@BobVance and I have comiserated about Shanxi Li’s poor setting. I thought I had a lot of SL’s fruit this year. Well, they turned brown and fell off by dozens.
They developed quite large before turning brown and dropped. Other varieties, if they will drop, they drop at a much smaller size than this.
Meanwhile, my Honey Jar is setting good amount of fruit again.
Shanxi Li isn’t that bad about setting- as Mamuang says they just don’t stay on. The same thing has happened for me in past years- there were a lot on the tree in early to mid July and by the end of August, not much is left.
This time, there are a few big ones on the tree, which I think may make it. Interestingly, they are much wider than the few Shanxi Li I’ve gotten in the past. I’m hoping that it means they have the same high quality that I’ve heard about in the past, rather than the somewhat dry texture that I’ve gotten.
Bok Jo, Xu Zhou, Honey Jar, and So all have quite a few fruit, which look like they will ripen. That isn’t to say that there was no drop from those cultivars. But, even after a few dropped, there is still a lot left.
Bok Jo:
Rootstock:
The fruit from the rootstock are moderately sweet, and half-way between crunchy and dry. They are worth eating, but not great. Even so, I’ve kept the branch around as it has produced so well. Right now, I need production. In a few years, If I have more jujube (of better varieties) than I know what to do with, I could prune it off. But for now, they all get eaten. And it isn’t a bad thing to pop in your mouth and chew on while doing yard work.
I was installing a support for a tree the other day and a sucker was in my way. I got lucky and it was from the end of a root (from a nearby tree, not the one I was working on), rather than in the middle. The suckers that come from the middle seem more likely to pull up without any roots supporting the sucker. But these had quite a bit.
It was a bit tricky to find a spot where I could divide the roots so that both shoots would have some roots. But, the junction where they came together could be cut with pruners, leaving each with half the roots.
It turns out that in the 4 days since I dug these 2, they have recovered very well. There was only a little drooping the first day and the foliage looks almost normal now. While most of the 1st batch are pretty wilted. I think at least 3 and maybe as many as half of the first 11-12 will make it.
But these last two look like ones I’ll feel pretty good about grafting next spring.
Glad you mentioned about your first batch of dug up roostocks. Of the 13 I dug up, about 6 have not wilted (good sign). The only bad part is that the ones that look to survive are tiny plants.
The ones, that are a foot tall or taller, have wilted and probably won’t survive as they have very few roots (unlike the ones with plenty of roots in Bob’s pic above)
Don’t give up on them. The 2 I did earlier this summer came back after a couple weeks. It surprised me, as I thought that they were toast. I just kept them on the North side of my house, only getting a bit of morning sun.
I had a small seedling that I was digging up and I accidentally cut right through the stem and lost the main part of the root – I planted the top portion with almost no root inside a 1’ blue tree tube in full sun. I kept watering it, and it woke up after about a month or more. Not very healthy yet, but I expect it will make it. They can be tough.
so encouraging to see at least one cultivar bearing heavily in your area @mamuang.
you(and @BobVance) are borderline out of zone, if not already, so your hj should be enough incentive for other out-of-zoners to try jujus
It may help to trim back/prune off a lot of the foliage. Give it a chance to work on roots instead of having to support all the green.
That’s a very good idea, as a lot of moisture is lost through the leaves and there aren’t enough roots to resupply. I should have done that when I first took the suckers, as by now they have already lost most of their water and started to crisp up (at least some of them).
Mamuang, If you do this, make sure to leave enough of the central leader that you can graft to it next spring. You can remove some of the deciduous leaf/branches.
I should also mention that on my other Shanxi Li (the one with a bit less sun) it dropped all the fruit. The only fruit left on the tree is a single Russia #4 on a graft that is only a few inches long. The Russia #4 graft on a Sugar Cane also has the majority of the fruit on that tree. So, it seems like it is a productive cultivar in my area. I just made the grafts last spring, so I haven’t had a chance to taste it yet. Raf mentioned that it is pretty bad in Vegas, at least when ripened during summer.
@jujubemulberry,
I think @tonyOmahaz5 in zone 5 having his jujubes so fruitful is even more amazing.
@k8tpayaso, thanks for a reminder. I should have done that (trimming of leaves) but got side tracked. They are wilting and falling of now since it has been a week.
@BobVance, thanks for the suggestion. I may just remove side branches and leave central lead. Most of them are only a foot tall. Sorry to hear about your SL dropping fruit. It is frustrating.
Totally agree about @tonyOmahaz5.
All your posts make excellent reference material for people in your zones
I second what @jujubemulberry said. This is very useful info for newbie like me in choosing which varieties to purchase.
Kate, I am relatively new to jujubes, too. Because of people like @scottfsmith, @jujubemulberry @tonyOmahaz5, I started to pay attention to jujubes.
Then, found out that others like @Bhawkins, @castanea, @BobVance, are experienced jujube growers as well. I think these are the people that have made jujubes become more popular among forum members here.
I rely on @BobVance, who have grown more varieties than anyone around, to give me advice on what does well for him. We are both New Englanders and he is only half a zone warmer. So, what (jujubes) good for Bob, it should be good for me. Thanks, Bob.
I don’t know where you live, Kate. You may want to put your state in your profile. It can come in handy when you ask question about growing fruit in your area.
@mamuang- I am at New Haven CT which is the same zone as @BobVance and you as well. I am reading both of your experiences. I just started fruiting tree growing this year and already plan to expand as much as the backyard allows in coming years.
Starting with jujubes would be putting your best foot forward.
You can’t ask for a better start with delicious fruit that requires minmal care like jujubes.
Stone fruit like plums and peaches are popular and tempting. They require a lot of care where we are.
I am not planning to grow stone fruit (at least not yet). I have jujube, Asian pears and pawpaw now. I also have one In-ground fig gifted by a friend that survived last winter. I tried fresh figS for the first time last year and they were sweet!
well you actually have been growing just that, since jujus are technically stone fruits 
that is a strong list! Though i sure wish could grow pawpaws where am at 
…
Learn something new! Didn’t know jujubes are stone fruit. I have yet to try fresh jujubes. Growing up, we only use dried jujubes in soups and occasionally use Along with dried goji to make tea in recent years. Can’t wait to try them fresh!
quite a pleasant surprise right? I find jujus extremely easy to grow, but despite this, i still find it intriguing and mysterious, if not inscrutable!
