At three years it should be ok to let it fruit some. You should manually pollinate to assure full sized fruit and correct pollination, since a young plant will have less flowers, therefore, opportunities to get pollinated. You might want to google on it, since you can find some sites with nice pictures of what the flower looks like when its male vs. female. When its barely open its female, when its 'way' open its male. (If I haven't confused my memory). With a paintbrush I twirl it into the male flower, then into a female (either right then if one exists, or whenever possible) flower. In both cases, all the way to the base of the flower, to make sure you get where the goods are. My atemoya and SA are both in flower now also. Since yours is young, don't be surprised if it drops almost everything. Might withhold fertilization since that could cause flower drop.

Gary

I think the plant at this stage would only be able to sufficiently support one fruit. I say go ahead and try to hand pollinate as many flowers as you can just to get some practice in for next year but at the end just let it hold one fruit. A while ago, I put a step by step instructions for cherimoya hand pollination. Flowers are very similiar for sugar apples and has the same characteristics.

Here is a link that might be useful: How To: Cherimoya Pollination

Thanks man! The blooms are very very tiny right now so are probably quite a ways off from opening. I have time to gear up!

I had a Sugar apple for 2 years. I grew it in my greenhouse. When it bloomed I just pollinated it with a painter brush. I did get 2 fruits on it once. Last year the temperatures dropped to about 36F in my greenhouse, it was one of the first things to go.
I visited a large orchard in Trinidad island. The owner grows all the Sugar Apple from seeds. With continuous tropical temperatures, his trees start blooming and setting fruit within 18 months.

Bass

Jay, did you get anything from your flowers yet?

My atemoya's flowers finally got big enough to open, I've been pollinating some the last few days. My SA flowers from a couple weeks ago seem to have dropped, I didn't get a chance to pollinate them. I think some more are coming along.

Gary

Not yet. Some of the flowers are starting to get a lot bigger now. Probably start to open soon.

I've got some small atemoyas going, about dime sized. Haven't seen any sugar apple fruit yet, but its been flowering.

no artificial pollination here in dry northwest Mexico and loads of big fruit they get

Either tree is still too young or they definitely need some pollination help. Either way...flowers are dropping off.

Jay, are you growing it in a container or in the ground?

Both in containers. Honestly, I have not really even tried to pollenate them yet. When only one flower opens at a time several days apart, no use in trying to save any pollen. These will probably stay in pots for a while.