When I told my wife I wanted to grow durian , she asked why . travel through Asia , there are signs banish durian from public transfer , hotels , and other areas . In other Logos , not everyone is a fan .
know to smell – um – unpleasant , durian is a polarizing yield that people either all bang or despise .
Durian is such a unique fruit , and it is often sought after by aficionados . There ’s a massive grocery for this challenging dainty , and it ’s astonishingly easy to grow if you have the right surroundings . It ’s also one of those trees that is absolutely laden with fruit , which is a boon whether you eat it or sell it .
What is Durian?
Known by fans as the king of fruits , durian ( Durio zibethinus ) is beloved in nation like Thailand , the Philippines , Malaysia , and Indonesia . It has a creamy , odoriferous look , though you have to get through the pungent odor to savour it .
Durian has a hard external shuck with five oval segments inside that contain the creamy form and seeds . Durian is related tobreadfruit , and it shares its love of sunlight and heat . It ’s a truly tropical tree .
Native to Borneo and Sumatra , durians love super - hot environs that are also super humid . In the wild , durian tree grow up to 120 feet and live for a couple of hundred . Grafted miscellanea are more compact but still produce private fruit that are up to 18 pounds in weightiness . There are century of named varieties .
If you ’ve never taste or smelled Durio zibethinus , it ’s quite an experience . the great unwashed describe it as something like Limburger cheese , resin , gym socks , rotten onions , and spirit of turpentine combine . It ’s so pungent that it is cast out in public places in some Asiatic rural area .
But the tang is a whole different affair . It ’s sweet , yellowish brown , spicy , and almost creamy . Anthony Bourdain oncesaidafter eating it , “ your breathing spell will smell as if you ’d been French - kissing your dead gran . ”
How to Plant Durian
You want specific conditions for durian to flourish . Few place in the United States put up the right condition , but do n’t let that stop you from try . Only you hump the elaborateness of your area , so if you recollect you’re able to make durian work , by all means , give it a go .
Durian raise successfully in Hawaii , Florida , Puerto Rico , and interchangeable property , though it has n’t been grown on a commercial-grade scale anywhere in the US .
To flourish , durian necessitate consistent temperature between 75ºF and 85ºF. Any temperatures below 45ºF , your tree will lose its leaves and likely snuff it off . It go without saying that durian ca n’t handle any Robert Frost .
Durian also get laid water . The trees need a minimum of at least 60 inches of rainfall per twelvemonth but do best with a rainfall of up to 150 inch . Failing those levels , you need to allow supplemental irrigation .
Next is humidness . Anywhere between 70 and 90 percentage humidity is required .
base on all of that , you should weigh whether it ’s deserving essay to grow durian or not . I was told I could n’t grow papaia in my area , but I planted a tree- and for what it ’s worth – it maturate a few fruits every year . It also looks great on my property . So never say never .
Planting in the Ground
you may plant seeds either indoors or out . you’re able to simply remove the seeds from the fruit for plant them .
You should plant seeds within a couple of Day after remotion from the fruit . clean durian seed do n’t keep much beyond five days , peculiarly if bring out to sunlight . you’re able to bribe them online in specially sealed pack that last much longer than a few twenty-four hours .
Dig a hole about 1.5 feet across and cryptical . Mix soil and compost in adequate theatrical role and fill again the hole . Take the seed and place it on top of the soil and campaign it in about halfway , leaving half of the seed debunk to sunlight .
Do this at the hottest and wettest part of the season , and you should see germination within a few days or a week at the most . In the good conditions , durian seed are fleet to evolve .
Water the source well . bring home the bacon shade for the first two year or so , just as if the seed had come from a tree in a forest and it is growing on the forest floor .
Starting Seeds Inside
If the surround out of doors is n’t quite correct , you’re able to start the seed inside . Start by placing it on a pluck theme towel , and then varnish the towel and come inside a clear plastic bag . This provides heat and condensation – all the things durian seeds thirst . Place at a window that receives at least four minute of direct sunlight each Clarence Day and check that the bag stays pixilated .
When the seed has solution growing from it that are longer than the seed itself , works in a potful filled with top - quality potting mix . piddle every day , but make certain the container you utilize drains very well . Plant half - entomb just like an outside seed .
Planting Cuttings
If you know someone with a durian tree , you’re able to take a cut from it . Choose a branch that is about three feet tenacious and at least two inches in diameter . Plant the cut end forthwith into the ground . Stake well and body of water day by day for four calendar month .
Soil pH should be between 5.5 and 6.5 . Durian trees need rich , loamy filth that drains well . They love piddle but detest blotto feet seat in moisture .
Caring for Durian
Fertilizer
Use a good character obtuse - release plant food twice a year . Dig it in after the yield has been reap and just before the flowers appear for next time . It will take a couple of seasons for you to knead out the timings , peculiarly since the tree generally wo n’t bring on yield in the first four to five years .
Water
pee daily for the first four months , especially if planting a cutting . After this , water frequently , secure the water does n’t pool at the al-Qa’ida of the automobile trunk and root . The primer should remain dampish but not wet .
If the weather becomes dry and the humidity dismiss , mulch with straw , hay , or exchangeable and piss well . Think about a rain woodland environment . That ’s what you need to reproduce as much as possible .
Pruning
Durian tree rise so magniloquent that pruning should be done in the first one to two year . Prune to regulate so that the Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree canopy is open in the midriff . direct for a two - pronged form turn out and up from the main luggage compartment .
As the tree gets old , rationalise off morbid and discredited branches . If you already have fruit trees , treat durian tree the same and prune when you prune all the other Tree in your orchard .
Spacing
If you institute more than one durian Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree , space them between 30 and 50 feet aside . The tree diagram is pollinated by fruit bats , raspberry , and insects , so the fruit yield is dear if you set more than one tree diagram .
Companion Planting for Growing Durian
A Bible of warning when it arrive to durian . Despite the height of the Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree , their root are extremely shallow . This makes them susceptible to fart . There have been representative when trees have fallen over , so I generally avoid planting anything under a durian Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree .
It ’s also worth mentioning that you should n’t establish directly under durian tree for another reason . The fruit is ready when it drops to the ground and some of the fruit can consider up to 18 pounds . Durian is solid with a hard , spiky stalk . Anything below could get smooshed .
Common Problems and Solutions for Growing Durian
Stem Canker
This is a vulgar disease that impacts many different plants . The symptoms vary depending on the type of industrial plant affected . With durian , the symptoms appear as root hogwash , fruit rotting before it acquire fully , and leave-taking rotting for no intellect .
You ordinarily see deep brown - colored berth look on leaves and yield , then they diffuse before rotting occurs . There is often a sap or viscous substance in the spots .
There are several fungicides that you’re able to use , so I suggest talking to a professional at your local glasshouse . This is because to contend this disease effectively , and you sometimes need to use several different fungicides at various time .
Root Rot
As the name suggests , this is where the roots decompose away , eventually killing the tree . To avoid it , ensure the soil is well - draining , so the roots are n’t sitting in pools of weewee . This is especially important for durian , given how much they need to be irrigate .
Leaf Blight
blood-red or yellow spots appear on leaves and spread outwards . This often involve puerile tree and is make by a fungus . Use a antimycotic , or if the Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree is small enough , you could apply your own baking soda water atomiser . Use 1/2 a teaspoon in a gallon of water . Mix well and spray on the folio , handle both front and back side .
Shot Hole Borer
You may see bantam kettle of fish in branch , gum mixed with a powdery residue . This may or may not be compound with the branch or stem droop and go bad .
This destructive mallet bores into the durian tree diagram , safely tucked aside from our chemic and natural treatments . There are chemical solution to try but check your local law and regulations . They ’ll call for to be applied when the louse are outside of the tree , before they bear in .
There may also be specific path of destroy and removing septic plants .
In some expanse this pest is prolific and there are demand to report it to local authorities .
Psyllids
You will notice these tiny pests as you work in the garden and sweep the durian Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree as you take the air around it . Lots of diminutive little hemipteran will jump and scatter . Sometimes they look like whiteflies , other times they are like a flat , greenish scale .
These are tiny sap - sucking insects that are n’t too much of an takings in belittled act . problem happen when the numbers pool raise to uncontrollable proportions . Spray hebdomadally with neem oil if you have an plague .
Harvesting Durian
you’re able to shorten the stem an column inch above the fruit if you ’re sure-footed you know it ’s quick , but the good style is to let the yield drop off the tree . Some varieties split into five pieces rather than falling from the tree . If you have this eccentric , draw the fruit the second you see splitting .
Most traditional farmers of durian do this , but you must retrieve the yield immediately because it has a short shelf life-time . Most durian lovers eat the fruit straight aside or in the first three to four day after dropping . By twenty-four hour period five , the timber drops importantly .
If you do n’t wish to exhaust durian , but can uprise it , you are onto a good thing . Durian lovers go on tours for the yield , dedicate societal media web site to it , and will journey to purchase it .
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