Just for fun thinking of trying these from seed. These were chosen because they had short fruiting time from seed. I have stonefruits from seed that turned out well. Let me hear your story if you have tried one.
6 Likes
Well I have 6 asian pears I started from seed, they are all between 2-5 feet after 2 years-3 years this summer. I put them in the orchard this past summer. No fruiting yet. I also have an apricot I stuck in for the heck of it, it flowered last year for the first time, no fruit. Better than the one I bought that has not even flowered yet. Both will be four this spring. I started star fruit from seed but got tired of the mites inside in the winter, no fruit after 5 years. Logees has one I might try. I also have about 25 different Citrus trees from seed. No fruit yet but I wouldn’t expect it for a few more years. I just like to start seeds and grow things, always fun! They can also be grafted onto, always a bonus!
5 Likes
Growing from seed is a bit painstaking, but quite rewarding due to the time element involved and the sense of propriety. Where we are at(las vegas), we have been promoting jujus, but we cannot declare it “jujube country” until we’ve actually developed our own novel cultivars from seed. We now have this proprietary vegas series of sorts: vegas booty, vegas candy, vegas spicy, v. glitzy, v. sweetie, v. bounty, v. kinky(from contorted), and v. baby. And should one of our seedlings from sihong and hj produce decent fruits, we’d respectively name them v. lucky and v. honey 
Anyway, have sown more than a thousand juju seeds over several years. Jujube can start blooming at 6 months of age(have a pic of 6 month old blooming juju in this video), but so far with the most precocious, the wild-type characteristics are exhibited; smallish fruits,very thorny. Those with genes for bigger fruits usually take longer, bearing on their 2nd or 3rd year. I could be wrong of course, since at least one seed-grown juju started bearinng bigger fruits as it matured.
below is vegas spicy on its 2nd(3rd year?), which had really spicy but smallish fruits on its first crop two yrs ago
then last year, some of the fruits got substantially bigger(below pics), and while it retained some spiciness, it was also considerably sweeter. A little disappointing(due to decreased spicy trait) but at the same time promising(due to increased brix and size)
14 Likes
@jujubemulberry What percentage of the seedlings you tried had decent fruit? Figured I would try this for fun and if it doesn’t do well I can always graft over it later.
If you manage to come up an improved variety of juju it should sell quickly. I was going to buy a couple till I saw their prices.
4 Likes
Hi Raf,
Is your Vegas Booty has the largest fruit and the most tasty. Crunchy, juicy, and sweet of all the Vegas series?
Tony
1 Like
very low, unfortunately, but maybe because the seedlings are still young, that even though already bearing, the fruits are still as immature as the 15-inch tall mini-trees they are borne on. I only have 8 on the list that are showing promise. And of them all, i only have booty, baby, and candy that have not undergone any drastic changes(in overall quality) for at least two bearing seasons.
My ‘hits’ are about 1 out of 100, at least among those that already started fruiting.
exactly, so not only do you save on overhead expenses for rootstock but you practically joined the lottery with a good chance of a lucky draw. While the waiting times and uncertainties growing new fruit cultivars from seedlings are daunting, jujus are some of the most promising due to relative precocity and pest-free upbringing. If you try growing new cultivars of apples and other conventional fruits from seed, the gestation periods aren’t just considerably longer, but worse is that you’re perpetually worried about their resistance to fireblight, borers, etc, and tolerance of soil conditions growing on their own roots. Jujus aren’t just earlier bearing, but also much longer-lived than conventionals
our aim is to give away budwood, and it is all up to the recipients if they want to sell or to give away. As long as the cultivars get broadcast far and wide, we’ll be happy!
and forget about disneyland – but to us – THE happiest places on earth will be those patches of land where desirable juju cultivars are growing on their own roots. Can’t wait to broadcast root cuttings of self-rooted sihong and vegas booty, etc 
jujus are still expensive due to rarity, but the scion exchange in this forum should increase supply for the demand.
so far it is the largest, sweetest and more desirable in flavor and texture, but it happens to be a much older seedling we’ve grown and have grafted some of its stems to more mature trees to indicate consistency in fruit quality. Vegas baby is the closest to sihong when dried as dates, but the small size and pit to flesh ratio is a bummer. I won’t recommend growing it in areas with long summers, since larger fruited varieties are productive here, but i will recommend it to out-of-zoners who might have difficulty getting common cultivars to fruit in their short growing seasons, since it bears plenty fruits even in low-light conditions.
vegas glitzy seems to be promising in size, having produced relatively big fruits on its first crop, and its overall quality was much better than sugar cane, at least to me. I can’t wait to see how it fares this year on its second crop.
3 Likes
Interested in selling a couple of the better seedlings now? I have two seedlings now but like you said odds are low they will be good and most likely grafted later. Another reason for the seedlings is I am hoping one will make a good east coast cropper. Here on the east coast everyone seems to have problems with fruit set. The reason why I’ve not shelled out the big bucks for named ones. @jujubemulberry
we don’t intend to sell seedlings or plant materials, but will be giving plant material away. Initially as budwood, then hopefully when the specimens size up, root cuttings.
Around autumn will announce the yearly giveaway on our jujube thread here .
2 Likes
Raf,
Vegas Booty and Glitzy are very promising new cultivar. Btw, VB survived the -7F this Winter so far. It will be tested someday with the -20F.
Tony
1 Like
My pears are older, but still no fruit. Frustrating!
1 Like
A few pics of my jujube seedlings, with their parents on the labels. Thanks to @jujubemulberry ! I’ll be separating the first ones soon, to give the new seeds a chance to sprout and the current seedlings a chance to expand their growth. I’ve got a prime spot waiting for these at the b-ball park (a bit out-of-reach, to keep the kids away from the thorns), and if they turn out not-so good, I’ll be asking around for scions.
6 Likes
yes it can be painstakingly long, but looking at the bright side, it seems to be tolerant of your weather conditions having survived several deep freezes and humid summers. And it seems to be insinuating that it has some resistance to pests, considering that it is still alive after all those years. So just be optimistic-- the older it gets, the less waiting time to bear fruit, and if fruits turn out to be duds, you can simply graft it over. The only thing bad about growing fruits from seedlings is if your orchard is too small, and if the seedlings have grown too big and taking too much space when could have been growing something else that would be bearing fruits already.
glad to hear it is still alive, considering that it was grafted quite recently. Best to trim overhanging branches to give it the most sunlight in summer, fattening the stems further which will increase tolerance to frigid temps.
2 Likes
you’re welcome @Caesar. Am really curious how those would fare in tropical conditions. I still find it amazing when envision chinese jujubes growing alongside yams,and both being productive!
1 Like
How old are they? What was the seed from?
I woke up this morning to find one of the Jujubes cut down by a hungry cockroach:
What are the odds of a small seedling stump like that re-sprouting? I still have just the four seedlings (including this one), so I’d rather not take a loss, if I have any say in it.
If it’s cut above the cotyledons it will come back but I’ve never had one revive from just the stump. 
1 Like
i’ve had a 2" tall juju seedling(which have sown outdoors in autumn) dieback to the ground after a wicked winter that produced a sucker(teeny-tiny!) the next spring, if that is a ray of hope…
3 Likes
Below the cotyledons, unfortunately.
That is a ray of hope. It’s been about a week, and the stump hasn’t died, so it may yet live.
2 Likes
Thank you for your juju posts! I’m growing Li, Lang, and Confetti (this one is still a baby, I bought it from One Green World, and they sent a tiny plant, it’s now about 2.5 ft tall). My Li and Lang are over 10 ft tall, healthy and well branched. They are in full sun, but no fruit yet after 5 + yrs on the ground: I’m in 7A zone. Any advice you could give would be much appreciated!
Hi @Persik, sorry took me a while. Re: your query, i hope they bear fruits soon, as 5 years is too long a wait. All could really think of is that full sun in your area might not be the equivalent of full sun in warmer regions of usa. Also thinking that your li and lang might actually be both lang, as this can occur inadvertently due to human error. We bagged some lang branches before and none of the blooms produced fruits.
anyway, please keep posting updates on the progress(or lack of) of your trees, quite certain other juju growers who have similar growing conditions/usda zones could chime in.
1 Like