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Tropical Fruit Discussion / Growing monkfruit
« on: August 30, 2024, 08:36:24 PM »
I'd love advice from anyone who's grown monkfruit. It seems like it would be a fun plant to grow in my greenhouse.
I've read somewhere that it wants 80% humidity in full shade, the fruits take 120-150 days to mature after being set, and the plant needs 68-85°F for that entire period. That's some pretty extreme finickiness.
Is this accurate, or can the plant handle less optimal growing conditions? I live in a semi-desert with 0% humidity for most of the summer. I have a greenhouse I could grow the plants in, so it should be possible to keep them above freezing year-round, but the temperatures in my greenhouse would otherwise vary between 32 to 100 degrees.
I would particularly like advice on whether the plants can be sprouted from dried seeds, or whether their seeds need to be very, very fresh and stay moist (which is true of many tropical plants). If they can sprout from dried seeds, what is the best way to tell if a particular seller has seeds that are viable, and thus worth trying?
I've read somewhere that it wants 80% humidity in full shade, the fruits take 120-150 days to mature after being set, and the plant needs 68-85°F for that entire period. That's some pretty extreme finickiness.
Is this accurate, or can the plant handle less optimal growing conditions? I live in a semi-desert with 0% humidity for most of the summer. I have a greenhouse I could grow the plants in, so it should be possible to keep them above freezing year-round, but the temperatures in my greenhouse would otherwise vary between 32 to 100 degrees.
I would particularly like advice on whether the plants can be sprouted from dried seeds, or whether their seeds need to be very, very fresh and stay moist (which is true of many tropical plants). If they can sprout from dried seeds, what is the best way to tell if a particular seller has seeds that are viable, and thus worth trying?