Tropical Fruit in South Florida

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1 Hello Tropical Fruit Lovers, This is the first volume of the Tropical Fruit News, a publication dedicated to providing you with the most current information on growing tropical fruit in South Florida. I hope you enjoy this newsletter. sapodillas and mameys are all capable of growing rather easily in South Florida with sometimes minimal input. If you have been living without locally grown tropical fruit, you are missing the sweet satisfaction and pleasure that comes with each season s harvest. Tropical Fruit in South Florida There is nothing more delicious or rewarding than devouring fresh, locally grown fruit from South Florida. Whether you are buying a mango from a roadside market or purchasing an avocado at a major grocery chain, nothing tastes better than local. Because local food does not have to be transported hundreds, sometimes thousands of miles like most commercial fruit, eating locally means you are helping the environment with a smaller carbon footprint. When foods don t have to travel as far, they are also able to be picked closer to the peak of maturity and are therefore fresher with greater flavor. Mangos, avocados, lychees, longans, bananas, carambolas, jackfruits, guavas, papayas, Many of our local products have made it into the large supermarkets and even more can be found at farmers markets, roadside stands and local festivals throughout the year. If you want to take the local concept one step further and are thinking of growing your own tropical fruit, a well grown tree generally produces enough of a crop that you can not only provide treats for you and your family, but also friends and neighbors. I cannot think of a better gift than fresh, home-grown fruit.

2 If you don t have a suitable space for a fruit tree or live in an apartment, fear not. The South Florida tropical fruit community and all of its commercial growers of fresh and healthy fruit are here to help. Schedule a visit to a local farmers market or supermarket today to start supporting the local growers. Your taste buds and the planet will thank you. The following information was written to compliment a workshop on pruning tropical fruit trees that took place on Tuesday, September 9. Pruning Tropical Fruit Trees Tropical fruit trees should be pruned in order to control size or shape, to promote flower and fruit production, to remove unhealthy portions of a plant and to open trees up to make them less likely to fall or break apart during a storm. True pruning is an art which takes time and thought. Before you make your first cut, study the plant s natural shape and try to picture this plant in three to four years. Try to maintain that shape in your mind as you prune. This will help you to make the sometimes difficult decisions associated with pruning. Pruning Mature Fruit Trees Before you start pruning, you will need to select the proper tools for the job. Three tools will be invaluable: a hand pruner, a lopper and a hand saw. Each tool should be of high quality and compatible with the user. Making sure your tools are properly sharpened and in good condition will greatly ease your job of pruning. Chainsaws are not a necessary part of pruning. A person with a chainsaw tends to make quick decisions that are quickly carried out with the Hand pruner Lopper aid of the chainsaw. Using a hand saw for your major cuts will allow you to think through your decisions before they are implemented. There are two main types of cuts: thinning cuts and heading cuts. A thinning cut is made on a branch all the way back to a major limb or trunk of the tree. This type of cut is good to control height as well as open up the tree. The other major type of cut is known as a heading cut. A thinning cut leaving the branch collar

3 The heading cut is made toward the end of a branch near a node or growing point. Heading cuts are used when you want to make a branch break buds and create multiple growing points. When a thinning cut is made, it is important to make the cut in the proper position on the tree. Do not leave an obvious stub when a cut is made. The stub will either die and create a weak point in the tree, or it will re-sprout. Both conditions are undesirable. Do not make a flush cut all the way back to the trunk or major branch. While a flush cut is visually appealing, it removes what is known as the branch collar. The branch collar appears as a swelling at the base of most branches and must be left because it will aid in the healing of the wound created by the pruning cut. If the collar is removed, the wound may never heal leaving the tree open to fungal attack and rot. When you are ready to begin pruning, look for unhealthy conditions such as included bark, dead wood or crossed branches and remove those conditions as you prune. Remember that each cut you make on the tree is unnatural and is causing the tree stress by producing a wound on the tree. With that in mind, keep pruning cuts to a minimum and never remove more than one third of the tree s overall canopy. Three Step Cut Some branches are so heavy that if you tried to remove them, they would begin to fall before a full cut was made which would result in a tearing of the branch. In order to avoid tearing a branch when a cut is made, a three step cut should be employed on all branches over two inches in diameter. The three step cut Begin with an undercut three to four inches from where your final cut will be made. The undercut prevents the limb from tearing. Make the second cut from above matching it with your undercut. This cut will remove the weight of the limb. The final cut removes any remaining portion of the limb. This cut should leave only the branch collar of the tree.

4 Terms to Know: Included bark occurs when two branches or trunks grow so close that they join and create a V as their width increases making the trunks vulnerable to splitting. This situation may be remedied by removing one of the included branches. Usually the largest branch is left in place and the smaller branch removed. Dead wood offers a prime entry point for wood borers, as well as bacteria and fungi that can damage your tree. Carefully cut away any dead wood from the tree while avoiding cutting into the healthy portion of the tree. When dead wood is left in a tree, it is a hazard as it may fall at any time. Crossed branches are unhealthy. When branches cross, there is a likelihood of the branches rubbing together and creating a weak point in the tree as well as an entry point for pathogens. The smaller of the crossed branches should be removed. Now that the obvious cuts have been made on the tree to improve its health, it is time to step back and look at the tree. This is the time in pruning when your mind is just as important as your saw. Decide what cuts need to be done in order to open the tree to decrease wind resistance, but at the same time maintain the overall shape of the tree. Pruning Young Fruit Trees When pruning young fruit trees, you are trying to shape the tree for the future by creating a complex structure of branches that has all portions of the tree open to sunlight. It is crucial to maintain the height of your fruit tree to allow for ease of fruit harvest and overall management of the tree. Height can be maintained through annual pruning as well as cultivar choice. Some types of tropical fruit trees, and particularly some specific cultivars, have a tendency towards profuse branching and smaller internodes (the distance between leaves) which facilitate maintaining a smaller tree and heavy fruiting. Tipping young trees to promote branching is essential Pruning to maintain height begins when the fruit tree is newly planted. A heading cut should be made at approximately three feet. This cut will encourage the tree to develop three to four branches which will eventually become the scaffolding of the tree. Heading cuts should be applied to the

5 resulting branches when they reach approximately 20 inches. This will again cause branching and should be repeated each time a branch reaches 20 inches. Strong vertical branches should always be removed in favor of horizontal branches. The horizontal branches will help the tree to maintain its height. This type of pruning continues until the tree is about two to four years old. Once the tree has reached the desired height, one to two thinning cuts a year should be made to help control the height. Major woody branches are not helping the tree to fruit and can be removed one by one over a period of several years. This will result in the rejuvenation of the overall canopy of the fruit tree as well as help to control the height. Upcoming Workshops Tropical Fruit Horticulture Monday, September 22, :00 AM to 11:45 AM Learn proper pruning, fertilization and planting techniques. Breakfast will be provided. Registration is $12 online and $15 at the door. Register here. Worker Safety Workshop Tuesday, October 7, :45 AM to 12:00 PM Learn about a variety of different safety topics including chemical safety, worker protection standards, heat stroke prevention, pesticide calibration and pruning and planning safety. Registration is $10 online and $15 at the door. Register here. Tipping young trees results in good scaffold branches later. For additional information, contact: Jeff Wasielewski, Commercial Tropical Fruit Agent, , ext. 227 or jwasielewski@ufl.edu. The use of trade names in this publication is solely for the purpose of providing specific information. UF/IFAS does not guarantee or warranty the products named, and references to them in this publication does not signify our approval to the exclusion of other products of suitable composition. Use all pesticides and tools safely. Read and follow directions on the manufacturer s label. The Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS) is an Equal Employment Opportunity Affirmative Action Employer authorized to provide research, educational information and other services only to individuals and institutions that function without regard to race, color, sex, age, handicap or national origin.