Author Topic: White sapote varieties  (Read 3266 times)

Nwflarenegade

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White sapote varieties
« on: September 07, 2022, 10:25:13 PM »
Is anyone familiar with the named varieties of white sapote and can explain their attributes? They’re one of my favorite fruits but I’d like to know the differences between them before I buy one. Ideally I’d like a variety with no bitterness, doesn’t mind the heat and humidity of Florida and produces large fruit. Thanks in advance y’all.

JCorte

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Re: White sapote varieties
« Reply #1 on: September 08, 2022, 07:13:52 AM »

Nwflarenegade

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Re: White sapote varieties
« Reply #2 on: September 08, 2022, 09:20:18 AM »
Thanks for the info Janet.

johnb51

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Re: White sapote varieties
« Reply #3 on: September 08, 2022, 10:04:25 AM »
Good luck trying to get California varieties in Florida.  Overall, they seem to not be a popular fruit here, and the trees are hard to get a hold of.  But I'm with you.  I like them a lot, too.
John

JCorte

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Re: White sapote varieties
« Reply #4 on: September 08, 2022, 10:33:36 AM »
Maybe start some seeds for rootstock, then buy scions in the spring.  Mark Lee was sharing scions of his favorite, Mary Lane, this past spring and member Bush2Beach had scions as well.  When mine are big enough, I'd be willing to share.  I'm trialing Sunset, Rainbow, Mary Lane, Campbell, and some seedlings from Exotica.

Janet
« Last Edit: September 09, 2022, 10:54:30 AM by JCorte »

Bush2Beach

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Re: White sapote varieties
« Reply #5 on: September 08, 2022, 10:44:06 AM »
From crfg fruit facts page:

CULTIVARS
Chestnut
Origin Vista, Calif. Wesley C. Chestnut, 1935. Seedling of Suebelle. Tree large, heavy production, fruit has withstood shipping to eastern states. Spherical, yellow-green when ripe, taste good, skin bitter. Alternate bearing.
Cuccio
Origin Fallbrook, Calif. Cuccio, 1973. Probable syn. Florida. Very quick to come into bearing. Green when ripe, taste excellent, keeps long and well on tree. Fruit sunburns if tree defoliates.
Ecke
Origin Encinitas, Calif., Paul Ecke, Sr., 1963. Single fruits,uniform in size and shape, Skin becomes bright yellow several months before maturity.
Fiesta
Origin Yorba Linda, Calif., Ray Vincent, 1973. Reliable,productive but very late cropper of rather small (1-2 inch) fruit. Pale yellow, thick skin, endures handling.
Lemon Gold
Origin Escondido, Calif., Martin Reinecke, 1958. A less vigorous tree, moderate crops, usually in November. Keeps well when ripe, can be picked immature and ripens well off the tree. Uniform, pleasing appearance; flesh quite yellow. Flavor excellent, occasional hints of lemon.
Louise
Origin Chula Vista, Calif., Bill Nelson, 1973. Nearly everbearing, Jan. – Sept., productive. Fruit yellow, medium size. Suggested for home gardens, not commercial.
Malibu No. 3
Origin Malibu, Calif., Washington MacIntyre, 1981. Fruit spherical, yellow, ripens Oct – Nov. Pick when soft. Tree is long coming into bearing. Most promising new cv.
Maltby
Origin Carlsbad, Calif., Guy Maltby, 1928. syn. Nancy Maltby. Frequently found in Florida, obsolete in California. Tree large. Fruit to one pound, irregular in shape, pointed, flesh yellow, flavor varies by season, can be good. Productive.
McDill
Origin Orange, Calif., McDill, 1968. Precocious, excellent taste, among the largest. Shape oblate, large, greenish-yellow. Bears early autumn. Tree large, grafts easy.
Michele
Origin Pasadena, Calif., Michele Montllor, 1940. Tree small, nearly everbearing. Fruit smallish, yellow, with distinct taste of caramel. For home culture.
Pike
Origin Santa Barbara, Calif., intro. USDA, 1928. Tree med. size, heavy cropper, mid-season, Large green fruits. One of three most popular cultivars of the mid-century, is still found commercially. Taste fairly good, skin bitter.
Reinecke Commercial
Origin San Diego, Calif., John M. Reinecke. Fruit irregular in shape, weighing about 5 ounces. Skin attractive golden-orange when ripe. Flavor good, seeds moderate in number. Has excellent keeping qualities, and even if picked prematurely will soften and become fairly good eating. Tree is a relatively poor yielder.
Stickley
Origin La Mesa, Calif., Stickley 1967. Seedling of Vernon,less alternate in bearing. Broad vigorous tree. Fruit yellow-green, quite sweet, uniformly large. Ripens very early, sweet even if harvested immature. Keeps well when soft.
Suebelle
Origin Encinitas, Calif., Susan Hubbell, 1931. Syn. Hubbell. The best known cv of sapote, still not surpassed in performance by others; common in nurseries. A distinct cv., Neysa was commonly sold as Suebelle from 1955-65. True Suebelle fruit is variable in size, usually small, yellow, asymmetrical, sweet. Pick when soft. Bears nearly year-round. Tree medium, for home culture.
Vernon
Origin Vista, Calif., Wells Miller, 1953. A mature tree found by him and may prove to be another, older cv. Tree large, rounded, vigorous but medium height. Fruit green, round oblate; flesh white, not becoming bitter when over-ripe. Alternate bearing, over the winter months. Performs well in northern California. Difficult to graft.
Wilson
Origin Monrovia, Calif., W. C. Wilson, 1927. Introduced then by Armstrong Nurseries and still found in collections. Tree productive, fruit flattened, flavor good, poor keeper.
Mac’s Golden
Origin Carlsbad, Calif., Charles Ramsey, 1932 A wooly-leaf sapote (C. tetrameria). Fruit large, yellow with deeper-colored flesh. The best, and least yellow, of the matasanos, preferred by some, with characteristic aroma. Elongated oval, few seeds.

Bush2Beach

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Re: White sapote varieties
« Reply #6 on: September 08, 2022, 10:46:05 AM »
Why would this be difficult?
They’re all there. I’ve sent them north to south.
Good luck trying to get California varieties in Florida.  Overall, they seem to not be a popular fruit here, and the trees are hard to get a hold of.  But I'm with you.  I like them a lot, too.

Bush2Beach

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Re: White sapote varieties
« Reply #7 on: September 08, 2022, 10:52:17 AM »
I would go find a grower in FL that has known varieties with no bitter.
I first tried in FL at Kampong and was pretty bitter. Not sure if it’s varietal or climate.
Grow out some seeds or buy a tree and multi graft is a good option too.
I can’t think of anyone in FL that is all gung ho about casimiroa or has a bunch of varieties in fruition .


Is anyone familiar with the named varieties of white sapote and can explain their attributes? They’re one of my favorite fruits but I’d like to know the differences between them before I buy one. Ideally I’d like a variety with no bitterness, doesn’t mind the heat and humidity of Florida and produces large fruit. Thanks in advance y’all.

sapote

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Re: White sapote varieties
« Reply #8 on: September 08, 2022, 03:31:26 PM »
I used to have a large tree, either Suebelle or Malibu3 based on the look of the fruits. Some direct sun exposed fruits with orange color on that side. Skin was not bitter and some people didn't peel the skin. Very sweet and good flavor, and sometime with sugar crystals in the flesh. The best fruits were picked just when it gave with a light squeeze. Fruits picked when hard were useless. The biggest problem is when overripe fruits fall down making a big mess. 

Nwflarenegade

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Re: White sapote varieties
« Reply #9 on: September 08, 2022, 07:38:34 PM »
WOW!!!! Thanks for all the great info y’all!

Galatians522

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Re: White sapote varieties
« Reply #10 on: September 08, 2022, 09:38:14 PM »
Wayne Clifton recommended Smathers for Florida. He had two multi grafted trees, so he had trialed several varieties. He was such a big proponent that he actually gave us a tree when we were there buying some other stuff. I wish I had picked his brain a bit more on the topic before he passed. The one fruit I have tasted so far was not bitter at all even though it dropped off immature. I think a multi grafted tree is the way to go. Some varieties don't fruit well without cross pollination. If I recall correctly the original Smathers tree was part of Adolf Grimal's collection in the keys (along with a unique Jaboticaba which bears his name).

Julie

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Re: White sapote varieties
« Reply #11 on: September 08, 2022, 11:22:52 PM »
I'm interested in this as well.  I've been trying to taste white sapote for 3 years!  Now I know, the Fruit & Spice Park has a tree, I will go during the season and eat some of the fruit from the ground.  Lara Farms is selling Campbell & Younghans - how do these varieties taste?

sc4001992

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Re: White sapote varieties
« Reply #12 on: September 08, 2022, 11:47:58 PM »
Younghans is supposed to be very good tasting. I have a small multi-grafted tree and the Younghans grafted branches are the only ones with nice fruits, hope to taste some in a month.

johnb51

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Re: White sapote varieties
« Reply #13 on: September 08, 2022, 11:50:23 PM »
I'm interested in this as well.  I've been trying to taste white sapote for 3 years!  Now I know, the Fruit & Spice Park has a tree, I will go during the season and eat some of the fruit from the ground.  Lara Farms is selling Campbell & Younghans - how do these varieties taste?
From the website it seems Lara Farms has neither one available at this time.  Whatever Campbell trees he grafted a few months ago, from what I can tell, he sold them out almost immediately.  I contacted him a few times, and he would say maybe next month, maybe next month, and then it was "they're all gone."  Younghans was mentioned in the past very favorably on this forum.
John

Bush2Beach

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Re: White sapote varieties
« Reply #14 on: September 09, 2022, 01:09:43 AM »
I thought “Smathers “ was full on or mostly Casimiroa Tetrameria, as the leaves are super fuzzy?
Wayne Clifton recommended Smathers for Florida. He had two multi grafted trees, so he had trialed several varieties. He was such a big proponent that he actually gave us a tree when we were there buying some other stuff. I wish I had picked his brain a bit more on the topic before he passed. The one fruit I have tasted so far was not bitter at all even though it dropped off immature. I think a multi grafted tree is the way to go. Some varieties don't fruit well without cross pollination. If I recall correctly the original Smathers tree was part of Adolf Grimal's collection in the keys (along with a unique Jaboticaba which bears his name).

SHV

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Re: White sapote varieties
« Reply #15 on: September 09, 2022, 01:19:24 AM »
I had a white sapote at the Fruit Spice park back in June that was nearly the size of a softball and had absolutely no bitterness, with a creamy caramel flavor and just a hint of citrus.  It was the best white sapote that I have tasted so far and I’ve had few of the CA-origin varieties.  Of course, the tree had no label that I could find, but i remember it growing right off the main path.   I tried to bring back some seeds from the fruit, but I cooked them on my heating pad.  If I was looking for a good variety that puts out large fruit and does well in FL, I would find out the variety of that tree. 

Julie

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Re: White sapote varieties
« Reply #16 on: September 09, 2022, 09:51:22 AM »
I had a white sapote at the Fruit Spice park back in June that was nearly the size of a softball and had absolutely no bitterness, with a creamy caramel flavor and just a hint of citrus.  It was the best white sapote that I have tasted so far and I’ve had few of the CA-origin varieties.  Of course, the tree had no label that I could find, but i remember it growing right off the main path.   I tried to bring back some seeds from the fruit, but I cooked them on my heating pad.  If I was looking for a good variety that puts out large fruit and does well in FL, I would find out the variety of that tree.

Would the white sapote seeds be true to the variety or make bitter fruit?  I am going to go to Fruit & Spice Park in June to try this fruit.

achetadomestica

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Re: White sapote varieties
« Reply #17 on: September 09, 2022, 10:02:32 AM »
White sapote does not grow true


I don't know the Parks rules on scions?
You could buy some fruit/seeds now from CA and get your
rootstock started. By next June you will have your rootstock ready
when you sample the fruit at the Park. If it's really good then get a scion
if possible?
I hope to have Supersweet and Youghan's gold fruit next year that you could
possibly also sample. So far I only had a handful of Youghan's gold last year and
it was better to me. Also seems to be happier in the sun/humidity
« Last Edit: September 09, 2022, 10:12:42 AM by achetadomestica »

johnb51

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Re: White sapote varieties
« Reply #18 on: September 09, 2022, 10:19:42 AM »
F&S Park must let legitimate people take scion wood, but I wouldn't be passed smuggling a little out from a big tree! ;)  (I'm glad this topic has had legs.)
John

achetadomestica

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Re: White sapote varieties
« Reply #19 on: September 09, 2022, 10:24:28 AM »
F&S Park must let legitimate people take scion wood, but I wouldn't be passed smuggling a little out from a big tree! ;)  (I'm glad this topic has had legs.)

borrowing sounds better then smuggling?

johnb51

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Re: White sapote varieties
« Reply #20 on: September 09, 2022, 10:28:42 AM »
F&S Park must let legitimate people take scion wood, but I wouldn't be passed smuggling a little out from a big tree! ;)  (I'm glad this topic has had legs.)

borrowing sounds better then smuggling?
There you go!
John

Julie

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Re: White sapote varieties
« Reply #21 on: September 09, 2022, 10:37:56 AM »
Maybe they will know the variety.  I'd like to learn how to do grafting but I have no free time.

achetadomestica

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Re: White sapote varieties
« Reply #22 on: September 09, 2022, 10:50:59 AM »
Maybe they will know the variety.  I'd like to learn how to do grafting but I have no free time.
White sapote and loquat are suppose to be some of the easiest to graft.
There are tons of relativity really short videos on youtube on grafting

Julie

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Re: White sapote varieties
« Reply #23 on: September 09, 2022, 10:53:24 AM »
Maybe they will know the variety.  I'd like to learn how to do grafting but I have no free time.
White sapote and loquat are suppose to be some of the easiest to graft.
There are tons of relativity really short videos on youtube on grafting

Good to know - it's definitely something I want to learn in the future.

JCorte

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Re: White sapote varieties
« Reply #24 on: September 09, 2022, 11:06:07 AM »
Jonah,

Do you have most of the varieties listed from CRFG page?  If so, I need to start more seeds.  ;D

On the Lara Farms website, Julian notes that Campbell was the best he ever tasted.  Was this collected by Dr. Richard Campbell?  The grafted plant I received was really small, so I want to make a backup before I plant it out at the farm.

Janet