The Tropical Fruit Forum

the growth habit of the tree is very important , you would not want to put a gwen or a gem on the same tree as a fuerte or hellen there are several sights you can go to that have all the info on all the different avocado varieties

I too have a cocktail tree so it would be helpful if you included a link to the several sights you’re referring to. Thanks.

@ Shane, any fruit on the Achacha? do you have any pix?

I don’t think achacha will flower/fruit that fast from seed here, VERY slow growing. He’s most likely referring to his rain forest plum, they can fruit in just a couple years.

I just spoke with my friend who I received the tree from. He said it would be really weird if coffee came up in the three places he planted the rambutan seeds, but said its possible given he has a small, fruiting coffee plant growing in his yard. Sorry for the confusion if it turns out to be coffee. I guess only time will tell. Thanks everyone for your opinions.

Look the same?

Yes

I have 45 or so macadamias, about 5 are seedlings. The rest are grafted with around 15 varieties.  Some seedlings do well, have good taste, good production, etc.  Some do not.  Lots of time invested in these trees to experience the final outcome as to whether it is a good tree or not.  Some have been cut down (shell does not close completely leaving opening for bacteria/fungal infection...happened twice).  Nuts fall, dry, and are easy to crack.  Fresh nuts are edible, tasting somewhat like coconut, not firm in texture.  Fresh nuts are more difficult to crack as the shell yields to pressure.  Dry, no problem.  A vise, vise grips, hammer works well.  There are special crackers with leverage due to the hard shell.  In no way are they like a black walnut as the round kernal comes out in one piece.  Don't know how or why you would use a dental pick.  Hard shell is a fact, but crack easily if they are dry, or roasted.  A very nice evergreen tree with few pests.  My biggest problem is tree rats that also enjoy the nuts being able to gnaw into the shell when it is soft.  Screened (for birds) rat traps in the trees are effective.

Thanks a lot for all the info Jack, much appreciated! Looks like I’ve got some Vegas odds to deal with on these seedlings. Happy growing mate.

That's not a rambutan. There is no information on fruiting rambutan outdoors in California because it's very hard to get rambutan to fruit in a greenhouse in California. i don't think anyone has been succesful so far.

Do you know what it is?

Thanks Johnny for pointing that out (seedlings sold as named variety).  One nursery that sells through Home Depot sells macadamias labelled as "Cate".  In the small print on the label it says "seedling".  It is a shame that a professional nursery would sell seedlings with a known varietal name.  After 10 - 12 years of care for that seedling you do not know what you will end up with.  After 12 years and you have poor crops, deformed nuts, etc. then what?  As an experiment, growing out a seedling can be informative, for better or worse.  There is a reason credible nurseries sell grafted trees: predictable results.  A farmer would not make an investment in a grove of seedlings with unpredictable results.  To graft a macadamia requires girdling the scionwood months ahead of cutting to obtain good results.  That little grafted tree will be more expensive than a seedling.  4-5 years later with the grafted tree you should begin to see production.  Double that time with a seedling and add in water and care.  Then what?  Fortunately nurseries do not (yet) sell seedling apples, oranges, plums, etc as named varieties.  It would be easier and cheaper to just plant a seed and label the plant as a Red Delicious, for example. As in most things in life, you make a choice.  A seedling is a bad one.

Ever tasted a macadamia nut from seed Jack? Just curious. Thanks.

Can you cut it in half?

Are you sure that is a Rambutan, and you didn't get your seeds mixed up? It seems to have more of a Garcinia growth habit.

No, I’m not 100% sure, but 99.9%. A buddy of mine, who grows lots of subtropicals, and is pretty educated in the such, ate the fruit and brought back 10 seeds, 3 of which germinated and are all about the same size as the one in the picture.

If there’s someone that grows rambutans out there and is familiar with the look of the tree and would like to chime in, PLEASE do.

This rambutan has been growing from seed, outdoors (under my patio cover and surrounded by other trees) in Southern California, for approx 3+ years, and seems to be quite happy. The fruit was grown in a mountainous region of Costa Rica.

If anyone has experience growing rambutan in Southern Cali, OUTDOORS AND NOT IN A GREEN HOUSE, please share your experiences. I have not found any information on anyone being able to get one to fruit outdoors here. Thanks.





Nate Dogg

Found this on about a 15-20 foot tree today in my neighborhood. There’s a very faint, sweet smell to it. Please help me Identify so I don’t poison myself by eating it. Thank you kindly.

Nate Dogg

Yep, a better variation! Haha I bought the seedlings a couple years ago when I was still a rookie in this game and didn’t understand the whole seedling vs grafted/air layering thing, and of course the sellers didn’t “educate” me. You live and you learn...

Cheers