Sigle should be single

I didnt think Dekopon was available to anyone yet.

Mike

Sorry about that, bamboo. Feeding the craze :-) And, this lady can't have a Dekopon. Dekopon is not available to the public. It is very, very tightly controlled right now, and only a small number of commercial growers in California are allowed to grow the Dekopon. If she has one, it's not a Dekopon. If she grafted it, she did so illegally. So, beware of that. The only possible way she could have a true Dekopon, would to have had this tree or budwood transported over from Japan before all the citrus restrictions were placed on imported citrus. Not even sure this variety has been around that long, even in Japan. And, we all know what happened here in Calif. with illegally procured budwood. UC Riverside is trying to procure Dekopon budwood themselves, from other sources, but have not been able to do so, yet. So, this also casts significant doubt about what variety this tree really is in my mind.

Patty S.

Patty,

I thought that about the Dekopon myself but......the Florida budwood people have it available to the growers. http://www.nvdmc.org/index.html The tree is marketed here under the name of "Shiranui" "it is not officially released, but can be available to homeowners - if you can find a nursery to propagate a tree. They can get budwood from the state"

Also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dekopon It clearly states that Shiranui = dekopon. I talked with Dr. Castle who is a retired ag professor from the University of Florida about it and he assured me that they are in fact the same tree. From what he said Florida actually had the bud wood before California did. The problem is the tree does not tend to do well in Florida but took a chance anyway.

Shiranui Dekopon
This variety is widely considered one of the most delicious citrus varieties in the world. New to Florida, it has not yet been proven compatible with Florida conditions. This variety is seedless and when grown in compatible climates, large fruit with a bell-like stem end neck. The Shiranui is a cross between a Kiyomi and Ponkan. Early results in Florida have not been very positive. Budwood is available for very small trial plantings. DPI has assigned this variety the number DPI-132.

Here is a link that might be useful: NVDMC link

Interesting, bamboo. This is the same cross as the Dekopon here in Calif. But, it may be a "cousin" (just like the Melogold and Oro Blanco are genetic cousins). Sounds like you might be able to procure budwood and graft up some trees for yourself? Or, maybe go in with a group of folks to procure budwood?

Patty S.

Pattty,

You may very well be correct that the budwood in Florida came from a different tree than the budwood in CA but as they are all clones of the Japanese trees they are the same. I have a 24" tall Dekopon tree From a reputable nursery and one is all I need. The lady I got the Dekopon from did not produce them she just had connections with people in the citrus industry and got a grower to start her a couple trees with budwood from the state. She was nice enough to let me buy one and at a fair price at that.

{{gwi:584241}}

Wow that is very interesting. What about Florida does it not like?

Mike

Mksmith,

If I had to guess it would be the humidity? But that is just a guess. I am far from knowledgeable on Citrus as I have only been growing them for 7 years or so. Patty or one of the other resident experts probably knows and will chime in. All I knew is I wanted one and if I had to fly to Japan and steal one I was going to get one:) I had a friend in NY buy $50 worth of dekopon fruit (Sumo's) to get me a seed.....not one seed in $50 worth. Oh well:)