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Post by Deleted on Aug 6, 2011 15:17:26 GMT
Thread started by casimiraI went through all the threads in this section and was unable to find one that was specifically geared to fruit trees and shrubs in general. We have one on Lemons,Plums in Chalk, and a couple other obscure references to growing fruits. So...please share with us your fruit growing pics,data, experiences etc. Currently growing in a friends garden, a variety of Pomegranate, Punica granatum, not quite ready to harvest yet,but stunning to look at.
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Post by cheerypeabrain on Aug 6, 2011 20:16:35 GMT
Gorgeous...I love pomegranates, wish we could grow them here.
We have a dwarf apple tree, and a blueberry bed underplanted with strawberries... ;D
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Post by Deleted on Aug 6, 2011 20:27:19 GMT
When I was growing up, my grandmother next door had a pomegranate bush, but it produced incredibly sour fruit, so it must have been a different type from the kind that are sold. I liked eating the fruit anyway, because those little red pods are so much fun.
But I had excellent access to home grown fruit as a child because we had an orange tree, a grapefruit bush, several satsuma trees, some fig trees, mulberry bushes... The grandmother next door had an entire persimmon grove, but we never ate those. It took me about 40 years to finally taste a persimmon. Actually, it wasn't bad, but I still don't really want to eat such a thing.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 7, 2011 9:50:11 GMT
Thanks CPB! I wish we could grow apples here,it simply doesn't get cold enough.
Kerouac,are you speaking of your childhood years in Mississippi?
The pomegranate tree posted does not produce the fantastic pomegranates that one would normally see in the Middle East markets. It isn't sour,but not nearly as sweet as those.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 14, 2011 20:50:57 GMT
Kerouac,are you speaking of your childhood years in Mississippi? The pomegranate tree posted does not produce the fantastic pomegranates that one would normally see in the Middle East markets. It isn't sour,but not nearly as sweet as those. Yes, those are what we had in Mississippi. My grandparents in France had good stuff, too -- pears, mirabelle and quetsch plums, currants, and we would go to the nearby woods for hazelnuts.
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Post by lola on Aug 20, 2012 4:17:34 GMT
I have to brag about what turns out to be the nectarine tree I grew from seed. Last year it had a few blossoms, and handful of scrawny fruit. This year it's two stories high and was covered with pink blossoms in March. Now the tree is loaded with blushing dark red fruit that's actually edible, just now ripening. All summer I thought it was a peach, but the skin is smooth, and the flesh yellow. I have transplanted 3 more volunteers along our driveway and watered them well, hoping to have pollinators. Those might be peaches, though.
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Post by lola on Aug 20, 2012 4:18:44 GMT
PS: I'm so impressed with those pomegranates. Such beauties.
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Post by lugg on Aug 20, 2012 7:35:46 GMT
I only have a apple tree ( baking ) I gave up on soft fruit as it is so plentiful in the farm shops here and I was constantly having problems with the weather , insects , birds ...whatever. The apple tree always produces far more than I can use so I ending distributing bags full to friends and colleagues. (I would however love to have exotic trees such as your nectarine Lola or a pomegranate) I took this recentlywhich was growing in a car park of a supermarket (in Portugal not UK)
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Post by Deleted on Aug 21, 2012 10:15:54 GMT
Gorgeous specimen !! This reminds me I have to go down and check on my friends pomegranate tree, the one featured above. They should be near harvest time soon.
Peaches don't grow in the immediate area of the city but within 100 miles or so they are quite prolific. This was a banner year for them and a long season as well due to our mild winter. Also, several varieties are grown.
There is tree down the street from me that I had always assumed was a peach tree but the fruit is really small, almost plum sized. it's an old fashioned variety I was told grew here in abundance many years ago. I wrote the name down somewhere and have to report back on it. I'd like to try my hand at growing one, the fruit is real real sweet. Where to put it is the big question?
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Post by Kimby on Aug 13, 2013 19:52:40 GMT
Don't know if I should post this here, because these are definitely not edible fruits, for humans, anyway. But this is fruit of the Daphne plant that mysteriously appeared in my yard the week Dad died. It looked like this when I first saw it in early April: It's a non-native volunteer and I live in a forest with lots of native vegetation, so I have been discouraged against keeping it. But I fell in love with it as soon as I saw it, and my compromise is to cover it with orchard netting when the berries are on it so that birds won't plant more of them in the native habitat around my neighborhood. (Just the two that I already know about in my yard, which I intend to coddle!)
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Post by bixaorellana on Aug 25, 2013 4:44:16 GMT
The Daphne fruiting looks somewhat like Ardisia. Those flowers are quite nice. Are they scented? Lola, I am downright envious of your nectarine tree. Getting a pretty tree with lots of flowers from a pit would be reward enough, but the fruit sounds like the garden of eden! I'm dying to know how the other volunteers turn out. Whereas I think the pomegranate is one of the most photogenic fruits, I can't think of any other use for them. The bush/tree is messy and grows like a weed, plus enjoys putting out the occasional thorn for an ugly surprise when you're trying to prune the damned thing. Why do people think pomegranates taste good? I am person who actually genuflects when I pass a stand piled with offerings of peeled, deseeded, & depithed grapefruit, mangoes, papaya, etc. on the street. Does it tell you something that I always give these the go-by, no matter how pretty they are?
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Post by lugg on Sept 9, 2013 6:28:24 GMT
As a child pomegranates were a treat - my grandmother always bought them for us when they were in season, we used to pick out the seeds with a pin. I am not sure why they were a treat because as you say Bixa , not much fruit and a lot of seed. I do like the taste though and buy pomegranate juice often These pics are egs of a modern cider apple orchards, there are acres of them in Herefordshire They will not be harvested for at least a month
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Post by patricklondon on Sept 9, 2013 12:52:35 GMT
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Post by bixaorellana on Sept 16, 2013 7:25:26 GMT
Lugg, I had a conversation with a friend today who is trying to figure out how to fit a pomegranate into her small yard because she, her husband, & her two little boys love the fruit so much. Are cider apples good to eat out of hand?
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Post by tod2 on Jan 11, 2014 14:06:21 GMT
On the subject of fruit trees, I am delighted to report the seeds of the SOURSOP fruit that Bixa kindly posted to me have popped and are growing vigorously!! How happy am I!! Here is a photo taken this afternoon. This is one of two tubs in which they are growing steadily. alt="http://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/800x600q90/703/7zbg.jpg"]
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Post by bixaorellana on Aug 31, 2014 5:52:50 GMT
Those are robust little darlings, Tod! Update? Here is a lovely feature of my patio that is also the bane of my existence -- the guava tree. Pretty & prolific, isn't it? But that fruit falls all the time, smushing on the ground & frequently breaking plants smacked on the way down. The patio smells good, due to the ripe fruit still on the tree & the gazillions that have fallen on the porch roof & the roof of the house next door. Here's how the patio looks after a few hours of not being picked up:
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Post by htmb on Aug 31, 2014 11:24:19 GMT
Your garden certainly looks lovely otherwise, Bixa.
We used fallen guavas for throwing at each other when my brother and I were kids. Have you made any jelly?
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Post by bixaorellana on Aug 31, 2014 16:41:34 GMT
Thanks, Htmb. Even as I type there is a big container of guavas on the porch. Even though I went to the trouble of picking them off the tree, I haven't bothered eating them, so you can imagine how high jelly making is on my list of things to do. I did bean one of the dogs once with a tossed guava. Very effective if you want the little darling to stop barking.
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Post by htmb on Aug 31, 2014 16:50:48 GMT
Even better for hitting annoying little brothers.
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Post by bixaorellana on Aug 31, 2014 17:03:44 GMT
Unfortunately, mine isn't within throwing range.
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Post by htmb on Aug 31, 2014 17:13:37 GMT
Technically mine isn't either.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 31, 2014 17:16:13 GMT
So funny in that for me growing up it was copious amounts of inedible black walnuts that my brothers used as an arsennal to attack whomever they deemed their target of the day. I became rather proficient in my throwing, despite my "throwing like a girl". I learned the hard way, and henceforth, earned the nickname which I have never divulged on here until now, Curly FEROCIOUS, (prounounced 'Frocious'). There, it's out now....
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Post by Deleted on Aug 31, 2014 20:14:12 GMT
When I was young, the disgusting rotting things on the ground were persimmons.
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Post by tod2 on Feb 16, 2015 14:41:12 GMT
Bixa - Your little 'babies' survived that terrible hailstorm - altho a bit battered and bruised, they will live. Well 2 will. The third one looks more like a stick in the ground but I'm going to give all of them a 2-3-2 pep up. This was taken with my cellphone while inspecting the damage. The most robust of the three is that little green bush all on it's own to the right and over the low wall in the grass another one that got clobbered a bit.
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Post by tod2 on Jan 28, 2016 5:21:25 GMT
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Post by bixaorellana on Jan 28, 2016 18:09:48 GMT
Tod, could it be Diospyros something or other? The D. whyteana looks a little bit like your pictures, but not close enough. Also, would something in the persimmon family make a fruit that would harden? You'd think it would just fall off and go splat. Try checking out the Catunaregam family, with somewhat similar fruit & leaves to your photos.
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Post by tod2 on Jan 29, 2016 12:11:07 GMT
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Post by tod2 on Feb 11, 2016 14:59:32 GMT
Bixa - this is for you. Your Soursop child across the sea is doing extremely well. I have been reading up on how to take care of these fruit trees and read that they absolutely HATE cold. Crikey, I didn't know this last winter so hence the rest died. I intend giving my little tree some protection from the cold but haven't quite fathomed how yet! imageshack.com/a/img923/548/rX9Wj4.jpgPeeEss - you might not see the photo as there seems to be problems with imageshack at the moment.
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Post by bixaorellana on Feb 11, 2016 16:29:04 GMT
Yay, Tod! Can't wait to see the picture when ImageShack shapes up. I will get another soursop when they are in season so I can send you some seeds for the planned grove. Anyway, I guess you'll need at least one companion for your tree for pollination.
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Post by tod2 on Feb 12, 2016 14:09:10 GMT
Just tried again so now will revert to Photobucket as you suggested.
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