First Fruit - Chinese Chestnut

[TreesuitSC]

I was not expecting this. Boy I was so excited!!

 

[willy]

nice, how old is tree?

 

[yoderjac]

Congrats! I got my first nuts a couple years ago. We had a late cold snap this spring and none of my chestnuts produced.

However this jujube produced on my deck

THanks,

Jack

 

[TreesuitSC]

nice, how old is tree?

I think this was the 4th growing season!!

 

[TreesuitSC]

Congrats! I got my first nuts a couple years ago. We had a late cold snap this spring and none of my chestnuts produced.

However this jujube produced on my deck

THanks,

Jack

That is awesome.

 

[yoderjac]

That is awesome.

It took me quite a while to figure out this phenomenon. When I first saw the progeny (from root cuttings) of my trees in the field produce fruit on my deck years before the parent trees produced I was confused. After working with a university professor that specializes in Jujube, he suggested that it was the root pruning containers that were the cause. Once the roots filled the container, it had a great root ball with many terminal root tips, but with the roots unable to grow more, it changed the tree from a vegetative state to a fruiting state. Evidently many trees go through this progression. When trees are young the put a lot of energy into a tap root. That energy gets redirected when the tap root is pruned. They also put energy into vegetative growth. They need to get as much photosynthesis as possible, so depending on their environment, they will grow tall or wide or whatever is necessary to get sun. It is only when they are well established that hormonal changes occur that causes them to produce fruit.

This process was short-circuited with the root pruning container system and they produced fruit very early. The professor said that if I planted them in the field, they would likely revert to a vegetative state. He was right, they did.

Thanks,

Jack

 

[TreeDaddy]

I was not expecting this. Boy I was so excited!!

Gratifying.......

bill

 

[Knehrke]

It took me quite a while to figure out this phenomenon. When I first saw the progeny (from root cuttings) of my trees in the field produce fruit on my deck years before the parent trees produced I was confused. After working with a university professor that specializes in Jujube, he suggested that it was the root pruning containers that were the cause. Once the roots filled the container, it had a great root ball with many terminal root tips, but with the roots unable to grow more, it changed the tree from a vegetative state to a fruiting state. Evidently many trees go through this progression. When trees are young the put a lot of energy into a tap root. That energy gets redirected when the tap root is pruned. They also put energy into vegetative growth. They need to get as much photosynthesis as possible, so depending on their environment, they will grow tall or wide or whatever is necessary to get sun. It is only when they are well established that hormonal changes occur that causes them to produce fruit.

This process was short-circuited with the root pruning container system and they produced fruit very early. The professor said that if I planted them in the field, they would likely revert to a vegetative state. He was right, they did.

Thanks,

Jack

This is good information! To heck with the woods...I'm planting a forest on my deck and putting a blind in the side yard lol.

Seriously though, I wonder to what extent soil type impacts that phenomenon? I have given a buddy of mine a bunch of different types of trees that I've grown from seed, and invariably they do better at his place than at mine. They're not necessarily bigger, but they fruit earlier. Much earlier.

 

[yoderjac]

This is good information! To heck with the woods...I'm planting a forest on my deck and putting a blind in the side yard lol.

Seriously though, I wonder to what extent soil type impacts that phenomenon? I have given a buddy of mine a bunch of different types of trees that I've grown from seed, and invariably they do better at his place than at mine. They're not necessarily bigger, but they fruit earlier. Much earlier.

I've found that seed grown chestnuts have a lot of variability between individual trees. I've found that some trees just grow like mad and another tree planted 20' away might struggle. That is one reason, I decided to grow my seedlings in a rootmaker container system verses direct seeding. I found that culling at each stage along the way helps ensure that all the work that goes into planting and protecting a chestnut is not wasted on a tree that struggles.

Thanks,

Jack

 

[Knehrke]

I'm with you! I followed your recipe to a T, and culled from hundreds of seedlings. My basement was a greenhouse for a few years! I just think my buddy bought McBroom's one acre farm lol.