I have developed a feel when using the vice grips and I can adjust the tightness and kinda know if it’s going to crush the seed too much. You might find that if you’re using the bench vise you might not be able to judge that so much. It’s been a learning process for me. You’ll find that different juju pits have different densities and some split easily and some are very strong. SiHong pits have the softest and thinnest shell and are very easy to crack and also very easy to damage the seeds. Redlands pits are very strong and thick and take a lot of pressure to crack the shell. Small wild rootstock pits are curse worthy!
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I usually just use the vice grips. The first try often breaks off/flattens the ends of the pit, effectively where you are after clipping (flat ends to grip). But, I’ll need to give it a try and see if it makes things faster.
I’ve found that a big part of the difficulty is in how dry the pit is. If they aren’t dry enough, it is very difficult to get it to properly crack. Sometimes I need to set the pits to the side for a week to get them to crack (rather than mush) more easily.
I generally throw these pits against the floor or wall. The seed often pops out. Finding it can be the hard part…
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@castanea Castanea, thanks for the post! I’m in zone 10 and would like your recommendation for jujube cultivar. I read your jujube 2017 crop and wonder if you have any update.
considering : Sandia, chico, Sihong, Russia #2/black Sea, QiYueXian, Maya
Where in zone 10?
SOCAL between LA and Santa Barbara, not along coast. so hot and dry summer
Anything should do well for you.
So is the cultivar sold as Winter Delight the commercial Dong Zao?
Have two different Li, one from Starkbros and another one that I bought off eBay, it’s an air layer.
I wonder if they’ll be the same once they both fruit, or if they will be different varieties going around as Li. I’d like to get a Scion of Li from a Dave Wilson tree to compare as well someday.
it would be interesting to see and hear BobVance, Castanea and Cliff talk Jujubes. reflections, lessons learned, unexpected surprises, grafting wisdom (what works best), etc. I’ll film – u folks talk.
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whhhhhatttttt are those?!?! heart-shaped Jujubes about the size of an apple? amazing!
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@castanea thank you for your input on this (GA 866) and so many other comments on this thread!
I’ll watch the finished product.
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Can anyone tell me if there would be interest in buying the Pepper jujube if a nursery in SoCal has it?
I would!
how big is Thai Jujube fruit does anyone have one?
They are too plain and growing in tropical zone so not many people on this forum grow them. Chinese jujube is more hardy and 5 times sweeter.
I’ve just discovered that the Sawmill where I discovered Texas Sawmill jujube has been removed I went over today to cut some scion and evidently last year the jujube trees there were severely cut back leaving only the trunks and the bottom most branches cut but lots of growth of young sprouts has occurred. I’ve cut scion from them but I don’t know what to expect of the trees’s future. The sawmill has relocated somewhere and who knows what will become of the lot and the trees. I have a couple of grafted branches of T Sawmill and a small tree on its own roots. That small tree will become very important.
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I’ve seen a few references to this Jujube. What is it like?
Per genetic testing, Texas Sawmill is either identical to Sherwood, or very close, differing in a gene that they didn’t happen to measure.
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You can say it’s identical to Sherwood if you like but this is a seedling as evidenced by all the suckering trees it puts out. It is also more productive than the Sherwood I have seen. But I suppose it is a comparison in shape and taste.
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