Hi Fabio

I am not familiar with that leaf problem on ground cherries, it can be insects or some sort of fungus. I would spray the same as I spray the tomatoes because they can get the same problems.

When I grew ground cherries in past seasons I treat them and plant them with the same schedule as tomatoes. That means they should have fruit set like my tomatoes do now.

Here they are with tomatoes

And a seedling

On another note, how are your naranjillas (solanum quitoense) doing? did they make it through the winter, are they still alive and producing?

I have good news, one of my tamarillo (tree tomato) made through the winter and is fruiting now, I will post pictures when the fruit ripens, I had 2 planted one is the red variety and the other is the yellow, one is a survivor.:)

Silvia

So ground cherries look a lot like eggplants? fagopher- have you seen any bugs around the plant?

Pretty tomatoes Silva. Is that a green when ripe type or are you making something with green tomatoes?

Amber, ground cherries look more like tomatillos than an eggplant. Some varieties are better tasting than others and get a more orange color when fully ripe.

The tomato is a green when ripe variety, the picture is from a couple of years I think. This season I am not growing any of the fruits in the picture. And I don't like to use green tomatoes, unless they are ripe I don't eat them.:)

Silvia

Yeah,, I think I saw some black bugs (kind of very small flies??) I'll try to get a better look to them.

Silvia,

The lulos/naranjillas survived the freezes with no problem (well, the half part of the plant which was good enough as they were already too big). Now they are being attacked by some bugs (I think aphids) and I am trying to get rid of those by using an product with SpinosaD, which I was told is safe for fruit plants, so far is not really working and I will try next with soap-water. I guess these bugs are stopping them from fruiting again.

The tamarillo, I had many pots with 2-3 each and most of them died from heat or humidity (not sure). I got one pot that survived 3 plants. I don't want to separate them as the roots are delicate so I will leave the 3 of them in a big pot if the can survive this year.

Is that a purple passion fruit in the picture? I got several pots but no flowers yet this year. They started flowering by end of last year but winter came and... you know.

Fabio

Fabio

Spinosad works great for caterpillars or thrips type of insects, for aphids and others I use a pyrethrin insecticide, there are different ones in the market, just read the ingredients list. Or if you have neem you can try that.

The winter killed all my passion fruit vines, in the picture above is a black cherry tomato.

The tamarillo that survived the winter without protection, I cut it before the cold. It is protected by the other fruit trees from the cold and the sun too.

It has fruit in different places, can not wait till they ripen.

Silvia

Silvia,

Your tamarillo looks awesome!!! It is giving me some hope

Mine is still small one

Here is my naranjillas:

naranjillas seedlings:

The granadillas (Passiflora ligularis) are very slow growing but so far have survived the freezes and the heat but no flowers yet:

A couple of purple passion fruit plants (no flowers yet this year):

I had papayas but they died to the freezes.. still they came back:

And my new addition this year (second try), the pawpaw tree. This yer I think will make it:

Fabio, you are doing something right! a lot of difficult plants are growing for you.
On the tamarillo I heard a grower one time that he lets the plant get strong for 2 years, then he plants it and get fruit and he is in colder northern zone, he was growing the yellow Australian type I think. Tamarillos when young seedlings need a lot of care but when they reach 5-6' they are strong, still mine is sheltered with other fruit trees. I sprayed the same like tomatoes when young, now I only keep the soil moist and fertilize.

Those naranjillas look very good! you have a mini farm going on, good for you!

On the passion fruit I would put bloom fertilizer, try to find the liquid kind if not the granular.

I have 2 papayas in a pot that made through the winter, they are getting some small fruits now, but in the pot I don't have big hopes. I also have a small papaya that I got at Echo, it will be transplanted next spring.

Where I had my granadillas planted in the ground, now I have thornless blackberries taking over that side of the garden.

I had a gardener visiting last week, he was asking about all the fruits that he have not seen before and they are either flowering or fruiting. About 5 different figs fruiting, 5 different citrus fruiting, star fruit fruiting, sapodilla fruiting, sweet tamarind flowering, pomegranate some fruits, lychee fruiting, 2 new apples that I only let 2 fruits get ripe, plums fruiting, a red atemoya flowering, a peach and a nectarine flowering and I almost forgot the mega fruits on the Brogdon avocado! my new additions a Fairchild mango and a caimito. I also have a red guava ( the kind that don't get fruit fly) and I hope that it fruits this winter, one of my faves.

And good luck with your paw paw tree, I hope that it makes it!

Silvia