Grumichama

Helen says...
I've grown grumichamas from seed which gave their first fruit at 5 years. The first fruit were disappointing, but from 7 years on, the fruit is excellent.One seedling changed, and instead of deep purple/black fruit it gives yellow fruit which taste like caramel. I'm not sure which I prefer, they're both delicious.

Diane says...
Thanks Helen and Bazza,
I'm not sure if my tree is a seedling or not. It was purchased from a nursery with stock from Daleys. I guess I'll just have to wait and see.
Thanks again for your replies. rgds Diane

lance says...
i have a grumichama tree four years old this year it flowered for the first time but no fruit set .does it need to be hand pollinated

lance says...
thankyou Kath I shall just have to wait untill next flowering Lance

Kathryn says...
My trees have now finished fruiting for this year. We had a bumper crop this year. Love em!!!Delicious!!

peter says...
angie,
what climate are you in.
are your plants in the ground
or pots.
how big were they after five years
of growing.
how much water do you give them.
thanks.

anon says...
Blue Mts . Grumichama none . Waited 12 years. First flowers this year! Sad story .

trikus says...
I bought a Yellow Grumichama seedling from a tablelands grower , and it is very different looking to the typical black . A much more pendulous habit . It seems to be growing well now after a slow start .

Pictures - Click to enlarge
Picture: 1	Picture: 2

fruitist says...
The last post was mine. Grumichama has different leaf form and color. Also the tree is erect. Your tree definitely looks like a Cabeluda.

gurujim says...
I've had one in the ground for six years now. Flowered prolifically for the last three years, but the fruit won't set: It's just finished dropping its petals for the third time, and most of the flowers have completely gone. I have my fingers crossed that a couple may stay on and develop, but I'm not hopeful.
I don't think it's a water issue...so I might have to look at nutrition, though the shrub itself seems healthy.

gurujim says...
Well, I DID have had success with the Grumichama - a yellow one - at last. Had about thirty very sweet and tasty fruit - managed to get them before the silver-eyes found them too!! Too bad I forgot to take piccies. I did notice that the fruit had the usual
I guess I should plant a black variety too, now that I know things are OK.

Julie says...
I would love some seeds too, anyone who has them. Will pay whatever the postage costs are. I'm in WA.

Can you let me know: email julwood at iprimus dot com au

Thanks so much

Julie

Steve says...
My black Grumichamas is currently fruiting.
I was mowing yesterday & noticed big juicy fuit ready to pick.
It produces several crops per year, but I've never taken any notice when it was previously, but will take note from now on.
No fuit as yet on the yellow one.

Steve says...
No problem Julie, I'll send them for no charge - contact me at i_donquixote@hotmail.com

Julie says...
Thanks Steve, I have sent you an email.

Dave says...
gurujim,could I email you re yellow Grumichama please?
david_lambert70@hotmail.com

Cando says...
Of all my fruit trees it is the first to wilt in hot, dry conditions. Do they prefer part shade? Flowered for the first time this spring.

amanda says...
Can Grumichamas be grown from cuttings at all? I just ate my one and only fruit from an advanced tree I planted this winter - it was really good - one was an awful tease! I planted the seed - do they grow true to type? Thanks in advance for any help :)

HappyEarth says...
THanks Amanda ... i thought it was a really nice presented article. They did a good job with the layout of the photos :)

I think Grumichamas are mainly grown from seed as they come true to type.
Glad you like the fruit :)

Maculata Grove says...
Hi Amanda
I have also been having some leaf die back issues with a couple of different grumichamas on my property. Did you get a response to your question? If I am not mistaken, WA soils can be on the higher pH side of things, thus this could be a issue. My soils are generally around a pH of 5.5 which is modified with Greenstone crusher dust and aged horse and cow manure.
Anyway I would love to hear back if people have had similar issues with grumichama leaves.

Brendan says...
Hi Amanda,
To me, your grumichamas are lacking phosphorus.
Burnt leaf tips on NEW GROWTH was the giveaway :-)

Wayne says...
And what did they have to say Amanda?

Wayne says...
So I guess their solution was to pull the plants and dispose of them, bad luck there

Brendan says...
Hi Amanda,
If your trees are going to die, why not try some phosphorus fertilizer around them, and water it in?
You've got nothing to lose :-)

Brendan says...
Hi Amanda,
I would use (dare I say it around here), some superphosphate. Handful to the sq metre around the trees.

That could shock them back to life :-)

BJ says...
I picked up a big plant from the rural store a few months ago. I put it in the ground 2 weeks ago and all of a sudden there are hundreds of flower buds all over it! Hope I can keep a few on to maturity!

Mike says...
You can buy them from the nursery at Brookfield.

amanda says...
Hi, does anyone know where to go for the yellow/white grumichama seeds at all? Does the seed have be to sown fresh?

I just picked (and ate!) a dozen blacks off my tree and I thought they were beautiful :) The flavour of the skin may be a bit intense for some - but the insides pop out easily. It reminded me a little of mangosteen actually - very sweet (they would also make a lovely paste to have with cheese etc)

I washed the seeds as clean as I could and then planted them straight away? Was this right? Many thanks.

Linton says...
Hi qmosa. I'm growing a Grumichama in Noble Park which I got from Gardenworld a couple of years ago but they don't have any at the moment.

It's no problem to grow here, doesn't need any looking after, but very slow to grow, maybe because I put it in the nature strip and never watered it. But thinking about bringing it into the garden with some water so it might speed up. I want to get a few more as well, they look like a nice plant.

amanda says...
Hi Gus...no - all 5 of these plants slowly died :-( I have two I got in Perth and they are lovely and healthy.

Can u post a pic of your plant?

They do grow a little on the slow side don't they...

Gus says...
Ok, heres a start

qmosa says...
Thank you Linton,
I've been meaning to check out Gardenworld anyway, now I have an excuse :) Thanks for your feedback, keep me posted if you do move it to better irrigation.

amanda says...
Nice one gus! I am now in Bunbury (Leschenault) with most of my plants (plus a few extra after visiting Wandilla and Tas1) I was just watering my Grumi's yesterday and wondering when I would see some action at last...

Won't be far behind you now :)

gus says...
Hey Amanda, you finally made the big move eh? By the sounds of it bunbury is a little more hospitable than sunny gero.

I was very surprised to see flowers on both my grum trees. Both are pretty small and kind of unlikely looking. I have been lucky with my black sapote too. tiny tree that seemed to love being plucked from the ground and popped in a pot. It has grown about 5 big fruit that have been dangling there for eternity. After about 8 months or so they still seem under ripe and hard.

amanda says...
Thanks guys :) Yes - it's lovely down here..Leschenault is really pretty and with all the big trees it's so great to be out of the wind at last! Had lots of rain since we have been here (well - lots compared with Geraldton anyway!) and I am over the moon!

It gets cold at night - next winter should be interesting to see how the trees go...
Have had plenty of nights down to 3oC and a 1oC too...they have been excellent - condsidering that they have come from a shade house in warmer Gero and just been stuck out in the open...?

A tiny little bit of cold-discolour on the leaves of the kwai muk, jackfruit and one sapodilla - I am hoping that being right next to the Inlet and having big trees here might keep the worst of the cold at bay..

My biggest challenge is the all tree roots in the ground now...need raised vege garden beds lined with geotextile weed barrier fabric.
The fruit trees will jsut have to compete I think!

Still have water repellant sand but at least it's brown this time ;-) Have starting adding Calcium Bentonite...it's working great but it's very alkaline...? not sure what happens with that now...

Anyway - things a lot slower down here - even my pomegranates are only just waking up... :)

Gus says...
Hey Amanda, I think that you were also chasing cherry of the rio grande. I have managed to source a couple of seeds although they are really not sprouting very well. Hopefully if I can get them growing I will one day have a cutting for you.

Gus says...
I picture you living on a huge property with enough space for all sorts of trees.

I kind of agree with you, but I also like the idea of enhancing my diet of "run of the mill" fruit like apples, oranges and bananas with a range of fruit that you will never be able to buy. Who knows what kind of cool vitamins or health propeties linger within.
If I were you I think you should hold onto your feijoa, or get some named variety. They will love Leschenault!

BJ says...
If you have the space, White Sapote is worth the room - productive, large and enjoyable. Start with a Golden Globe and graft others onto it for a smaller tree that will cross pollinate and give tons of fruit.

Duo planting an A & B avo as Brendan has suggested would also be well worth the space.

snottiegobble says...
Linton, I heard that the seedlings grow a lot taller than those propagated by cuttings!

amanda says...
The Lemon Golds are a smaller type Linton - I already have two to plant down here BJ! Love em! My two up north were easy to keep smaller - you can take out the central leader...? see below also Linton..

I have heard Edranol avo good Brendan? If it goes with Hass than I may have to find myself one! U can not have enuf' avos..?! :)

I have got 3 types of sapodilla, loquats (graft and seedling), 3 types of grafted starfruit, 1 tamarillo (thanks SG!) jaboticaba (4), pomegranates (wonderful and molle-something), 1 hass avo, white sapote (2 lemon golds), afourer mandarin, green gage and coe's golden drop plums (wishful - but fingers crossed for enuf' chill) mangoe (R2E2 and Tommy atkins) 1 Kwai Muk, 1 jackfruit (galaxy), 1 banana passionfruit, 2 sunshine special p/fruit, 1 longon, 4 grumichama, blueberries (5 types) wampee (2 guy sam) and lychee (1 bosworth3)

I only have 1 kwai muk - I am told it would be better to have two..? I have planted it next to the Jackfruit - do u think they could help each out or not..?

Do lychees and longons do better with a friend too?

Linton - my white sapotes put up with extreme winds on our last property...they are a bugger of a tree to prune - but if you can shorten the whippy growth it helps - but also they form some bad branch unions too...mine had 5 branches coming out of pretty much the same place on the trunk...this is not so good.
Having said that - they were never "loaded" with fruit...so I can't say how they would have gone under the weight of lots of fruit...

Linton says...
Lemon Gold White Sapote

The Lemon Gold sounds good but where to get them? Daley's shop doesn't even have them in production yet. Thanks.

Grant says...
Linton, i bought a lemon gold last week at F Fruits and they still bad 6 or so. Good luck

peter 1000 says...
hi amanda,
i had to read it twice, but i think
the bad should have read (had)

amanda says...
ahh :D I take that back then...

amanda says...
Mine are from a nursery called Tas1 trees in Perth...they are usually ex-Daleys plants..?
(so ordered across from over East anyway..)

My recent ones are Birdwood ones I think - but they may be wholsalers only. If there is interest then a local nusery may order them in for you..?
Otherwise try Daleys direct...

Grant says...
Unlucky with Forbidden Fruits, they must have had a run on them, i rummaged through at least half a dozen of them around 1 & 1/2 weeks ago. only had 1 Reineke in stock

Linton says...
Lemon Gold White Sapote

I tried the other 2 places you mentioned, but they don't send. Don't know where else to look now so it seems like the Lemon Gold might have become an extinct species!

Linton says...
White Sapote - Lemon Gold

Hi Peter
thanks for your offer, it seems the way to go. I just need to get a good seedling going and I'll let you know when I'm ready. Thanks!

Linton says...
White Sapote - Lemon Gold

There's something wrong about Forbidden Fruits as they don't answer my mails when I try to order from them. I thought they should have some of the Lemon Golds as they are on their price list but no response when I try to order. Maybe they don't like to send.

Grant says...
Hi Amanda, one has just started turning red, do u think they should be protected from birds etc as they get close to ripening.

amanda says...
I don't know Grant - I guess so? Mine were in a shade house so I didn't have to worry....

Birds do seem like pecking at red berry-type fruit tho don't they?! They attacked my acerolas and grapes lots :-(

How old is your plant MaryT? They do take at least 4yrs it seems (and maybe another couple to get into the swing of things..?)

denise1 says...
The grumichama is very prolific when it gets going. Worth the wait.At the 2nd or 3rd crop the flavour sweetens to make them quite good. You could find the quality is good from the first crop as some have reported. The tree looks nice too. Perhaps you could do some thinning to keep it to a reasonable size of about 2m or more.

peter 1000 says...
your going to get another surprise when you see the size of the seed inside it.

MaryT says...
Mine's GONE. It's not a bad looking plant but I want fruit that satisfy hunger and I have little room.

VF says...
I've had same experience as BJ - lots of water + warmth = lots of big tasty fruit. The tree will grow nicely and look healthy with just average water, but give extra, and the fruit are definitely not second rate. Not same as cherry at all imo, but good in its' own right. Have never had fruit fly in them either.

BJ says...
Pics

Pictures - Click to enlarge
Picture: 1	Picture: 2	Picture: 3

amanda says...
That's great info BJ - thanks :) U are lucky to get so many crops! Mine are still patchy (but only just planted and 600kms south of their old home..so fair enuf' maybe) Do you guys think that they set more fruit with another Grumi nearby..?
I had decent flowering but most of them dropped off...? (could be due to relocation - but they are much happier down here - so I'm not sure..?)

salsify says...
I am wondering of there are different strains of the black fruited grumichama getting around the place..?

I have two mature plants (about 7yrs old) and one flowers and fruits really well (from Birdwood nursery) and the other flowers, a little less, and never set's one single fruit (from Daleys)...?

These are the typical leaves from each tree - the small leaf one is the one that the flowers eventually fall off, every single year...?

I am wondering if the small-leaf one might be self-sterile...?
Thanks :)

Pictures - Click to enlarge
Picture: 1

sternus1 says...
I think if you like blackcurrant type flavor you'll like like Grumichama. I don't, really.

sternus1 says...
Not worth growing IMO--not measured against what's out there. I 'm pretty picky though, I don't even consider jaboticaba worth growing.

sternus1 says...
If I had to pick, I'd probably say cactus fruits waterfall. Dragonfruit and opuntia. Opuntia have more intense, and to my taste better fruit---but you have to have a good variety. Another advantage is that they are far and away the hardiest thing you could possibly ever grow, and will fruit utterly neglected.