Starfruit, anyone?

[tallis]

So a friend has managed to get seventeen starfruit seeds to germinate, and is offering them out because she doesn't need all seventeen! I'm tempted, just not sure I am being entirely sensible about this :P

Anyone else have one? I do intend to get a greenhouse in the next couple of years, but it'll likely not be heated; is that still a warm enough place for over-wintering a starfruit tree once it's too awkward to bring in the house when it's cold? Is it going to grow absolutely huge even if I keep it in a pot? Basically should I get one or not

[veggiechicken]

An old thread that may encourage you to try................or not!!
https://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gr...uit_23250.html

[jdlondon]

definitely get it! - I'm sure they'll be smaller in size in a pot, just like all the other fruit trees, but the ones in Delhi I saw which grew by the road like our normal roadside trees were absolutely huge. Lovely.

It'd be good to know how they do here.

[DannyK]

If you mean carambola, I wouldn't bother. All the ones had here just tasted like pea pods. Very decorative but no flavour. It could be be that like a lot of fruit they were picked too early. I'll ask my Filipino friends.

If you want to try something that does taste nice and grows as a bush, try custard apples.

[SarrissUK]

Ooh custard apples look nice! I've just bought some seeds lol

[DannyK]

Ooh custard apples look nice! I've just bought some seeds lol

Custard apples are sold Surrey Street Market in Croydon 50p to £1 each. Failing your local market there's the Asian, Turkish and Greek shops, which always have interesting things like these, loquats, and many types of aubergine. If you're a masochist try bitter melon.
Custard apples not that exotic now as they are grown commercially in Southern Spain!
They do get sweet off the tree so it's ok to get them hard and wait for them to go squidgy. Beware the pips, they are hard.
It's a pity durians not a practical fruit here. They'd guarantee you a carriage to yourself!

[jdlondon]

An old thread that may encourage you to try................or not!!
https://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gr...uit_23250.html

That's really strange how no one likes it, because it's really tasty when I've had it! - There was some kind of fruit curry in India, it was sweet and spicy, clear-ish liquid, and it was so lovely. Wish I got the recipe. And in South America, they used to greet us at the hotel with starfruit juice and that was gorgeous too.

[Brack]

"If you're a masochist try bitter melon"

When I lived in Leicester I bought one of those in a shop (described as Kerala) because it was the ugliest, wartiest vegetable (well, technically fruit) I'd ever seen. Turns out that it's taste was the most foul thing on earth. Utterly vile. I couldn't believe people paid for them (and that I'd paid for it).

[tallis]

Well I ended up asking for a seedling, so I'll discover eventually if I like starfruit or not!

Never heard of a custard apple before, they sound... interesting?

[Brack]

Found this on victoriana:
https://www.victoriananursery.co.uk/Star_Fruit_Tree/

Might be useful information for hardiness, size and how long you're waiting for it to fruit. Having said that, it hasn't cost you anything, so I'd give it a go. I just transplanted my passion fruit seedlings into the greenhouse this weekend (ex Tesco, I've had them in a pot in the kitchen since Feb). They may or may not work out, but it didn't cost me anything.

[Trouvere]

My kitchen windowsill of pointlessness bears 2 cherimoyas, 4 kurrajongs and 2 midyims (to be precise, Annona cherimola, Brachychiton populneus and Austromyrtus dulcis). They'll flower any day now, I'm sure.

[DannyK]

This is what star fruit should look like when ripe and tasty. These are in Romblon in Philippines. The problem is like a lot of fruit available here they are not ripe and really only fit for bin.

Is it me but I find most shop bought grapes and strawberries unpalatable.

[DannyK]

Some seeds I got from a custard apple fruit are about two inches high. They were germinated at 25C.

Whether they'll survive is another matter.