Hey everyone! I live in Miami, which is perfect for growing a variety of fruits. About a year ago, I collected seeds from fruits I love to eat and have been successfully germinating and growing them. However, I've recently started to worry that all my time and effort might be wasted because I'm growing these from seeds instead of buying grafted trees. I'm currently growing lemon, orange, key lime, avocado, mangoes (two types), lychees, Spanish lime (also called mamones), and guava. Should I be concerned about any of these potentially not bearing fruit or having poor quality fruit?
3 Answers
Honestly, I’d just buy a grafted tree if I were you.
It really depends on the fruit. Certain ones can produce fruit in just 1-2 years if grown from seed, while others require 5-7 years and may taste totally different. Ideally, it's better to use a strong, disease-resistant rootstock and graft your favorite fruit onto it. Considering how much time you’ll spend waiting for fruit, it might not be worth the gamble unless you’re just looking to fill space in a big yard.
Growing from seed can be a mixed bag. While it’s exciting, keep in mind that seeds are like the offspring of their parents. You might end up with something amazing, or you could get fruit that's not even edible. The good news is, if you don’t like what grows, you can graft a better variety onto your rootstock later on!
Yeah, that’s also my plan! With my mandarin tree, I’ll wait a few years to see what it produces, then if it’s not great, I’ll just graft a better variety onto it.