The other day I was mowing the lawn at a rental and noticed 2 things:
1- The Honey Jar had quite a few fruit on it. Maybe 15 or more, which is quite a few for a 3rd year plant here (from Grow Organic in Feb 2018)
2- The HJ tree is getting very little sun- maybe half a day, from mid-morning to early afternoon. Maybe only 5 hours.
Not only are there shade trees(in several neighborās yards), but there is a black walnut nearby as well. It is the thick tree to the top-left of the HJ in the middle pic.
I put several trees at this site, mostly out of curiosity, rather than an expectation of fruit. And who knows, if the neighbors remove some trees, the jujubes will already be well established. A few have done very little (and one died), but Iām pretty happy with the HJ in the middle of the lawn
Not a danger. If you like apples you will like these more since they are sweeter than any store bought apple. We like ours half green and half brown when they are crunchy sweet.
Sherwood had an alternate year cycle for me. Fruit set would be relatively light one year and massive the next year. In the Fall of 2019 it was one of the most productive jujubes I had.
Thereās a big difference between growing jujubes in zone 9 and zone 6. Normally by August 1 my Autumn Beauty and Black Sea fruits would almost be ready. This year neither is even close. Massandra, Maya and Baby Red seem furthest along, although Massandra is being bothered by some pest.
Weāve had such an outbreak that Iām trying to maintain a wide zone of scorched earth around the fruit trees hoping they will stay far away. But I would prefer them to be in Florida!
Taste preferences are very subjective, but while I think the very best apples are competitive with the better jujubes, average jujubes will beat average apples, and the best jujubes are as good as or better than the best apples.
At most I can eat 3 or 4 apples in one day. At that point I am tired of apples and probably wonāt eat any the next day. But I can eat 30-40 jujubes in one day and still want more, and would definitely eat just as many the next day. Of course most jujubes are smaller than most apples, but the difference is that jujube flavors are more interesting. Even the best apples become boring much faster than the best jujubes do.
I generally put jujubes above apples, but the best apples (Golden Russet, Goldrush, Evercrisp, SweeTango, etc) can be competitive. I will say that Iāve had some apples which tasted pretty good at 10-12 brix (Braeburn comes to mind), but not any jujubes. So if you are watching your sugar, then apples could be the way to go (though hardly sugar-freeā¦).
I just noticed some very similar damage on my Shanxi Li today. It looked like the wound had dried on mine, so it may continue development.
I also noticed some strangely bumpy fruit on the same Shanxi Li (there were several like this):
My furthest along is the Bok Jo, of more than 30 varieties which have at least some fruit this year. Iāve noticed that some of the later fruit on it turned brown. Iām guessing it reached a point where it was supporting as many fruit as it could. Iām actually glad that a few turned brown, rather than reducing the quality of the rest.
My Sherwood actually has a decent number of fruit. At least on one branch that I bent almost horizontal (maybe 25 on the branch and 10-20 on the rest of the tree). Iām not sure if the bending helped, or if the fact that it is over the corner of my driveway and thus particularly warm. It could also help that it was quite accessible when I was spraying GA3, so it may have gotten more than the rest of the tree . And it did start setting fruit a few days after that spray . I think next year Iāll do the spray with a pump sprayer, rather than a Windex bottleā¦
For those who like the taste of jujubes will find jujubes better tasting than apples. Same is true with those who prefer apples. It really is a personal preference.
All you need to do is try good tasting jujube varieties and decide for yourself if you like them. I like some tasty jujubes (tasty to me) and like some tasty apples, too.
I sprayed GA3 late this year. I sprayed it on my Massandra and So. The good news is Massandra set about 8-9 fruit (more than 3-4 I got last year). Unfortunately, none on So. Thus, I canāt say if GA3 has helped.
I have good set on HJ and Sugar Cane. Shanxi Li set more than the past 3 years (it set a low bar with fewer than 10 fruit in 3 years. None last year). I think having several varieties grafted on it helps. I am hopeful that other varieties will set fruit. It is too early to tell as young jujube fruit can turn yellow and fall off easily.
i agree. Should also add that some folks couldnāt really get jujubes to fruit in their respective areas, and even if they manage to, the cultivars they have may not be at optimal condition. Jujus sold at most supermarkets arenāt in optimal condition either. And lastly, apples are pretty much the quintessential american fruit so everyone who grew up here will regard its characteristics(including appearance) as the ānormā, which practically categorizes all other fruits into the weird category(rambutan, mango, and of course, jujubes)
i find jujus more refreshing than apples even though apples are generally more juicy. Could be the peel-to-pulp ratio of jujus is higher (weight for weight being much smaller) have something to do with it. Much like cherries seem to be more refreshing than larger drupes even though peaches and nectarines are more aromatic and intensely flavored.
speaking for myself, would also like to add that there are way more apple cultivars that taste so much better than the most common jujubes( li, lang, even honey jar and sugarcane).
it is just that if have to compare them to my favorite jujube cultivars, have to say my fave jujus are way better than the best apples out there.
There are enough apple varieties to eat one per day for the rest of your life and never get around to tasting all of them. So, the ones at the grocery may all be boringly similar, but they are about abundant supply of consistent productā¦and making money.
An online check quoted 7500 varieties of apples. At one per day, that;s 20.5 years. I donāt know about you, but Iām hoping for more than that
Which varieties are those? When is your first one usually ripe? Iāve never had so many varieties before, so maybe something will be earlier, but in the past, I think the first ones were ripe around the end of the first week in September.
@BobVance,
I think it is good that jujubes turn brown when they ripen. It is easy to figure iut when to pick them. Unfortunately, my first one, Massandra, did not ripen until the 2nd week of Oct. Then, everything else ripened successively after that. I picked my last HJ the last week of Oct.
Where I am, late ripening varieties will not work. Your zone is better in this regard.
