White Sapote 'Suebelle'

Stan

Well-Known Member
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17/04/14
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Casimiroa edulis in one of my small yards. A good compact almost dwarf fruit tree that bares most of the year. At any one time it can have the whole range- flowers- tiny fruit- large green fruits,and..ripe. Best chilled and peeled My niece had never tried these in the Philippines. She's hooked!.
I got it in the early 80's..planted it out in 1993.


 
They are nearly as hardy as Citrus and Avocado's, Dean. Although,I notice that they will get tip burn at higher temps then Avocado' or Citrus,yet, in 1992 in 24f temps,while Suebelle-still in a 30 gallon pot- only died back to the main branches.
Suebelle is great for coastal valley norcal,and of course all of not desert heat soucal. BUT,there are varieties of Casimiroa that can handle high heat,and some that can thrive in tropical heat and humidity..those,I hear,have smooth leafs not the velvety undersides to Sue's leafs.
I have to post a small Mango I have flowering right now in ground. I bought it in 2011,It went into the ground in 2013.
 
AND...the Sapote is still giving ripe fruit. They are like cartoon tree's....ripe fruit all year like a child would draw. I'm eating them,we are eating them,and its just a few every 3-4 days. Nothing to waste. I dont think there is any other fruit tree that has all phases going at all times...flowering,small fruit,ripe fruit.
I think I'm creating a new industry in the Philipines as plenty of seeds are getting sent to a relative there who happens to have a degree in botany.
And Dean,the Mango has a couple of three on them. They look a bit funky. I attribute that to cool summer days followed by hot summer days,and repeat.
 
Mabuhay! My wife is from Laguna. My Tagalog is worse then my Spanish. I'm pretty good at English-lol.
The tree I got from Los Angeles in 1982. They weren't sold in the bay area then ( Now,they sell Jackfruit-Starfruit-and all the rest) White Sapote is Casimora edulis,native to elevation in Mexico and Central America. I got lucky with Suebelle..it alone bares all year. More some times of the year,less others. But,It seems like I always have some to share with people who visit. I gave some today to a couple of installers working on my home. One is of Chinese descent the other Guatamalan. They want to come back and pick more-lol. I know that my variety RS is of subtropical and low humidity preference...but plenty of C.edulis are fully adapted to lowland tropics. The more hair on the leaf- the more dry air. Some tropical types have all smooth foliage.
The only drawback is they don't store well. 3-4 days in the fridge, max. You really do have to grow your own.

btw- Thats my niece doing the climbing. I only sound young-lol.
 
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Hi Stan, salamat! :) I've never been to Laguna, but I've seen it in the distance on the way to Batangas from Manila. My Spanish is worse than my Tagalog. With my wife, I had someone to personally teach me... at least a little. Jackfruit and Starfruit in the Bay Area? AMAZING. The White Sapote is something I've read about in Sunset Western Gardening book for years, and always wanted. But actually, I don't want it right now, because I have a shortage of soil and water where I live. I found some interesting things online about White Sapote, that it can cause weird health effects in some people. I used to live in Vallejo and Napa.
 
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