dragon fruit none event (forum)

len starts with ...
looks like being nothing more than a conversation piece:

well the one and only forming fruit rotted and dropped off, out of over a dozen flowers, and looks like more buds await the next full moon?

when they open do i trip through the daisy's on the night of the full moon hand pollinating them, what part of the night is the optimal full moon?

all suggestions most welcome or by this time next year the plant maybe relegated to the local tip, and the fence post put back in storage

ta

Time: 28th March 2015 9:15am

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About the Author len
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ivepeters says...
What type is it ?

Time: 28th March 2015 10:00am

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JohnMc1 says...
In my words, and this is how I understand it, as we approach the summer solstice, the plant builds up and stores a certain budding hormone related to the amount of sunlight falling on the vines. When the stored hormone reaches a certain level the vine bursts into bud. The plant might have enough hormone stored to flush on more than one occasion. I believe you can extend the fruiting season by rigging up a lighting system, but haven't done it myself.
In your case, I don't know how old the vine is, but they do take a few years to establish before setting fruit, unless you have one of those exotic types that need hand/cross pollinating.

This is the first year this vine has fruited
Pictures - Click to enlarge

Picture: 1

Time: 28th March 2015 4:42pm

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Original Post was last edited: 28th March 2015 4:41pm

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Grant says...
My yellow is flowering for the first time tonight
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Picture: 1

Time: 29th March 2015 10:09pm

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JohnMc1 says...
Is yours the yellow spined?, nice. Mine flowered it's best this year, and I don't know why, but much earlier than yours. Mine usually flower much later in the season.
Pictures - Click to enlarge

Picture: 1
Picture: 2

Time: 30th March 2015 7:57am

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Grant says...
Mine is the yellow spined, they are the best tasting that i have tried. This is the first flowering for this dragon so i am not sure what is normal yet, possibly the plant is still sorting its self out. Yours are looking great! Do you hand pollinate? Or let nature take its course?

Time: 30th March 2015 1:18pm

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len says...
the red one as far as i know


Time: 30th March 2015 4:02pm

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len says...
g'day john not sure where you are but our summer solstice is long gone, winter equinox 21/mar, there is more buds forming i guess for the next full moon 04/apr

Time: 30th March 2015 4:07pm

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Original Post was last edited: 30th March 2015 4:07pm

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JohnMc1 says...
My spined yellow's are self pollinating, there's about 20 fruit on this year.
I'm still getting buds from another variety three months after summer solstice as well.

Time: 30th March 2015 8:38pm

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len says...
g'day john,

can you please explain yellow spined?

Time: 31st March 2015 5:35am

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JohnMc1 says...
Len, have a close look at the last pic's I posted above, All will be revealed, the fruit is covered in spines, as apposed to the soft smooth skin of other varieties.

Time: 31st March 2015 6:55am

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Yoda on DMT says...

Daleys have purple haze and Frankie's Red in production right now.

Time: 31st March 2015 9:15pm

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The poster formerly known as... says...
Here are a few pics of one from red fox. I think it's now called Aztec Gem. Heaps of fruit off it this year. Beautiful.
Pictures - Click to enlarge

Picture: 1
Picture: 2

Time: 31st March 2015 10:16pm

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Yoda on DMT says...
yep, that's Aztec gem and the fruit are on par with the best in the world IMO. It's actually a Californian variety imported by Bernice a long time ago.

Time: 31st March 2015 10:35pm

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Anthony says...
Any hints on the original variety name on that one???

Time: 31st March 2015 11:27pm

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Yoda on DMT says...
It's either purple passion or purple gem, I can't remember.

There's a US based ebay seller who stocks them I hear ;)

Time: 1st April 2015 12:48pm

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len says...
g'day john,

our fruit looked like the ones in the shop, if i get lucky i will have closer look next time, it flowered again monday night, full moon not 'till saturday, so cut off one stamen and dusted it around with the oodles of bees

looking at your other pic that is what our fruit looked like, maybe got to that size then rotted off

Time: 2nd April 2015 11:41am

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Original Post was last edited: 2nd April 2015 11:40am

About the Author len
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Yoda on DMT says...
len, it's probably owing to excessive water--flooding.

It's important to taper off water while fruit are forming. Too much and they will abort. This can happen at the flowering stage also.

Not a lot you can do about it other than add more sand to your soil.

Time: 2nd April 2015 5:01pm

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len says...
thanks yoda,

the plant is high on the block so drainage is best i can give it, i don't ever water it, it only gets rain which we've had a bit of lately.
last month 53mm, this month 53mm so far, at worst it will just grow where it is it may deliver fruit it may not

ta

Time: 4th April 2015 3:06am

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Yoda on DMT says...
can you post a photo of it?

Time: 4th April 2015 9:10am

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Grant says...
I read in Annette McFarlane's Organic Fruit Growing book that is best to prune off 'spent stems' once they have fruited, any experienced opinions on this?

Time: 4th April 2015 7:40pm

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Yoda on DMT says...
I got the grove done grant, the bolts you sent me worked superbly. Will upload pics tomorrow so you can have a look.

Time: 4th April 2015 8:03pm

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Grant says...
Love to see the finished product! Well as finished as gardeners get.

Time: 4th April 2015 9:47pm

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Yoda on DMT says...
I was going to try and balance out the crowns, but I don't think I'll bother now. They do self level over time, it's only for a couple of months that they look fugly. Pots still need to be painted but you get the idea.

Making the biochar mix was the worst part...Horrible.Had to burn huge amounts of wood to fill all those pots. Working excellently though, check out the root growth.


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Picture: 6

Time: 5th April 2015 11:39am

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Grant says...
It looks like a great set-up, built to last. Do your concrete posts stop at the bottom of the pot? Or is the weight of pot and post enough to secure the lot? I recently covered my conduit wire covers in Velcro on pvc sleeves to keep the sun from breaking them down.
I am hopeful of my first crop of yellows in a month or two, first flower 9 days ago and despite solid rain fruit looks to be holding, early days tho.
Biochar sounds interesting, i have only come across a few zealots sprouting forth its power to save the world, don't know much about it myself

Time: 5th April 2015 7:40pm

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Yoda on DMT says...
No, the posts run three feet into the ground and are concreted in. There's rebar inside them too.

I went with char/coir at a ratio of around 70/30 weighted to char, works like a semi hydro setup (run to waste). Haven't started them on nutes yet, I'll give them a few more months.

Char is good for oxygen sequestration, but I mainly like it because it holds moisture but doesn't get sodden, and it doesn't break down.

Don't want to make any more for a long, long time though.

Time: 6th April 2015 8:32am

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