I love growing fruit trees, my favorite fruits are mangosteen (very expensive, bad for my pocket), well ripened white flesh peach and mandarin.

Bob and sunshine, vine ripened peaches, kissed by the sun are one of my favorite fruits. We have 5 peach trees and this is the first year we sampled a few peaches each off of three different trees. We were in heaven and are already looking forward to next season. Lol. I have always loved fruits and grow as many varieties as we possibly can for our location. Plums are great and the trees we have are finally doing well and this year were productive for us. Tasted Black Ice plum for the first time and it was amazing. The tree only had a dozen fruit so we had to share but oh, my, were they ever good! The other plum varieties were loaded and the sour cherries did very well also. This is the first year that most of our fruit trees were all producing. We have numerous berry bushes and I try to grow watermelons every year. I love a great watermelon in the late summer and it was the only thing I craved when I was pregnant. Lol. Bob, I bought my first jujube tree early this summer, a honey jar. Do you know anything about jujube and if it needs a pollinator tree?

I grow fruit for fun, and for fruit. I like to try growing ususual things I can't find in the store. Tried cocona fruit this summer. Odd tasting fruit. Made a good drink. Peaches are yummy. Hard to beat a ripe peach.

jinnylea, I don't think your honey jar jujube requires a pollinator from what I've read. I've been reading up on jujube lately because when I visited Stan McKenzie's farm he had a jujube tree, gave me a fruit, and I saved the seed and waiting for it to sprout now. I only saw one jujube tree there. Seed grown jujubes aren't that recommended, but thought I'd give it a go anyway just to see if it would sprout.

Lol, Jinny, the same here with watermelon craving during pregnancy. Nothing beats cold, refreshing watermelon slices in the heat of the summer. Next season you will have more fruit on your peach trees as they get larger.

When talking about Jujubes there is this Tony, who on occasion visit GW is on a different Forum, he is a wiz on Jujube, I was never interested in it, sorry.

Thanks, Dave. Good luck with your jujube seed. So what did you think of the jujube fruit from Stan's tree? Do you remember the variety name? I have never heard of cocona fruit so I will need to look it up.

Sunshine, I picked 2 small watermelon from our garden a few weeks ago. That will be the last until next summer. I plan on cutting into one this weekend and I will enjoy every bite.. lol

Bob, I believe I know what forum you are talking about as I am a registered member over there. I used to post a few years back when ever I had the chance but then my elderly parents took ill and other things were put on the back burner. I recently tried to log back in but had some trouble getting back on, but I will persevere. Thanks.

It is funny about the different forums available to anybody, you start out with a few forum friends, looking back I have accumulated a few really good friends, not just forum friends. During my traveling days to wherever I always try to include a visit to one or two of them. I enjoy that.

I’ve grown one or two plants here and there since I was a kid. Mostly a fern or african violet, then one cactus in undergrad which flowered for me. It was the first time I’ve had cactus flowers. Then I watched beekeeping videos on youtube when I had a flu last year. For some reason I thought I should keep bees in the future and grow fruit trees as a bonus for the bees and me. And now I haven’t thought about bees in a long time and just think about what fresh, homegrown fruit will taste like :) I tend to get a plant and then forget them some months later. Fruiting plants and fragrant flowers seem to keep my attention and worry on them better than normal houseplants

And my favorite fruits growing up weren’t typical so maybe I was made to grow fruit trees! I should’ve started when I was young! The favorites back then were pink/red grapefruit (sour-bitter-sweet ones), persimmons, American pears, tangerines, peaches (on&off), and apricots. Currently my favorites are still sour-bitter-sweet pink/red grapefruit, oriental persimmons, and American pears. Tangerines, peaches, and apricots have fallen off my radar but only because they’re so variable in taste and ripeness from the store. I may try a apricot tree one day, peaches are too disease susceptible here.

Above all the main reason is because I used to love fruit so I’d rather grow something I can eat and taste the effort put in. Second reason is loving to watch plants grow and for their beauty

Steve, never intend to single you out. Here is my take, everything i grow has cost me near nothing, even the tomato plants, bought a small package of cherry tomato's, kept some of the seeds, i am still eating cherry tomato's. My figs tree's all from exchange and friends, no money outlay other than postage same with everything else, and all on sale stuff. Biggest outlay 12 led shoplights, $24.00 each. Inground tree's, some going on 10 years or more.Payback? I have done good, just as much costs as yours.

I get more pleasure from the way i have done it so much and cheaply and i also have given tree's to older people and even planted for them. No cost.

I have been gardening since I was 14, now 58. I like growing my fruit and vegetables because I can grow the foods I like to eat, save money and have the satisfaction of saying I grew it myself even though it's a lot of work. It's great to just walk out in the backyard and pick whatever you need for that day's dinner or as a snack. Unfortunately, here in GA, I cannot grow the same fruits and vegetables that I grew in CA because the environment is very different. The weather, humidity and bugs play a big part of what can be grown here without a struggle. I have found certain things easier to grow to make up for what I lost and citrus is one of them. That explains why I have 25 citrus trees. I just started growing figs because they seem to be immune to the insects and humidity compared to the stone fruits I had to forego growing here.

I'll add growing "for food" to my reason too, although we don't really get that much food from citrus yet. We do grow a lot of other edibles. My wife and I are trying to become more healthy and self sufficient, and it feels good sitting down at a plate of food you grew, and also knowing exactly what is and not in it.

jinnylea: I don't know what kind of jujube it is, Stan kindly showed me around his farm that day, and while we walked to the mustard green patch he picked off a jujube for me. It was like a cinnamon apple delightful fruit. Hope mine sprouts and becomes just like it. I should have asked him the other day, I called about something else. Next time I'll ask him.

Bob you didn't single me out. I am just doing things different than others on this forum.

Steve

Bob, I love the threads you start.

Believe it or not I don't grow anything to eat because at this home I am limited for space, not enough direct sun for veggies or fruit and even if fruit, all the animals come and steal the. Then if citrus, I can't eat them anyways. Too much sugar content and too acidic for me. It's a bummer but I do buy all kinds of plants and citrus especially for their scent, So I will buy all different kinds of citrus so that there is always something in bloom. I don't grow them with the intent to grow fruit, but to share them if I decide to leave any behind. That is why I am always asking many here for the least acidic fruit of all.

You are right, it's great to meet many here including you.

Mike

I am mainly growing citrus and vegetables to know what goes into my food. I do enjoy the growing of things as a hobby (started 10 years ago or so) but I do like being able to put into practice organic growing principles. I am on a small surburban plot but I am trying to make the best of the sunlight and space that we do have.

After reading what Steve wrote, I realized the reason normal houseplants can’t keep my attention is because they don’t give back like edibles do. Financial reasons is definitely one of the reasons I decided to start. I liked the idea of harvesting my own honey and fruit without paying for them the rest of my life lol. Growing the trees ended up so being so enjoyable that I forgot it was intended for self sufficiency and cost savings

Bacon, my previous citylot was l-shape 45 wide, 60 long and 12* deep, I still managed to grow 37 fruit bearing tree,s. 80% dwarfs. Some people on our city block were so happy to get the finest fruits to taste, just a handful each but they always remember.

I enjoy growing fruits and vegetables because it's fun to eat what you've put an effort into growing, plus they usually taste a lot better than what you can get in the store. Some of the fruits that I grow can be very pricey in the store - individual passionfruits can go for around $5 each, depending on the season. My daughter loves them, so I've almost recouped the cost of the plant, lumber for the trellis, etc. Next year I'll be in the black, at least with regards to passionfruit. Most other fruits and veggies are not really money savers when you thing of the soil to renew the veggie plot or fill the fruit tree pot, pots, fertilizers, etc.

I also enjoy propogating the plants and have given away trees and veggie seedlings to friends and family.

Bob: That’s awesome! I currently have 5 fruit trees and am making the most of space with pots and a small 20x20 veggie garden.

Mangos are my favorite - Glenn in particular. I do love a good peach though. I like oranges and mandarins, and fresh apples. I love the satisfaction of growing my own and think they taste even better when they come from my garden ;)

Laura, i got several members that have mango orchards, a couple of them send me boxes for around $ 50.00 each during high season, the rest of the season buy just from Sam's Club to satisfy my cravings for mango. My wife and me loves mango's and persimmons, but she also loves my Mandarins, easy peel, excellent tasting.

Needed a longer table, most are already gone and my wife has hers already hidden.

Got to love this time of the year!

Mmm persimmon heaven!!

Before I had kids plants were my kids/pets. Now with 2 young kids my plant love has grown and expanded. I like the challenge of keeping them going outside of their grow zones and I am only interested in edibles and bonsai. Favorites are everything tropical but if I had to list which ones I will not live without 1. Mango 2. Sugar apple 3. Guava 4. Barbados cherry. I have to work hard at keeping those happy during winter here. My other less demanding favorites are 1. Jujubee 2. Asian pair and they are in the yard but kept small. Persimmon is another can't live without but it was planted in my sisters yard.

It looks like you are on your way to a new expended adventure, good luck!

I have grown plants for as long as I can remember. When younger it was flowers. Always dreamed of growing tropical spices. Black Pepper, Vanilla, Allspice, Nutmeg, Cloves. But got distracted by edibles. I started with a normal vegetable garden, but always add something I haven't grown before. Then I bought a citrus tree on impulse. And it went wild from there! Now I grow all sorts of winter hardy fruit, plus Citrus, Gingers, Bananas and still throw in flowers and veggies. Don't have the tropical spices yet, but I will need a old fashioned orangery to grow trees that large!

Our late season Crabapples off the tree taste pretty good fresh, a nice balanced tang/sweetness, are high in pectin, vitamin c and make a beautiful jelly. I try to put everything to good use. Lol

Very nice, Jinny, you sure got a lot stuff going. Are you trying to embarrass us.

Redneck girl, I would be in heaven if I could grow all of those spices, especially the vanilla vine and the allspice. I do grow a lot of different varieties of herbs. I have seen a few pictures of people successfully growing the vanilla vine in a heated gh.

Bob, you should talk.. lol..love those persimmons. Beautiful!

Ouch!!

Jinny those crabapples and jelly look so good! I’ve never made jelly or jam before but do the crabapples make it easier since they naturally contain alot of pectin?

Redneckgirl you can definitely get started on the Vanilla easily! It’s technically an orchid so it can be grown indoors and won’t take up much space if you trellis it right

dnedd I don’t see many people growing sugar apples here, it must make a pretty sight!

kvetchlambkin, I killed an orchid this summer! I bought three on sale, two different types. And killed one and one of the others is just hanging on. The last one is doing very well tho! So don't think I'm confident enough to even try with a vanilla yet.

Jinnylea, what beautiful jelly! I make a lot myself, usually blackberry, dewberry, muscadine. Last year I made spearmint and peppermint jelly. It was yummy.

I've always been fascinated with the tropical spices, but most are large trees, such as the allspice, cloves and nutmeg. And from what I read, on most you need a male and female tree! But it would be fun to try. May have to track down some. Lol!

Kvetch, crabapples have more natural pectin located within the skin and core. The crabapple jelly takes a bit longer, per more steps to make than jam. Once the apples are prepared and cooked down you put the mashed apples in a jelly bag to extract (let it drip out) the juice out. You dont want the thick pulp because it changes the consistantly of the jelly and makes the jelly cloudy. This could take a few hours or overnight to get all of the juice out for making the jelly.

Redneck girl, your jellies and jams sound so good and I bet they taste amazing. I have not tried the mint jelly, it sounds really good. I know my grandma used to make it years ago. I have a huge patch of spearmint, peppermint and chocolate mint growing so maybe that will be something new I will try next season. :) I made a lot of jam this year. Sour cherry, wild blackberry, raspberry etc. I made apple butter also which is a lot of work, but worth every bit of the effort. We love opening the jars and tasting the homemade jams and jellies in the winter time.

Jinnylea, I didn't make any this year, but last year I made white clover, honeysuckle, the mints and tomato jam. This year, apple, cherry and pear 'butter'. Those I love! The mint jellies are easy, just snip, steep and make it the usual way. I usually only make blackberry jam. Got to have some for Christmas Jam Cake!

It’s been a long time since I’ve seen this sight! :)

When I was a kid I always found seeds in my persimmons. I hardly do anymore probably after years of fine tuning seedlessness or growing practices. I found two healthy looking seeds and wrapped them in damp paper towel to root. Should I grow them? I’m so tempted to!

Make sure you put your seeds though the necessary chill period or they will just sit there

Ugh! I absolutely hate persimmons. We have the native type, and they come up everywhere! Birds drop the seed after eating the persimmon, and the germination rate is unbelievable. They come up in all my flower beds and are almost impossible to kill.

I would cut down the tree but it would be like closing the gate after the horse got out! Lol!

Great post! Really enjoyed reading all the answers. My mom had a huge vegetable garden because it was the cheapest way to get produce! (Our neighborhood got free compost and manure delivered by local government to promote home gardens.) So I never realized growing your own fruit and vegetables was a choice, and started herbs and peppers on my window sill as soon as I came to the US! I guess I garden because I like the taste of an organic homegrown tomato still warm from the sun better than anything! Now i grow tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, beans, peas, some asian vegetables, herbs, greens all season long. Fruit trees i have are apple, plums, pluots, persimmons and of course, my citrus! I have never had luck with squash or melons, as even though I have space, I don't have good earth, so I try to grow them in containers, and they never thrive!

KC

Thanks Steve! Into the fridge they go :)

redneckgirl, the seeds came from a Fuyu persimmon so they might not pop up like weeds as the native ones do. I really hope they don’t! I def want an oriental persimmon tree in the future

kc, my soil is like clay and I managed to grow some watermelons for the first time this summer! Unfortunately only one ripened and not too well bc we had huge rainstorms for a few days in a row. It cracked one prematurely, watered down another, and promoted black rot on all the new emerging watermelons. It’s def possible to grow in not so great earth, they just need to be fertile soils! I gave them organic fertilizer maybe only 3-4 times that summer and it grew well up until the rains and then I stopped fertilizing lol.

^ the only one that made it through picked on 8/22. It’s an Orangeglo

Oh well, there are a lot of things I don’t like, I mean a lot.!

kvetch, you give me hope! I also wonder if the dog would wind up eating the watermelon before we got to it! I think I might try some teepees and try some squash next year!

KC

One reason I grow citrus is to be able to grow enough to give away fruit to family, friends and good clients. A few grapefruit in the bottom of a gift bag with oranges, lemons and limes on top makes for a nice new years gift bag. Good way to show off my agricultural knowledge and talent to friends.