Longan 2016 updates

I've been growing this longan or dragon eye for about a season. I wasn't able to root any from seed so I bucked up and bought a seedling from ebay.

In the past as a child my first fascination with gardening came from sprouting my very own longan seeds. I never was able to keep any of them alive very long though. But now I guess I have the opposite problem.

I can keep them alive but can't seem to sprout them.

The longan has done very well indoors. It prefers a lower pH soil and didn't take off growing until I mulched pine needles and bark in the pot from one of my loads of free wood chips.

It's grown a foot over the winter. I hope it doubles that this growing season.

2015

2016

April

The red leaves are new growth

 

 June 2016

July 

August 1. Up Potted

Tropical Fruit Update

Sorry for the blurry photos. The wind was blowing and it was pass sunset.


Longan

Yellow Jaboticaba

Jaboticaba

Longan

Growing tropical fruits in Seattle without a proper greenhouse is a bit of a pain.  They tend to prefer much more acidic soil and high humidity.

However I've had a bit of success with a few of my plants.  I've made it to the next step of acclimating my 2 longan plants to our Seattle summer weather. They've been living in a very humid indoor greenhouse and it's put on about 6 inches of growth in a couple of months.

The keys to success have been:
Low PH Soil 5.5 or lower + High Humidity (60+) + Low PH water + Light and long days = Great growth.

I've been lowering my PH with Azalea fertilizer, Sulfur, and Coffee grinds. I initially used peat but it attracts way too many fungus gnats.

Try not to use tap water to water your plants with. It's a quick way to kill them.

In the colder months when you have to keep them inside, use a clear bin or plastic greenhouse to keep the humidity up. Buy a $9 humidity gauge. It's worth every penny.

I don't think I can expect fruits from these trees. It's more of a test to keep them alive here.