Young mandarins need older trees to produce good fruit.

Steve

Bob, maybe the shiranui needs to hang a little bit longer on the tree? The first fruit I ate was amazing but the second one wasn’t as sweet and I think that’s because I picked it to early.

Oh Bob, I just remember that I left my first shiranui fruit on the counter for a few days before I tasted it. Mayb, it had time to sweeten up that way?

Amy, I have only one Shiranui fruit my grafted tree from your cuttings, looking forward to tasting it, exciting :))

Brian, I have been thinking of you!~ ! I hope all is well. It's sure is a cold one and early. I am already praying for the spring buddy! Take good care

Hello Mikey buddy I heard you guys had quit the snow event on the weekend lol don't miss that my friend. We finally have a bit of snow on the ground its been snowing here lightly all day. Major chill next week but they are saying its going to be a much milder winter than last year. I hear you my friend spring couldn't come soon enough on the bright side the days will slowly be getting longer in three weeks Yippee. I'm finally getting over I hope the worst cold virus ever fingers crossed . I hope that all has been well with you buddy. Take care my friend.

Brian

Sunshine! Cute little fruit!! I hope that you will like it as much as you like the fruit from the market!

Brian? Is it true about us getting a milder winter? So far, they said that it will be very cold just like last year. I won’t mind if they change their mind loll

Mike, how is the weather in your neck of wood?

Very nice sunshine!!!!!! I would make many trees from that Shiranui branch Sunshine they are that good.

Amy I'm thinking of reversing my upper statement on a milder winter lol just looked at a forcast calling for a very cold December starting mid next week oh no!!!!

Pic of those really tasty Minneola's

Lot's of lemons, on the left Meyers that are coated with dead scale on the right Eureka lemon and in the lower middle variegated Calamondin.
Please forgive the mess I haven't spent a lot of time in there since being sick.

Brian

Oh wow Brian!!! Your trees are gorgeou! Don’t worry about the mess we only have eyes for your beautiful fruits!!!

What mess?

Steve

The Valentine pomelo’s I tried we’re not at optimum ripe condition, not by a long shot. Valentines name was given, because they ripen around Valentines Day. I will try to give an update till they are gone, still have a dozen or so to pick.

Bob, I read somewhere that they start to be ready only after valentine day!

Sure, it depends on your bloom and duration of hot temps. In ideal conditions it might be sooner, either way, it is a long time for Brian to wait. With all that vitamins C he has been eating, he must be spending too much time in his outdoor whirlpool. Hope you’re back to 100%.

Bob and friends!!

Hello there way down in Arkansas. Bob lol you would think with all the vitamin C I have sitting there in my greenhouse I would be able to shake this terrible cold I caught a couple of months ago no such luck . Maybe your on to something there Bob maybe I should fire up the hot tub and dunk myself in there then roll in the snow then repeat . Bob that's the way it goes some years mandarins so so and some years they are out of this world . But even when they are so so they still are better than store bought . E.g. my tangelos are exceptional this year perfect balance of tart and sweet . Last year they were still very good very sweet but were missing that hint of tartness. The exact same happened with my Shasta . Bob with Shiranui you can leave them on the tree till they fall off they only get better with age they won't dry out . I've eaten a few already and they were extremely good But I know they will even get better with time if that's possible. The exception of leaving fruit sitting on the tree to get better are minneola a very short window for getting them eaten at peak ripeness if left to long on the tree they will dry out very quickly usually a month . Bob my Kishu's were delicious when the tree was sitting outside in September as soon as I brought the tree in the GH they dried out with in a couple of weeks . I have found if trees bloom in fall the fruit will be terrible for best fruit they have to bloom during late winter early spring that way the fruit will have time to develop outdoors not in a greenhouse or indoors exception lemons and limes . Take care my friend

Brian

Bob I forgot to mention with Shasta they get better like Shiranui with age let them almost fall off the tree they won't dry this way you will get that taste your looking for . There were a couple of Shasta's on the ground a little while ago and they were delicious!!!!! I have a few on the tree right now that are bright orange and I'm not touching them which I can tell you not an easy thing to do .

Brian

My collection of big, fat mandarins might not be up to snuff yet, but it is a beautiful side to see a bunch of them hanging on all my tree’s, can’t get any better. All the Gold Series are big, bigger than the Shiranui inside. Big Pomelo’s, big everything. My green room looks like Christmas decorations in progress.

Spend all day rearranging my growroom, knock off a few pomelo’s and a few others.

got to reduce at least 7 for now. Gave away a few mandarins for friends to test. My wife has final say so.

If I knew what I know now, I probably do things a whole lot different. I would retire in a warmer climate. Too late now, but good to see a lot of younger people joining in, guys and more gals, making a difference, I will fade away soon.

No don’t fade away Bob!! It wilk break my heart and I still have so many things to learn from you! Oh your trees are very gorgeous and they do look like Christmas tree! Can’t you move obe in your house for decoration purpose?

Tried another Valentine pomelo, still about the same as the second I tried. I can believe I eat the whole thing. Again milder than a grapefruit but sweeter, with a taste of a mandarin.

The inside has streaks of blood mandarins (Moro). At this stage, I like it better than the mandarins I tested so far, they are just sweeter, Lee/Nova and Page are about the same, pretty good. My prediction, the girls would love them, the Valentine that is, you will need a bib, very soft meat, no bitterness.

Bob, you can't fade from us! Keep going and make it to 100!! I recently did a taste test of a kimbrough satsuma vs the ponkan mandarins. I rescued a tree last year that was huge but defoliated at a local nursery. It was a great deal at like 70% off (or something like that). I bare-rooted it this spring and it grew back very nicely. It has many huge, juicy ponkan mandarins that are now ripe. They are wonderful! The satsuma, if we had tasted it in isolation, would have been quite pleasant. However, compared to the ponkan, it was definitely the second place winner. I still like both and will not get rid of either tree. The one downside to both is they both have some seeds. Not a huge problem, but just a little annoying. The miho wase I think is still my favorite to date though. My daughter had peeled them and arranged everything before I took the photo, so I was unable to get a pic of the whole fruit. I will next time though. I'll post pics from my phone as my computer is very slow right now.

Ouch, a hundred, if I am not comfortable moving pots around than there is no sense to continue. This coming season will be my challenge.

You are tough Bob! You will be fine! So which mandarin has been your favorite so far??

I can honestly tell you that all of them taste the same, they are sweet not very sweet to make your teeth rot. I am looking for that rich taste that were describe about these varieties.

I am glad that you are very happy with yours. I’ll have to wait. I am just glad to be able have fruits that soon.

Knowing you I doesn’t surprise me a bit. More members going to follow suite, just watch this coming fall.