Grumichama

Diane starts with ...
Does anyone know when Grumichama and likely to fruit. The pic is from when it was first planted. It is now 1.5m tall and around 2 yrs old but showing no signs as yet
thanks Diane

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Bazza says...
Dear Diane/Helen,
My Grumachama (Black) first fruited after four & a half years.The Yellow Grumachama Helen refers to is Grumachama (White) which i have Fruited once where the fruit is quite larger than the "Black".

Kath says...
Diane, all our grumichamas are grown from seed, they can fruit in as little as three years if given ideal conditions but 4-5 is more likely. They are well worth the wait, they fruit in spring around October/November.

Kath says...
They are self pollinating and should set for you in time.

Kathryn says...
I've grown grumichamas from seed which gave their first fruit at 3/5 years. I bought my first seedling plant some years ago. I have 2 more trees which I grew from seed from the original plant in the back yard at work and have given many away plus 6 I planted from seed in late 2004 at home. They are fruiting profusely this year. Expect fruit October/November in our area.
If you want a taste & seeds contact me & we can arrange a visit to my work place on Buderim.

angie says...
We have two of these fabulous plants. Both fruited after five years growing and each Christmas we have an abundance of gorgeous black fruit. Persevere. It's worth it.

angie says...
Peter,
We are on the mid north coast. Our plants are in the ground not particularly good soil, in fact a lot of clay. We do manure twice yearly and ensure they have sufficient moisture. For the most part, they are left alone.

fruitist says...
Anyone has seeds of Yellow Grumichama to give away or swap? My Black one just set fruits this year. Fruits not quite ripe yet.

Anonymous says...
Your Yellow Grumichama look very much like a Cabeluda aka Yellow Jaboticaba. Cabeluda has furs on the underside of leaves. It is furry to the touch. The tips of branches are also furry. When leaves drop on the ground, do they curl up into brown sticks?

trikus says...
Thanks for that , my poor memory , yes ..
I have heard of yellow Grumichuma though .
Maybe alba form of fruit ? The nut grass hides any dropped leaves .. hoping to shade it out with fruit trees , but its taking to long .

Steve says...
I planted one yellow & one black Grumichama in August '07 & the black first cropped about one year later.
The yellow one hasn't as yet & is slower growing.
The black crops several times a year but as it's young, not too many fruit, but they taste fantastic.
I prefer them to the Bazilian Cherry.

Michael McLean says...
Would you be kind enough to send me some seeds. I had one plant that died after a long drought last year.

Gail says...
A lot of hard to grow things grow around here.I would like to try Grumichamas both Black & Yellow.Is it better to grow from seed or get an already growing plant about 2yrs ? If anyone has seeds of these I would be happy to pay postage.And/Or purchase a plant.We are no spring chickens & would like to successfully grow these while we are still able to enjoy them
Regards Gail

Julie says...
Hi Steve, I'd love a few seeds when they do fruit. I have already asked on this forum for seeds, but no response. I am willing to pay for them.

Michael Mclean says...
I could do with some seeds too, please.

Steve says...
Michael - is it okay to post seeds to the USA? In Oz we have strict import & quarantine laws regarding seeds & plants that may have pests & diseases to protect our agriculture.
Have you tried http://www.rarefruit.com? Surely someone in your own country could give you some seeds.

Cathie says...
I have just recently bought two plants, one being approx a metre tall and the other only about 30cm. Can you tell me how big they grow and would they take full sun in this hot climate. Trying to work out where to plant them. Many thanks.

HappyEarth says...
Hey Cando ...i actually find them really hardy and quite tolerant of hot weather. Like most tropcial fruit the do like a bit of shade when your but for them to fruit well give them full sun and keep the water up.

Rich
www.happyearth.com.au

amanda says...
Hey Happy Earth! Was in the Q for the post office the other day and picked up a gardening mag 2 browse (Good life or something?) and there was u and your partner and your beaut garden!!! Well done guys.

amanda says...
Hey HappyEarth + any grumichama growers...do you know if thee guys have a high calcium requirement at all?
The pics show this dead tip + funny puckering of the young leaves and the only thing I could find that matched was the pic of th strawberry leaves (out of a book) that was for calcium deficiency?
The other shot is of some recent new normal growth. Does anyone else have this problem?

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amanda says...
Hi Maculata Grove. It's kind of sorted...one batch of plants has a chimera and there is no cure for them. The other two are from a different supplier and doing well now (one is in the pics above) The problem above was due to a complicated situation - but basically was a boron deficieny - which can affect calcium uptake/mobility also.

I now use a liquid trace element and liquid gypsum, thru' my fertigation system and they are great. My soil is neutral pH.

I have quite high levels of sodium and chloride in our tap water and we live right on the coast - so tip and margin burning is a constant problem on my salt sensitive plants - but the grumichama is more tolerant than, say, the mangoes and custard apples.

Where did u get your plants? Can u post a pic?

This is a pic of one of mine that has the chimera.

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amanda says...
Hi Brendan - sorry mate but this one has been diagnosed by the Pest and Disease people in Perth Agriculture Dept (I sent leaves to them)...

amanda says...
As above - it's caused by a chimera (a genetic abnormalty that prevents correct chlorophyll production - the stuff that makes the leaves green and be able to photosynthesise)

The two plants I have from Birdwood nursery are beautiful and healthy - but I have 5 from another supplier - all purchased together at same age and all have the chimera :-(

The two from Birdwood had a small edge burning problem as discussed way above - this has been sorted thru boron/trace element application and also the gypsum. Not a phos problem - I give the trees superphos every autumn.

amanda says...
Yea..it's not contagious - but they are dying a natural death a time goes on. This is no place for the weaklings.

amanda says...
Ok Brendan - just for u I will :) although - these guys do get a constant low supply of N and P from the Biolytix system reticulating under the soil....
I'll let u know how it goes.

amanda says...
Ok Brendan - I will give one plant some and leave the other as a "control". U can say superphosphate ;-).... I have had to use it - mainly when I loaded up my sand with tonnes of clay when I prepared my orchard, and also because this was virgin soil.

lou says...
can you reccomend a rural store in the area?

BJ says...
I picked mine up from the 'rural store' just past Samford, on the way to the mountains.

I put mine in the groud with plenty of manure to give it a good start. It produced hundreds of flower buds, but promptly threw all but a few before even opening, in favour of lots of new growth...

qmosa says...
I'm fascinated by the description of the Grumichama. Does anybody have any in Melbourne area? Will they survive here? We do not have snow in our area but winter temperatures do get down to zero very occasionally.
Any feedback is appreciated, Thank You!