The Tropical Fruit Forum

Quote from: WaterFowler on April 02, 2015, 01:40:13 AM

Quote from: ASaffron on April 01, 2015, 06:57:06 PM

get a GAMO!

sorry to hear they squirrels went to town on your tree...

time to break out that squirrel stew recipe!

Reminds of some rabbits that raided my newly transplanted pepper plants. I bought a Gamo from Cabelas and fixed a tactical flashlight to it. I killed 7 rabbits in 2 minutes. They didn't even run or notice their comrades flopping over dead. That put enough of a dent in their population they didn't bother my plants much more the rest of the summer. The next spring, I planted alfalfa and corn all around my plants and they left them alone. I put 3 of the rabbits on a grill and gave 4 away. They were pretty tasty, even my daughter and nephews loved them.

sorry to derail the thread Jabomano...

but waterfowler...do u know what  type of rabbit they were?  i have marsh rabbits by me....I wonder if yours are the same?

I might actually try eating a squirrel or rabbit this year.

These were cottontails. After I skinned and cleaned them, slathered them in olive oil, cracked pepper, and basil, and stuffed the cavity full of garlic and onion, they looked delicious. I had no trouble giving some away. They tasted fantastic too. I was always taught, you kill it, you eat it.

But I wouldn't eat too many, you never know how many plants they have been consuming that are full of chemical fertilizers and weed killer. Also many rabbits during the summer have these disgusting botfly larvae underneath their skin that are huge!  This probably doesn't make the rabbit any less healthy to eat but they do make it very unappetizing to look at.

I guess rocks doesn't help with drainage but I do plan on putting these lychees in the ground next February when I decide where to put them. My house, my parents ranch or the home I rent out to a family member. They are all in the same general area but each has it's own little microclimate. I'd like to see how they do in this heat and dryness first. My renters house is probably best as it's slightly more humid, hot and has a lot less wind.

 But will the rocks at the bottom help the tree not sticking to the bottom of the container when I pull it out and transplant it?

I bought 2 15 gallon 6ft lychee trees in early February, one Sweetheart and one Mauritius. Since that time the Sweetheart has absolutely exploded with new growth as the high temps here have been between 85-100F almost every day. It has new light green leaves everywhere and is blossoming in two areas. My potted Mango and an in-ground Sapodilla that I bought at the same time have also been growing extremely well.

 But my Mauritius hasn't done anything. Nowhere can I see any new growth except for a tiny little stem coming out a few inches above the base. It still looks healthy except for some leaf tip burn that was there when I bought but the Sweetheart was the same way too. I bought the trees in LA, and I'm in the Palm Springs area where it's hotter and drier, so could the Mauritius still be in shock 6 weeks later?

 Do you think I should repot it? If so, should I put it in a larger container(it's only 6ft tall and not super bushy)?

Quote from: WaterFowler on March 24, 2015, 07:02:03 AM

This morning at the LA Produce 8th St Market, Ataulfos for $4/box and they are absolutely delicious!

I believe those are from Colima by the color of the box. The nice thing about going to LA produce is you get to pick from which state in Mexico they are from. I like the Chiapas they tend to be sweeter but they are all a decent buy even retail price ( $3 per box) it's a bargain for store bought mangos. Btw, how much were the cherimoyas per pound? They usually have the runts for $2lb and the bigger ones for $3lb they are about the cheapest place you can find them.

I didn't check out the Cherimoya prices. I went specifically to look for mangoes to give away to a client and family, didn't really check out anything else. Also the price of exotics in the 8th street market can be a little pricey compared to the 7th St Market which borders it but I don't like venturing into the old market. It's, lets just say, a little "chaotic" for my tastes.

This morning at the LA Produce 8th St Market, Ataulfos for $4/box and they are absolutely delicious!

Update:

Mine did this until I put them directly into the burning hot sun and then they took off.  Grew 4' within months

I did this for 5 days straight with 2 of them in 90+ degree sun and no water, and they look horrible now, all yellow and dried above the soil(but super green below it).....BUT IT WORKED!!! BOTH cuttings now show beautiful white roots at the bottom. None of my other cuttings in partial shade and filtered sun have put out roots yet. My question, is now that they are showing roots should I remove them to filtered sun or partial shade? Because they look really bad. Or leave them in full sun?

I have since watered and put them in partial shade, because I upset the soil when I checked for signs of roots.

Don't put them in full sun.

No. No, no, no. If you have a greenhouse this will make them move very quickly.

Your dragon cuttings are afflicted by some type of fungus. I'm not exactly sure what. It's unlikely this is stopping them from growing however.

Have they rooted yet? It's possible that your mix is too wet and the bottom of the stems are rotting.

My "greenhouse" was a drop cloth stapled around my back porch. I took it down over a month ago when temps started hitting the high 70s, low 80s and replaced it with a 40% shade cloth a few days ago because a lot of my plants started showing sun burn. This whole week we are supposed to see temps 90+. I stick my finger in the soil to make sure it's not too wet, and lightly spray the ones out of the shade cloth every evening, but the ones inside the shade cloth I only hit every 2 or 3 days. The top inch of the soil on the plants outside the shade cloth dries very quickly in this climate.

I got 10 white/red Vietnam dragon fruit cuttings off EBay on Feb 17. I was really excited because a few of them were 2 feet, most of the others were 12" are longer. And all of them are really thick, like they are from an old plant. I put cactus soil in the bottom third of the pot, and potting soil mixed with extra perlite on top. I buried them 3-6" deep. I put them in full shade for the first 10 days, then I moved some to morning sun, and a few to filtered light. I spray them down lightly every evening, especially since the daytime temps have moved from the 70-80 range to the 80-90 range the last few days.

Anyways, I haven't seen any growth coming from them, unlike the rooted cuttings of yellow dragon fruit I ordered from another seller at the same time. Those are definitely growing already. I wasn't expecting  to see big signs of growth yet, but I thought I would at least see signs of roots if I pulled them. So I pulled three, and NOTHING. Worse yet, it seems like the skin on some is yellowing and leathery above the soil. That can't be good. 2 of my biggest have started to get red spots, but the other show no signs of this.

It's dry here so I have been making sure the soil never goes dry, but i don't soak it either. So I was wondering if I stuck them in my walk-in closet with a lamp and a humidifier for a week or so, if that would help. Or do you think I should just keep doing things the same and be patient?