Wish you would have mentioned it a few weeks ago Andrew. I drove right past Excalibur 2 weeks ago.

Thanks jsvand5. I dont even know how much they are charging for them. I am hoping to find a way to get one though!

Andrew:

Got good news and bad news for you. Good news is that I had the chance to stop by Excalibur Nursery today. Bad news....they have no grafted nutmeg....not now, nor ever. I spoke directly to Richard Wilson, the owner and was taken around the nursery by Wilson (unrelated) who is the next best person to ask anything at that nursery. Richard Wilson says he has "never even heard of a grafted nutmeg." Wilson, the worker, led me to believe that there were small seddling nutmegs somewhere in the nursery but that they weren't for sale. So......I guess you could look at it from the standpoint that I saved you some money and some unnecessary longing.

I was able to taste the Bell Carambola while I was there and it was very, very good. The fruit was perfectly shaped and colored with lots of juice and very, very sweet. A definite keeper.....I had to buy one. I also picked up a grafted mangosteen and an Excalibur mango. Supposedly this mango is excellent.....I had never heard of it. We'll see.

Harry

Harry, How did the grafted mangosteens look? I didn't go over to the grenhouse last time down to avoid temptation. I bought one last year and maybe one out of 10 looked anything close to decent with at least half being totally dead. I searched over each one and it took me about 30 minutes to find the one that I liked. Could you post a pic of yours?

Wow Harry thats strange! I will double check the email. Thanks anyways.
Andrew

Harry, I feel like such a jerk, i didn't even apologize about that. I will forward there email so you can see it for yourself. I did want to tell you that the cogshell looks close to having buds open. Right now the weather has been unusually warm. I am hoping that the tree can stay outside long enough to get pollinated on its own. If not, how should i pollinate it. Last time I used a small paintbrush to pollinate flowers. I think it worked fine.
Andrew

Harry, how much was the grafted mangosteen? I'd like to pick one up in the future. Thanks.

Now top is offering Keitt. the description they provide says fruit can weigh up to five pounds. The fruit is sweet and tangy. I am now trying to choose between Keitt and Lancetilla . God I hate this, but our weather is so mild now. I am hoping it will stay like this and I can order the mango trees without worrying about cold weather damage, they provide heat packs but it might not be necessary. Today it was almost 70 degrees. I cannot believe the weather for being November 9!
Andrew

Pepperot and Jvand5:

The grafted mangosteens didn't look great. Almost all of them had poorly healed graft unions. They were rather expensive ($125) and small. I wasn't going to buy one...was actually looking to buy a small seedling. There were a couple grafted ones back in the greenhouse that were better looking. They, at least had some new leaf growth and looked somewhat promising. I took the one that had the best looking leaves and a perfectly healed graft union. Here's what it looked like.

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That is actually a great looking one compared to what I had to choose from last year. Mine finally just about a week ago put out it's first new set of leaves since I purchased it. I am considering planting mine in ground this spring and building a small greenhouse for it for the winters.

Wow Harry, I didn't even think you liked mangosteen. I would get castrated for paying that much for a tree, grafted or not! Does the grafting mean it will be a healthier and stronger tree? Will it fruit faster? Keep us all posted to its progress. Oh, will you be able to put it right in the ground? Will you have to protect it?\
Andrew

I have had several attempts at growing mangosteen. I bought a grafted one from Frankie's in Hawaii about 15 years ago.....it died. I bought one previosly from Excalibur....it died. I have rasied seedlings from seed sent to me from Thailand. My largest tree got to be about 8 feet tall.....not very dense, but getting closer to fruiting size. Unfortunately, Hurricane Wilma and some bleechers from the nearby school football field did that one in. So, this will be my last attempt at growing it. I decided to purchase it, despite its pricey price and small size, because of the way the graft union looked and the size of the rootstock trunk. None of my other purchases looked like this. I will keep it in a pot for the foreseeable future. They dread being repotted though. May try the ground eventually, but that is years away....if it makes it that far. The grafted tree is supposed to fruit much earlier than a seedling. How much earlier? I hope a helluva lot earlier. We shall see.

Andrew: I never said I didn't like mangosteen. The fruit is very good. However, is it my all time favorite and do I think it is the most wonderful fruit in the whole world.....no, definitely not. Of course, flavors and tastes are subjective. But I am not alone in this thinking. Chris Rollins at the Fruit and Spice Park once said when asked about his most favorite fruit. He said, that's easy, my top ten favorite fruits are all mangos. So whatever floats your boat!

Your plant has nice, upward growth. The trunk on mine had a strong curve to it. It is unfortunate that they remove the central leader from the plants. It does seem to take a long time for the plant to start throwing out new leaves. Mine has put out several growth flushes but just this past summer, it put out the first new, true branches...finally filling it in. Still quite short but again, unfortunately, that is the very nature of these grafted plants. More experienced folks than me who have successfully grown the grafted mangosteen, say that they are slower and smaller. I tried a few different times to multi-rootstock graft the plant to speed things up. All eventually failed for reasons unknown. But the plant itself has done well so I don't want to complain too much! Hitting the plant with a good micro-nutrient foliar is beneficial. Keeping them out of the way of huricanes and bleechers probably more so!! Good luck H and keep us up to date on the progress. Thanks for the pic.

Here is a pic of a recently, at time of pic, grafted mangosteen in Thailand that my mother-in-law purchased for our land. The rubber was still on the graft union. As you can see, the plant has not had the central leader cropped off and the plant is much taller, and leggier, than obtained from Excalibur...which had to abide by USDA laws on size. You can also see that the young plant has pushed out blooms/fruit. This is a sign that the branch used for grafting definitely came from a fruiting tree! Something I'm sad to say may not always be the case. The blooms/fruit dropped soon anyway. Just too early for that. Even over there, these plants needed constant looking after. Too hot, too much sun, too much wind. You name it, it could spell the end. But like everything else over there...they grow a heck of a lot faster than they do in my greenhouse! I have been waiting/asking for updated pics...patience John & Mirahilin! My wife is going home to visit and she is tasked with taking lots of pics.

Jay:
Very cool to see the bloom/fruits and where they come from on the plant. Thanks for sharing. I wondered where Excalibur got the budwood from to do the grafts....being concerned that the fruitfulness of the parent tree might be in question. I was advised that they purchased their grafted trees from Thailand. That seemed to be borne out by the phyto-sanitary tag and plant quarantine tag on the plants indicating their importation. I would have liked it a whole lot better to see the blooms/fruits like the plant in the picture you posted. Good luck and good growing to us all!

I was lucky with mine I guess. They did not cut the central leader. I am starting to wounder if there is any shot to get a decent amount of growth on these things when they are potted up. I think I may have to start feeding them a bit more often. I have been very cautious so far but I don't know how much longer I can deal with one growth flush per 13 months. I am hoping the growth has been so slow because I repotted it when I got it. The soil Excalibur had it in was basically stinky mud so I bare rooted it and put it in a better aerated mix.

I do have 2 seedlings that are actually doing quite well. They were very stressed when I got them and were pretty much a 3 foot tall stick with a couple leaves on top but they have since started to branch out a little. They still look pretty lanky though. I'll try to take a few pics when I get home.

Bare-rooting these plants is very, very risky. The root systems are extremely fragile and I lost many a seedling after trying too hard to give the plant extra care by repotting. The best way to repot is to cut the pot off and then place the intact rootball in the new pot. DO NOT....under penalty of imminent plant death......try to take the soil...no matter how nasty the old soil is, off the roots. You will damage the roots and set growth back if nothing else.

I'm not sure if the central leader on my plant was removed intentionally of it just died back. I think it is the latter as the stub (which is still there) doesn't look like a clean cut.

Ohiojay,
where di you buy your grafted mangosteen, and how much was it? Do you have a recnt pic of both seedlings and grafted tree? I may try one next summer, but since I don't have a greenhouse, I was thinking of building something that I could mimmick a greenhouse to control heat and humidity.
Andrew

Excalibur is probably the only source anymore for a grafted plant...which is where mine came from. I was lucky to have a buddy purchase the plant and send it to me here in Ohio. I lucked out and only had to pay $75 at the time. Of course, with Richard...if my buddy showed up the next day, the plant may have been $150. There are many types of plants that are subject to his whim at the moment...also possible that one of these plants may be for sale today, but not tomorrow. I came across this during my visit.

Here's the latest. All growth in the middle was from the last flush. It was bare of anything in that area.

Jay,
Looks nice, but how long have you had it? Does the grafting just make the tree more vigorous or is it for the fruit or both?

The only thing grafting does is hopefully make it fruit sooner. If anything I think it probably slows down growth.

So a seedling would be better then. Why waste all that money on something that will take longer to fruit?

Andrew. I think you may have misread what I wrote. The grafted plant should fruit sooner, but may actually grow slower.

Here are a few pics of mine.
Grafted:

My graft doesn't look as nice as yours Harry

My biggest seedling

What plant zone are you in? How long did your seedling take to get that large. And how are you providing it with the difficult culural requirements? I am asking all these questions because I am considering buying seeds. There are so many sources for the seeds though. I get nervous about buying them from Asia. I don't want them taken by border patrol.
Andrew

I bought the seedling at close to that size. It put out a lot of top growth since I bought it, but it is close to the same height. I would bet that seedling is at least 4 years old. If you are buying seeds you should definitely spend the extra on the seeds from Fruitlovers. The seeds from ebay have close to a 0% chance of germinating. I bought a bunch from ebay and ended up with one seedling. If you are looking to save a little money I would go with fruitlovers but have it sent 2-3 day mail instead of overnight like they suggest. Those seeds from ebay spend about 2 weeks in the mail.

I am in zone 8b central florida.

jsvand 5:

Your graft still looks a lot better than some of the others I saw at Excalibur. And, if this is the plant you bare-rooted, I think it looks pretty damned good. I would expect to start seeing more regular, but still slow growth. These things grow agonizingly slow with the best of culture. So, patience, vigilance, hope and prayer are in order. A little luck wouldn't hurt either.

I just wish I could figure out what causes the leaves to die slowly from the tips inward. That tree has lost quite a few leaves like that.

I was considering maybe buying one when I go on my trip in August but I am not sure. It sounds like even if you cn acquire the ideal growing conditions, you can still expect a very long wait! What like ten years, at least? That is a long time to maintain interest for an indoor grower like me!

John...plant looking good. Has much more height than mine. Curse you! You should try and start releasing those ties/support on the plant and throw a fan on it to start strengthening it up more. As for the tip burn...I'm learning that there may/could be several factors here. Salt build up in the soil is one. Chlorides in the fertilizer can be another. I stopped using Miracle Grow ferts for my rare trops. Too much water with too much humidity can mess up leaf transpiration and salts can build up. I've been guilty of this last one...and may be my main culprit with the sugar apples. If you are seeing any white dust-like appearance on the leaves, it may be salts building up and this will lead to the burn and drop. I'm starting to use filtered water to wash off these leaves/branches.

Andrew...grafted mangosteen is no different than any other grafted plant. The main goals are to ensure a good cultivar, and to reduce the time to fruiting. A mangosteen seedling, depending upon environmental factors, can take anywhere from 6 to 12+ years to begin fruiting. Growing these indoors is tough. Heck...growing them outdoors anywhere but where they are supposed to be grown is tough. These guys in Florida are not just planting them outside and forgetting about them. They have to worry about cold spells, hurricanes, and stadium bleechers!

Yeah...getting plants like this to fruit is obviously a goal and will be very exciting if/when it ever happens. But I'm sure that like me, Harry and John are finding it just as exciting and an accomplishment in keeping the plants alive and thriving...even if just a bit. And like Harry and John, I've lost more mangosteens than I would ever care to admit.

I found a seedling from an Ebay seller in New Jersey. I may buy it if it is still there next week.
Jay, I am wondering about the temperatures outside though. Could this cool weather kill the seedling beore I get it?
I can't find seeds now anywhere except for outside the country. I would really like to give this a try. To me it makes more sense to take a try with a seedling instead of buying a grafted tree for $125.00. I am going to buy halides for my tropicals and I do run a room hunidifer. The room tht has most of my tropicals is small enough where it heats up pretty fast. I can set my thermostat at 65 and that room is at least 75, when the lights are off. I was thinking if I could try and get a seedling now, maybe by summer I might be prepared to try and grow a grafted tree. I know that there is an older post with a mangosteen seedling, and the grower isn't using a greenhouse. I know that makes it harder to control the conditions. hat is why I want to start with a seedling and see if I can keep it happy before making that kind of investment. Goodluck to all mangosteen growers. I have not even had the pleasure of trying the Queen of a ll fruits. I do remember Harry saying that he would rather have a delicious mango then a mangosteen. I know that not everyone will think this is the best fruit but I have noexperience with it, and I refuse to let might first experience be with a frozen fruit. I dont want to ruin my first experience. I am hoping when I go to Miami next August I will be able to find some!

Andrew:
If you want to try a mangosteen, don't wait until Miami. We really don't have any here on any consistant basis. You are much more likely to find the fruit in a northern city with a large Asian population (example....NY China town) than you are here in Florida. The reason is that there are import restrictions here, because we have warm weather, cirtters that might come in with the fruit might flourish here. While in Northern cities, they could care less because the tropical bugs will die there during the first winter. I have had mangosteen in NYC, Montreal, San Francisco, Seattle and Vancouver. They probably would have it Toronto and Chicago as well....don't know for sure, I have never been. Is there an Asian market in Buffalo? You might call around....you might get a surprise!

There may be many sources for seedling mangosteens. One of which is: http://www.hulabrothers.com/store/cart.cgi?action=link&product=4

Frankies in Hawaii, Montoso Gardens and Govardhan Gardens in PR.

If the temps are dumping below 50, it would probably be okay to order...as long as it doesn't sit on a porch all day. The risk is about the same whether it is now or dead of summer.

You are definitely right about the fruiting Jay. I will be shocked if I ever get to eat a fruit from any of my mangosteens. I think it's pretty much just a dream. I would just be happy to keep the plants alive and hopefully move down near Miami or the Keys at some point. Then I think I would at least have a legitimate shot.

Harry, I have gone to several tropical fruit stores and themost exotic fruits i have found in Bufalo are green coconuts, quenepa in season, guava in seaon, and breadfruit is year round. I will try and call aound next summer, but I have to say that if I found it and they wanted $16.00/pound, I would not buy it. It may not happen for me until I go to a country that has them. I was pleasantly surprised to hear that they grow in Puerto Rico. If I go at the right time, that would be my best chance. I am not trying to get myself to hyped up about the fruit, I don't want to try it and think "I waited for this?" I am not saying that that will happen but I want to be prepared. I had that experience with fresh papaya and guava. I also tried something called mave or mabe. It is a bark from a tree that some of the carribean use to make a drink with. It is suppose to be out of this world. To me it tasted like really bad beer, andthere was no alcohol in it. LOL
Andrew

I think we paid $8.50/pound in Vancouver......and that was Canadian dollars. Don't remember what they went for in NYC.

Check out the prices from these fools!!!!

http://buymangosteenfruit.com/?gclid=CNSewJ3cg54CFcZD5godODrYqA

What are you talking about Jay? They are on SALE for the low low price of $9.99 each but only if you act now.

Man.....those are some pricey a$$ fruits. I wouldn't mind getting those kind of prices from my little fruit stand. They have some nerve...wonder if people actually pay that. Looking through their web site and googling their phone number, they appear also to be in a whole bunch of other businesses ranging from Kids Furniture to Organic Vegetables to Kobe Beef and other food specialites. They are out of California. Quite the business people

I emailed them just now to find out how much the shipping is. I still can't believe the cost. I wonder if the seeds would be viable.

Andrew, Maybe instead of trying a Mangosteen you could try a Achachairu. It is closely related to mangosteens. I have one and it seems much easier to grow and from what I am told many people actually prefer the fruit over mangosteen. It is also much more cold hardy. Mine took nights in the mid 40s with no problems at all last season. Sadhu from Govardhan gardens sells them.

Here is a link that might be useful: Link

Coming from Thailand means they have been irradiated. The seed will not germinate.

I asked them in an email if there fruit was irradiated and they said no. Maybe they come from somewhere else then??

Jay, Harry and John all three of your grafted mangosteens look very nice. I wish mine lived. For now I have given up on mangosteen, rambutan, and pulasan. I'm sticking with what can grow in S FL without cold protection. At least if Jay's tree doesnt grow well here he still has one that will be flourishing in Thailand.

Yea Jay, We need an updated pic of the little grafted tree in Thailand. It would be nice to see how they are supposed to grow.

I've dealt with companies like this before and I would not believe a single word they told me. There are really only two possible places mangosteen in the US come from...Thailand and PR. If from Thailand, they will be irradiated. If you buy fruit with the sepals removed, these are from Thailand. PR does not have to remove them nor do they have to irradiate.

Besides...Andrew...if you paid $10 for one fruit from these people, I will personally round up as many folks from the forum, form a lynching party, and hunt you down! Stay away from them. There will be plenty available soon and if not in your area, I'm sure someone could mail a few to you.

Thats the thing Jay. Fruit like that...i could go into an asian market in Buffalo and ask for Mangosteen and they would look at me like I was off my rocker! LOL! Isn't the fruiting season almost over for the year? I am just concerned that if I don't get these, I will have to wait another year. Do you really think you can find them cheaper? I have heard people say $16.00/pound before. I hope I dont miss out!!
Andrew

Andrew, please don't buy those fruit. Those people have no idea what they are selling, and I would bet they would come in being either previously frozen, or just old and rotten. Just don't waste your money.

John's made a good point. As I pointed out, I've dealt with other companies very similar to this one and I just wouldn't do this no matter what. You think $16/lb is expensive? They are charging $10 per fruit. One pound of mangosteen is approximately/usually 4-5 fruit. That means this company is selling their mangosteens for $40-$50+ a pound! I love mangosteen and it is one of my top two-three fruit, but even I wouldn't pay that for a fruit... especially not knowing exactly what I'm getting. Nothing is worth that Andrew.

Lycheeluva gets them in NY when available. If you were nice and pleaded your case, I'm sure he would send you some the next time he was able to get them... probably next spring or so. These would be guaranteed not frozen.

I included this website to shock everyone with the price. Don't consider purchasing anything from there. The rest of the members here may not take a second shock!!

Okay, but you got me all excited for nothing. Another shot down the tubes. Oh well, I can use the money on more tropicals. Thanks for your honesty guys.