Guava (Red)

My red Guava tree is starting to produce spring fruit. There are some actual fruit on the tree, while the tree continues to produce new buds and blossoms.

Buds

Blossoms

Banana Tree

I planted this Banana tree in early June. It is doing well and has two pups. 

Persimmon Tree (Kaki)

I trimmed my Persimmon (Kaki) tree a few weeks ago and it is filling out beautifully. I do not recall when I started this tree, but believe it was over five years ago. I cut it down once, but new branches kept growing, so decided to keep one and keep it short.

Dragon Fruit

I picked this Dragon Fruit before it cracked like the other ones did. I have tried it yet, but hope it's sweet.

I have a few more Dragon Fruit, but they are small. Now I know how to pollinate them I feel I will get many more next year.

Shikuwasa Seeds

It is Shikusawa season and I got a few fruit from a local farmer. I have several trees and do not plan to start any more, but I get a lot of requests for seeds so decided to prepare a few for folks that ask for them.

Peach Tree

My Peach tree blossomed in March for a summer harvest and now blossoming again for the spring harvest. I lost most of the summer Peaches due to heavy rain and hope I get a better spring harvest.

Japanese Sweet Potato

I originally planted these Japanese Sweet Potato vines on 1 January and harvested them in late September and replanted new slips. In just a month they have grown so much. These are a white Beni Imo, but taste almost identical to white Satsumaimo. The leaves of this variety of Sweet Potato are more ornamental and will continue growing them in the front of my house.

Hibiscus Plants

Now that I moved my Hibiscus plants to a sunny location they are blooming daily.

Watermelon (Suika)

I planted seeds from a super sweet Watermelon in early September and pleasantly surprised to find a few small Watermelons. I hope they are as sweet as the original Watermelon.

Mango Tree Cuttings

Today I decided to try and grow some new Mango trees using the cutting method. A new growth branch should be used. Cut the branch near the node and remove all the leaves.

Cuttings should be 6-8 inches (15-20 cm) long. Remember the direction of the growth before making cuttings. The bottom is the end that was connected to the tree. Take a 6-8 cutting that has two or three leaf nodes (see leaf nodes circled above). Make an angled cut about an inch (1-2 cm) below the bottom leaf node (see arrow).   

Add 6-8 inches (15-20 cm) of river sand or pores soil in a container and water well. Dip the bottom of the cutting in water and then in rooting hormone (in you have it). Use something to make a 2 inch (5 cm) deep hole in the soil and place the cutting. Once all the cuttings are planted, cover with plastic or place in a plastic bag and close. Place in a shaded, but warm location. Uncover and spray with water mist every 10 days. Once the cuttings start to grow leaves, remove the plastic and place in the sun. In a few weeks, the cuttings can be separated and transplanted in their own containers.

Flowers

Okinawa is a sub-tropical region with thousands of flower varieties growing everywhere. Recently I was able to acquire the seeds of just a few; such as, Lobster Claw, Duranta and Peacock Flower.

The Peacock Flower (Caesalpinia Pulcherrima) is a small tree or shrub with a beautiful flower that resembles a Peacock. It is native to the subtropics and tropics of the Americas and part of the Pea family. It requires full sun and pores or sandy soil. The leaves and seed pods resemble that of many shrubbery in the tropics, so difficult to identify when not in full bloom.

Peacock Flower Seed Pod

There is a wide range of Lobster Claw Flowers (Heliconia Latispatha). The seeds I planted are like the yellow variety seen at the top right. Lobster Claw flowers are from the warmer regions of Mexico and South America. The leaves resemble a banana leaf and can grow 4 meters tall.

Lobster Claw Flower seeds

Duranta Erecta is an evergreen scrub with blue or purple flowers. Some verities have gold leaves and the ornamental berries that appear in the fall are a plus in any garden.

Duranta Seeds

(10/11) Lemon Tree 

Dragon Fruit

One of the Dragon Fruit started to split open so decided to pick it. This is the first time I got fruit so was not sure what color it was. I was thinking it was red since it is round. White Dragon Fruit are a little longer and thinner, but it is difficult to tell without experience. 

I placed the fruit in the refrigerator to chill. Later I peeled it by simply pulling off the skin and confirmed the color. Red! 

Absolutely beautiful!

Santan Flower (Jungle Geranium)

As I mentioned in a previous post, Jungle Geranium produce a berry like seed occasionally. I've been checking this plant for months and finally found one. I planted it and hopefully produce a new plant. Of course, you can also propagate these plants by taking cuttings. 

Hibiscus

 

I kept this Hibiscus plant behind my house in the shade after transplanting it. It was growing well and looked really healthy, but not producing any flowers. I moved it to the front of my house where it could get a lot of sunlight and suddenly it started to produce flowers.

Guava (Red and White)

The red Guava tree in the back of my house continues to flower and produce fruit. I understand that Guava trees are capable of producing two crops a year. Once in early spring, which is usually a smaller crop, and the main crop during the summer.

Red Guava

I have two white Guava on the tree in the front of my house. Since there are only two fruit on the tree, I anticipate they will be large and sweet. I cannot wait until they are rip.

Japanese Sweet Potato (Purple Satsumaimo)

I harvested Japanese Sweet Potatoes from a container I planted on 2 February, which was a little over 8 months ago. I got 2.1kg (4.7 lbs) of tubers, which is average; however, I thought they were going to be larger. Perhaps I did not have enough nutrients in the soil, plus the soil was quite dry due to the lack of rain. I added fertilizer, nutrients and some fresh soil. I will try and water them more and see if that makes a difference.

Praying Mantis Buddy

I found a Praying Mantis in my garden. I do not see them often and wish I had more. They are a beneficial insect that eat other large insects that can damage your plants, like crickets,  grasshoppers and beetles. Cherish these interesting insects when you find them.

Dragon Fruit

 

In a previous post I explained that Dragon Fruit should be ready to pick around 35 days after pollination, but a more precise way to tell is when the fruit fully colors (red or yellow) and the wings begin to brown. The fruit above is fully red, but the wings are still green. They will turn red and then start to brown. Once this happens it is time to pick the fruit. The fruit should easily twist off. 

The wings of this fruit are already red and will soon start to turn brown. Technically this fruit can be picked, but to get maximum sweetness, let the fruit on the vine until the wings start to turn brown.

Bitter Melon (Goya, Nigauri)

The self seeded Goya plants in my back yard garden is producing a lot of fruit, so I decided to start giving them away. My neighbors seem sincerely pleased. 

They are handing like this all over my Dragon Fruit plant.

 

Froggy Buddy

 

I was out the other night and found another buddy. This time is was a Frog. It was not afraid of me at all. Lol

Egyptian Spinach (Jute Mallow, Nalta Jute)

 

I knew of Egyptian Spinach from a YouTuber is Australia named Mark (Self Sufficient Me), but did not realize that Jute Mallow was another name for Egyptian Spinach, so from now I will refer to this as Egyptian Spinach. 

Dragon Fruit

A few Dragon Fruit are starting to turn red and getting larger. These will be ready to pick sometime between 10-15 October.