The skin is not as “speckled” as I would expect, although different climates …
I just love this cultivar.
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My FG seem not growing much at all. Can I ask how old is you tree?
Thank you Brady.
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I think yours is Flavor Grenade,Bob.I’m going to try and let them hang on to October if possible,at least a few.
Here is another shot,where a slight color is happening near the stem on one.
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Bob,
Your Flavor Granade looks like a pic on Dave Wilson’s site.
It says ripening time is late, Aug 30- Oct 2 for CA,. I wonder if it would it ripen in time in our zone.
I have a graft of it on my Shiro.
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If my Flavor Grenade, purchased from ACN ,is properly labeled then its ripening date falls withing that of CA- which is unusual, given that spring in NY arrives about a month later than in most of CA. They start to ripen about mid-Sept, which extends my J. plum season considerably. Pluots, for all practical purposes, are J. plums to me- can’t sense any cot characteristics at all. What makes them unique is very high sugar while still firm, allowing for the enjoyment of crisp plums and for commercial growers to ship sweet fruit that will last quite a while on store shelves.
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I also have a graftof Flavor King which, per Dave Wison ripens from Aug 11- Sept 2 in CA. My has 3 small very green fruit. At this rate, I don’t think mine could ripen until end of Sept.
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@BobVance, your fruit is Flavor Grenade, 100%. Regarding the ripening time, in my area some orchards start selling FG as early as second half of July (though fruit is still quite firm and underripe, similar to the one on your picture), and the main supply is in early-mid August. I personally prefer FG when the fruit are fully ripe, which means soft — for me the richness of flavor that the fruit develop at full ripeness is much more important than the crisp texture.
Based on what I see at local U-Pick orchards and farmer markets, the actual ripening date in CA is at least one month earlier (please see above). It seems like Dave Wilson’s estimate is quite off the mark in this case.
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I ate one Flavor Grenade yesterday. It was soft. It had small blemish and ripened prematurely. Tasted good enough although not super sweet. My FG crack very badly, I am not sure if they survive without rot.
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I may be one of the few but I actually like flavor grenade before it gets too ripe. When its too ripe it seems too sweet and loses some of its great texture. When it just gets ripe it has that terrific texture and a little tang to it.
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I have some cracking, but not on all fruit. Eastern sun is helpful- does your tree get early morning sun to dry the dew?
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FG ripens here in July and is a lot more elongated than the ones
in the pics. Extremely sweet and crunchy, and requires savoring every bite.
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Gee, that sounds like a lot of work. 
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It is!!
Yes, this one is in the full sun all day. I think it cracked when we had rains after 3-4 weeks of very dry and hot weather.
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There is a science to the timing that causes fruit to crack and it is a science I don’t yet understand. For plums it is usually later rain, but not FG which has some cracking this year from rain more than a month ago. Oullins, which is an early gage plum, is beautiful this year when more often than not it cracks on my tree, which gets some morning shade. Not like it’s been dry lately.
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Flavor Grenade has a long hang time under certain conditions. Mine that are over watered turn soft in July and really aren’t all that good. With a water deficit they can hang much longer, into September.
Near Fresno DWN chart says July 22 to August 7. But further north in CA I’ve seen much later dates.
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Thanks all- that is good to hear, as I was going to have to get another if it was mislabeled- the combo of it being very good from the grocery store and reputed to do well in the Northeast is hard to resist. The Geo pride next to it had low fruit set and dropped it all due to early bugs. I think I need an extra early spray next year. I lost a lot of plums and apricots.
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Couldn’t fine a clear thread for Flavor Grenade so I picked this one.
My tree was planted spring '22. It’s flowered each year. Last rust we had a late freeze.
This year I’m hoping for fruit. I think some have been pollinated, though whether they hold, size, and ripen is another issue.
Still, they are a bit pretty. In a few weeks we’ll see how many like this I have.
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So, unless I get a massive fruit drop, this will be my first year getting Flavor Grenade fruit.
There are easily many hundreds of pollinated fruit, most in the middle of shuck but some easily visible and enlarged.
We’ll see how much self-thins and how much I need to do myself.
Then the summer long battle of insects and disease that I am anticipating. The only bad thing about being a late harvest fruit…more time for trouble.
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Start now. FG needs about 90% taken off. It’s one of the worst pluots to thin. Once the plant really leafs out the fruit get hidden in amongst the leaves. It’s almost as bad as a heavy setting Asian pear. Both are a pain to thin after the leaves fill in. You’ll see.
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