Bass,

That is one nice basket of joy for sure!!

Besides my figs-------I grow pecans, peaches, muscadine grapes (Scuppernog and Carlos), Kiowa blackberries, Persimmons (Fuyu, Jiro, Tanenashi, Saruga, Saijo and Haciya), Citrus [Blood Orange, Hamlin Sweet Orange, Washington Navel, Kara Kara Navel Orange, Calomondine orange, Kumquats (Mewia, Nagami), Satsuma (Owari, Brown Select) Nippon Orangequat, Ponkan Manderine, Orlando Tangelos, Meyer Lemons, and Ruby Red Grapefruit].

My grapes have just finished. The persimmons are ripening now and the satsumas are beginning to turn color. And thankfully, no hurricanes this year to come and ruin it all.

Dan

Hi Bass:

I hate to be so ignorant but could you identify which are the Jujube and which are Pawpaw? I had never heard of these fruits until I logged on to this web site. Also, could you say what these fruits taste like....if that is possible.
Thanks,
Peg

Pawpaw is the large light green fruit. It tastes like a mixture of banana, pineapple, mango. It's excellent flavor with a creamy texture.
The Jujube is the small brownish fruit, they are crispy like apple but sweet like dates when fully ripe. I love them. You can see more photos on them at my website JUJUBE

Bass

Bass very well done I'm impressed that you can grow tropicals in your climate which shows all the effort that you must put in Thanks again
Sal

Dan,
you've got a lot more than I have for sure. I'm trying some hardy Citrus called Citrange in ground. I'll have to see how cold hardy it is.

Sal,
The tender tropicals I keep in the greenhouse. The jujubes, persimmon, pomegranates, pawpaw are all hardy for me in my area. I select the hardiest varieties.

I knew better than to open this thread. I was pretty sure that there would be a picture in front of me that would make me cry! That's just beautiful, Bass.

Speaking of tropical fruit, I'm reading a good book right now called 'The Fruit Hunters.' It's by Adam Leith Gollner. It's filled with natural history and plant lore. It's very interesting reading so far. I'm captivated! (I have not yet read the chapter about 'the butt nut.') Each chapter has a drawing of a cut in half fig on the first page! Everyone should read it!

There is a frost alert here tonight. Boo hoo.

-Ann

Bass, they tell me that the secret to hardy citrus (besides rootstock) is not to fertilize them too late into the season so that they can better survive cold temperatures. Best of luck to you in that challenging endeavor.

Dan

Beautiful picture, Bass. Here is a picture of my pom bush this year. It's same type that I sent you - did they take? Your Salavatsky cuttings took for me - sadly the others did not. Picked up a few other varieties commercially this spring.

Bass:
You have the green thumb for sure.

I have wild paw paw on the place here, and there was a jujube tree when I came. The jujube was not bearing until I learned that it needed an alkaline soil and loaded it with wood ashes. Now it bears like mad.

I need to ask about the fruit; I have never eaten the jujube until it was all red. I notice that you have some in your basket that are only turning red at the tops. When do you consider them ripe and ready to eat?

Also, the one I have is a small one, while your website shows one that is perhaps three times as large as others in the basket. Which of those are the good-eating varieties?
Ox

Bass,

Is it true the PawPaw gives out an foul smell?
And if so, How long or what part of the season?

Gene,
I must say those are some beautiful Pomegranates you have. I haven't had any luck with them here in Michigan but I will keep on trying.
I might try the kinds Bass has if I can get any in the Spring. Otherwise I would have to butter him up!

Rafed

Can Pomegranates grow near chicago without protection, im not familar with the plant and hardiness but after tasting the fruit just a few years ago i enjoy them.
Thanks in Advance
Martin

Rafed:
Not Bass, but I know paw paw. It blooms very early in the spring and is pollinated by flies. The blossoms are small and smell like rotten meat (to attract flies?) I have never been able to catch the scent unless I was very close to the blossom. Since the trees grow tall (they are understory trees here) I am never bothered by the scent. The fruit must be eaten when ripe as it does not keep or ship. I have kept them in the refrigerator for up to a week, but like bananas, they will not last. Generally the varmints beat me to them.
Ox

Hello Bass,
I'm still waiting for my 14 persimmon trees to ripen, I have a few paw paw ripening, how do you know when to pick them?
Thanks
Ed

Makes me wants to migrate to the States. I saw a paw paw tree here recently with lots of fruits but have never sample them ....sigh. Looks like tomorrow I have to drop by this gentleman's place to see whether he would sell some for me to try. Any recommendation how to saviour paw paw to its fullest? As usual my most dependable fruit for this time of the year comes from my Fuyu. Its showing a little colour & its pick usually in early Nov. Apart from figs, its one of the favourites of friends.

Sorry didn't mean to have a fruit post under the fig forum, but I wanted to share some info with my fig friends.
I have several varieties of jujube, some will only be sweet when fully colored. The Variety Li can be picked as you see in the photo and will ripen off the tree or it can be also eaten like that its still very sweet.
Gene, So happy to see how successful you are with this variety. I was able to root the cuttings you've sent me. It will be planted next year. I have a few fruit ripening on my Salvatski now. It survived the winters for 3 years now.
Pawpaw smell like banana or similar. They have a pleasant aroma. I love it.
Pomegranates are more sensitive to cold than figs. usually damaged by temperatures below 10F. However there are some varieties that originated in souther former soviet union. Those will take the cold to about 0F. Maybe colder, and that's what i'm trying to find out.
Ed, Pawpaw will fall to ground when fully ripe. If you touch it and it feels a bit soft you can pick it also. They can ripen of the tree when they're almost ripe.

Bass

Bass, no need to apologize, I think we've all really enjoyed the post. I wanted to added that I've been having some success with the Thomasville Citrangequat from McKenzie Farms in SC. It's survived 2 winters here so far, and is producing fruit already (not enough time this year to ripen, I think -- but next year for sure).

Rafed, thanks for the compliment on the pomegranate, it's one of the few things that the squirrels actually let me enjoy. Lyubimyi is hardier than most (available from UC-Davis or from One Green World as 'Favorite') As a general rule, hard seeded varieties are hardier than the soft seeded. Lyubimyi had only tip damage the first year or two, since then nothing -- and last year was rough on everything here.

Bass my paw paws are still hard but should be ready soon.
Are your Pomegranates grown in pots or planted in soil?
Thanks
Ed

Ed,
I have some in the ground and some in containers. Variety "Wonderful" i have in the ground but always gets severe winter kill. Kazake and Salvatski are in the ground and had no damage for the past 3 years.
a few years ago a pomegranate I had I left in a container in the greenhouse produced a pomegranate that split and the seeds fell on the floor. The following spring I found seedlings growing wild in the greenhouse. I pulled them out and left one. A year later that seedling produced a pomegranate. I now dug it up and have it in a container, and has been blooming and producing some pomegranates. Not sure how hardy it is in ground yet.

Bass

Here's a picture of my Salavatski Pomegranate growing in the ground in my front yard.
It had more fruit on it earlier, but I picked them off since this is its first year fruiting.

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People in the neighborhood always stop by to ask me what this is. It puts such a nice show of bright red flowers in the spring.

Bass

Here are some fruits I've been picking besides figs that grow in the same climate as figs.
Here's my Persimmon Hana Fuyu

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And my Pomegranate Salavatski
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Both fruited for the first time in the ground for me.

Bass

What part of the pomegranate do you eat? It looks like a bunch of large seeds?

Just when y'all about to stop the teasing with good looking figs along you come with the persimmons and pomegranates. At least I can get my hands on some persimmons and the pomegranates are available at the markets. My next tree purchase will be a persimmon. Eating them is like eating natures custard.

ejp3, pomegrnates don't have much to eat on them, but those little burst of flavor are great. Each seed is surrounded by a small amount of juice enclosed in the flesh. I just pop a handful in my mouth and mash and suck the juice from them and then spit the seeds out. Can't be beat. Isn't mother nature wonderful.

"gene"

Gene,
I couldn't have described pomegranates better. I still can't believe I can't pomegranates and persimmon to grow in this cold without any special protection. There's no better reward than reaping the fruit of your labor.

Bass

Gene
The seeds of pomegranates are edible unless you dry it up in the mouth by sucking out all the juice from the crushed seeds. Pomegranates are recommended for recovering patients in the East, mid-East and far East with the seeds for natural medicinal reasons.
I just cut one and finished half after seeing Bass's picture. They are on sale here in Ottawa this week for $1.00 each.

So ottawan you're telling me that you just chew seed and all. I would think they would be bitter like most seeds. I'll have to give it a try.

As far as growing them here, I don't know. I've tried the variety Wonderful a couple of times. The trees grow great and the blooms are lovely. The problem is the fruit rots before they reach maturity. I think its the wet summers and high humidity. Perhaps another variety would be better or I could find a place where it could keep it's feet dry.

"gene"

Bass,

You set a nice crop of persimmons for your first crop. I know I welcome this fruit along with my citrus which begins ripening in my area after the figs are finishing. Fuyu is very good eating both hard like an apple or soft ripened into a honey texture. My personal favorite variety is one called Saijo. It is elongated in shape and looks just like a Roma Tomato. Being an astringent variety, it must be eaten soft ripened only; however, it is sooooo good......pure heavenly nectar is the only way I can describe its wonderful taste.

Dan

Dan,
I agree Saijo is really good. I have the tree but it's only 2 years old and already 8 ft tall. I'm hoping for some fruit next year.

Bass

Bass,

FYI - Tomorrow I'm off to my mom's house where she has an astringent Japanese variety that must be eaten soft-ripened. Her tree produced hundreds of persimmons this year. My plan is to pick some that are still hard, then slice & dry them in a food dehydrator. I've read that they will turn into a delicious candy very easily upon drying. The astringency (tannic acid) will completely disappear during the drying process so un-ripe fruit may be used....they just need to be completely yellow colored.

Will you get any fruit this year from the hardy citrus that you have growing?

Dan

Friends in warm climate don't have any mercy describing their fruits with description like "it is sooooo good......pure heavenly nectar is the only way I can describe its wonderful taste" and make others like Paully22 sigh even though he, being in British columbia, is relatively OK for growing fruits. Others in cold climate just think of the grocery store where medium size Fuyu persimmon is $1.50 these day in the economy type stores. So cherish them before the real winter sets in.

Gene: the pomegranates seeds does not have bitterness (actually no taste) but will feel dry if you try to swallow it after sucking all juice before swallowing the seeds.

Dan,
I haven't tried to dry my persimmon, I did taste dried persimmon a couple times. Their flavor is much different than fresh ones. I prefer them fresh and soft.
My hardy citrange has grown nicely this summer, but no flowers yet. Probably next spring if there was no winter damage.
The seeds are the best part of the pomegranates. I grew up eating pomegranates, figs, Guava, and you name it. Most of them have tiny edible seeds. I don't even notice them. I can't imagine being limited to apples and common fruits.

Bass

Bass - do the poms, persimmons and jujubes need winter protection?

They are more cold hardy than figs. However not all varieties are as cold hardy. those that I grow I didn't protect them in winter and they did fine.

Bass

Hello Everyone,

I am very interest in getting a persimmon, jujube, and paw paw tree. I did read a lot about them and saw a couple places carry them. The thing is I'm not sure which nursery is good with these fruits. I usually order tropical fruit trees but would like some nice fruit in the ground. Did you guys order from a nursery online? Which variety of paw paw is good and how long did it takes for it to fruit after planting? Which nursery send a nice size jujube?

Thanks.

There are different online nurseries that carry them. One thing about pawpaw, if you buy one bare rooted, chances of its survival is very low. Make sure it's a potted tree, it doesn't like transplanting. Grafted pawpaw take about 3 years to start bearing. you may want to try www.eat-it.com for some of those trees.
I graft my own trees usually. Sometimes I may have extra grafted persimmon, pawpaw, jujubes.

Bass