Temperate Fruit & Orchards > Temperate Fruit Discussion
Lardizabalaceae
Plantinyum:
From those species i only have 2 akebia quinata plants. Havent had fruits of them still, the bigger one flowered this year but didnt set anything, i tried to hand pollinate the female flowers ,but the male ones didnt had any pollen that i could see whatsoever. I just messed with them yesterday, tying them to their trellis , repositionning vines etc, the big one is just loaded with flower buds, i hope the smaller one also flowers this year so i can try to cross them.
Flowers look very cool, no scent that i could pick up though.
Peter_out:
I have read this old thread with interest & thought l'd see if anyone would like many of the points raised & observed clarified? If so reply to this & l'll contine this with very interesting information!
Ellocot:
Farreachesfarm occasionally sells Boquila trifoliolata.
It's a vine, and I've noticed that it hates any change in its lighting or other conditions.
I've grown it indoors, and it mainly just stayed alive because it was shipped in from wherever. Eventually started growing a bit, before my cats smacked the plant. It also has some mold of sorts on it.
I've moved to Mississippi, one plant came out of the pot - seems like it was placed into a larger pot prior to shipping.
Roots weren't really in the soil or bound at all.
So, it was hooked through packing material and came out of the pot.
That plant has since died.
The other has its newest growth tips slowly turning black, it is putting off newer growth towards its base, which is a good sign.
I planted them both outside by a tree, where they'll be insulated. They're supposedly hard to zone 8. I'm now in 8b.
I'll post updates some images later.
Ellocot:
I've researched the berries a bit.
These climb up trees.
Most vines with fruits that people are used to, like grapes - those can be farmed or trained.
Boquila trifoliolata gets very tall, likes damp soil and if there's no viable host, they get some heavy leaf predation.
The berries are blueberry sized from what I've read. Their skin, seeds and the whole thing is eaten.
I believe it may be difficult or something of a pain to gather, and it has a low shelf life. Most likely spread by birds.
Zabala, is sometimes sold by Wanderlustnursery.
Hobelia is another interesting genus. As is Stauntonia.
I have some Holboellia latifolia seed.
Hopefully I'll get some Akebia seed as well.
Decaisnea and other species are also obviously interesting.
Decaisnea, I'd grow out in the open with some Oso berries or other blue fruited shrubs.
Farreachesfarm was selling a large fruited type that they collected from the wild, but it's not on their site anymore.
Boquila trifoliolata can mimic plastic plants, can mimic plants while in a pot and not touching other hosts.
It's thought to use a form of ecolocation or a plant version of it. Some scientists think that this means the plant can think or make decisions.
I personally want to obtain interspecific hybrids using Boquila. A plant that can mimic a citrus or something, and have larger fruits which are nutritious and have actual edible skin / fruits.
This would work well as something that could grow on farmed trees, ones that may make a crop at different times than these.
That's a far future idea / project. I have no idea if it would work, but there's potential there.
Peter_out:
Well the plot thickens as it has recently been discovered that Lardizabala mimics nearby plants just like Boquila. It not only mimics leaves but just yesterday l observed it mimicking the growth form of a support tree as well. It's a rather long story but to give an overview: l have mature vines of Lardizabala growing to the top of a large Quercus suber (cork oak) at my back door. These vines are almost 40years old & have been fruiting for about 20 years. They are nearly 50' up to the top of the tree. I have always considered Lardizabala to be a species with quite variable leaves an observation which l put down to genetic variability, that is until a recent trip to Tasmania where l saw a very different looking Lardizabala with very large roundish leaves with totally entire margins. As this looked so different from mine at home l obtained 2 seedling plants from the source & returned home with them. When l compared the photos of the one in Tasmania to mine l suddenly realized that the leaves were mimicking nearby plants & in fact do this just like Boquila does.
I contacted Ernesto Gianoli in Chile who discovered the phenomenon in Boquila & sent him many photos & he concurs that Lardizabala is indeed performing the same stunt as Boquila! Further he told me that it is an accepted fact among the local traditional population in the areas where Lardizabala grows that the best flavored & quality fruit is dependent on the tree species it grows on! This may seem hard to swallow but this same species is making both cork oak leaves & Lapageria rosea leaves on the one vine at my place. It even mimics the curl of the oak & the texture of the Lapageria.
I like the flavor of 'oak grown' Lapageria, it's got a nice, if subtle sweetness if you're prepared to swirl & spit to separate the pulp from the seeds! It certainly has more flavor than any Akebia l've eaten & also Stauntonia hexaphylla which is pretty bland too.
I haven't tasted Boquila as l have recently struck cuttings of one clone only, & sown seed which l hope is viable as it's taken many years to obtain here.
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