keeper because it is the only tree that ripe in early spring.  A good cultivar tastes great.

I would not recommend planting jujube because of suckers and invasive roots.  It is worse than bamboo.

Update: I decided to keep the loquat tree after reading comments from K-Rimes and seng. Today, my wife picked about a dozen of fruits off the tree and they tasted so sweet and flavorful. The tree is a keeper now.
Thanks folks.

That's awesome it worked out for you! Great job persevering and keeping the tree!

[TnTrobbie]

Chilean guava (Ugni molinae).

In the span of 5 years I have bought at least 10 of these plants all due to having replace dead ones. Regardless of their iterations, they are extremely sensitive. IME just touching the branches lightly to inspect growth I saw said branch die back in a few days for no reason. What's available to buy are just too small and expensive to keep trying to grow. I'mma pass on these for now. Soursop is easier to grow then these in FL 9B lol.

[Bush2Beach]

Yeah Ugni seems to do best in shade in 60 degree san francisco fog.
I gave up on them , but they are worthy of a spot if they grow and fruit great at your location.
Seems to be a northern Cal , PNW plant.
"

Chilean guava (Ugni molinae).

In the span of 5 years I have bought at least 10 of these plants all due to having replace dead ones. Regardless of their iterations, they are extremely sensitive. IME just touching the branches lightly to inspect growth I saw said branch die back in a few days for no reason. What's available to buy are just too small and expensive to keep trying to grow. I'mma pass on these for now. Soursop is easier to grow then these in FL 9B lol.

[Epicatt2]

……Ugni seems to do best in shade in 60 degree san francisco fog.
I gave up on them , but they are worthy of a spot if they grow and fruit great
at your location. Seems to be a northern Cal , PNW plant.

Well this finally makes sense to me here in Tampa 9b (or maybe now 10a).  I never got
Ugni to thrive, even in the shade.  The two I got just never grew, just sat there, and
eventually just expired. [sigh] They were in 80% shade but I'm guessing that our
central Florida summertime heat is what finally did 'em in.

Now, unless there is a named cultivar or cultivars which are more heat tolerant I'm just
washing my hands of this species.

Paul M.
==

[Bush2Beach]

They are not that good anyways . more tiny bird food. Much smaller than blueberries with a thicker skin and meh flavor.

[FreeField]

Most of the pathogens people describe here are preventable with a healthy soil.

I got more than 100 tree species and the only one I wouldn't grow again is hazelnuts. I got 3 varieties but none of them is fruiting. Too much hassle to have compatible pollinators.

Just a note on trees suffering from cold weather. A right spot, right design of waterbodies, rocks and mulch can increase the resistance of trees to more than a few degrees. Also, there are always more cold-resistant cultivars. Grafting on wild root-stock usually works wonders.

[Mike T]

BTW the parkinson's like symptoms from over indulgence in annonas doesn't seem to be getting good coverage. If you should find yourself in Gaudelope for an extended period and you indulge in multiple sour sop smoothies daily with seeds blended though there is a case for moderation. I think the situation has been over exposed.
Speaking of moderation design and placement of elements just like soil health and biological activity including fungal diversity are not magic bullets but can help a bit. There will never be a durian, mangosteen and pulasan wonderland in Crete no matter the configuration of waterbodies rock and heat retaining ideas are implemented. Soil borne diseases, especially fungal ones can be reduced by great healthy soil as well as nutrient rich soil and these are different btw. The classic being phytophthora. Airborne, bug spread and soil/water borne ailments of some types with really sensitive trees often can't be held off. Resilience of healthy trees and soils is important but sometimes is just not enough.

[growinginphoenix]

I am very curious about how to create especially healthy and especially nutrient rich soil. I hear about things like biochar, mycorrhiza, Johnson-Su, micro climates, cover crops, mulch, hot composting, cold composting, x y and z to lower pH closer to neutral, etc. etc. but it is quite difficult to discern the hype from the effective or to know if any of the buzzwords are synergistic vs antagonistic.

[agroventuresperu]

I am very curious about how to create especially healthy and especially nutrient rich soil. I hear about things like biochar, mycorrhiza, Johnson-Su, micro climates, cover crops, mulch, hot composting, cold composting, x y and z to lower pH closer to neutral, etc. etc. but it is quite difficult to discern the hype from the effective or to know if any of the buzzwords are synergistic vs antagonistic.

Home compost and mulch. lots and lots of it. can't go wrong.

[Tropheus76]

Apples- fine I get that they barely grow here in 10a. That said I am not digging my two remaining ones up until I have all my other spaces filled. I have Tropic Sweet and Ein Shimer remaining, dorsette and anna have never survived long term.
Peaches- I gave up on these two seasons ago. Not worth the effort and money to try.

[shot]

Don and Katie Chafin of Going Bananas had those longans 20 years ago

This is an interesting topic lol.  There's been a few trees where I just completely gave up on.

Around 20 years ago I got 2 longan airlayer varieties from Florida at a time where usually u could only find Kohala here.  It was Sri Champoo and Edaw. It was directly from the man that first brought it from Thailand and introduce it to Florida. For the life of me, I can't remember his name but if anyone knows, let me know.  In all, that time I was never able to get a single ripe fruit from them, blooms profusely, but barely held fruit and when it did the fruit never quite ripen. To this day, I still don't know why as I hear other had successes in California. Well I topworked both trees about 4 years ago. I get fruit from those top work now, ahah.

Another was ilama. Maybe 15 years ago i obtained some seeds.  Babied the few seedlings that I got. Got 1 to live. Grafted that seedling branch onto my cherimoya. Took a few years but it flower. It was a pain to pollinate as it didn't accept any other Anona pollens.  When I did get fruit, it tasted like a sweet potato to me. But kept waiting for it to get better or maybe I thought I did something wrong.  Gave up on it a couple years ago and topworked the branch. I just leave it at just bad luck and poor variety ahah.