Posts Tagged: dragon fruit
Pitahaya/dragon fruit growers gather to learn from UCCE research and each other
Once you know what a dragon fruit looks like, you will never forget it. The bright red, sometimes yellow or purple, scaly skin makes for a dramatic appearance. One that will surely leave an impression. The flesh ranges from white to a deep pink and the flavor is often described as having hints of kiwi, watermelon, or pear.
Since 2007, the Pitahaya/Dragon Fruit Production Tour, has united dragon fruit growers of all levels and backgrounds. After a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic, registration for the 2022 tour filled up in less than 24 hours.
A group of 60 participants gathered Sept. 8 at the Wallace Ranch Dragon Fruit Farm in Bonsall to learn the latest research on growing the drought-tolerant specialty crop. Ramiro Lobo, a small farms and agricultural economics advisor for UC Cooperative Extension in San Diego County, introduced dragon fruit growers and other UC scientists.
“I can't remember a year where this event was not sold out. So, the need and demand is there,” said Eyal Givon, a long-time participant and dragon fruit grower.
The tour not only demonstrates how to grow the fruit, but it also grants participants access to plant material for varieties that are unavailable elsewhere.
“We have given out about 50,000 cuttings through our festival and some varieties were unique to us because we introduced them to the U.S.,” said Lobo.
During their time at Wallace Ranch, participants heard from the farm's owner, Neva Day, regarding the growing practices that have shaped her success today. Day has been growing organic dragon fruit since 2013 and has well over 5,000 plants on the ground and more than 20 varieties.
According to Middleton, Pecan Sandies are a balanced source of fat, protein, and sugar, making them excellent bait for the sugar-loving insects.
Participants eventually made their way to Dragon Delights Farm located in Ramona. Kevin Brixey, the farm's owner, has been growing organic dragon fruit for six years.
Although Brixey was hosting this year's tour participants, he used to be one of them.
“I attended the Pitahaya Festival in 2014 and that's where I realized dragon fruit was something I could grow. There was a lot of good information being shared and a connection to other growers, so it was a major steppingstone for me,” he says.
Unlike traditional dragon fruit growers, Brixey uses shade to grow his dragon fruit after learning about the method from another grower.
“I was impressed. I liked how the fruit performed under shade and now I use it as a management tool,” Brixey explained. In Inland Valleys, shade can shield fruit from intense sunlight and protect them from unwanted guests that eat the fruit, such as birds.
At the Farm Bureau of San Diego County offices, participants learned about the history of dragon fruit growing in California, food safety, pest management, best production practices and much more.
The presenters included experts like Paul Erickson from Rare Dragon Fruit, Lobo, Middleton, Johanna del Castillo from UC Davis Department of Plant Pathology and Ariana Reyes, a community education specialist from UCCE San Diego.
When reflecting on his time participating in the production tour, Givon, who has been growing dragon fruit for about 20 years and manages a 20-acre farm in Moorpark, said he enjoys reconnecting with other growers the most.
“What others are doing, might be better than what I'm doing,” Givon said. “Or what I'm doing, could be better than what someone else is doing. This time together is good for us to learn from each other.”
Lobo agreed with Givon and added, “I hope that these tours become self-sustained, and that we go back to a research field day at Southcoast REC with regional tours in San Diego and Ventura as we did before, or any other counties.”
The Pitahaya/Dragon Fruit Production Tour is an annual event hosted by UCCE San Diego. To learn more about UCCE San Diego events, visit https://cesandiego.ucanr.edu.
There's More to Passionfruit than Meets the Eye
Passionfruit and Dragonfruit Growers Pest Control Workshop
From: Jonathan H. Crane, Tropical Fruit Crop Specialist and Jeff Wasielewski, Commercial Tropical Fruit Agent
April 19, 2022, Time – 10AM-12PM - 1.5 CEU's applied for
Passionfruit and Dragonfruit Growers Pest Control Workshop
Insect and disease problems and control, economic issues, and cultural practices
Registration required ($25)
Eventbrite link https://www.eventbrite.com/e/passionfruit-and-dragonfruit-growers-workshop-registration-315757437997
Attendance options – a HYBRID meeting
You can attend in-person (registration list through Eventbrite or in-person on day of event) Might be nice weather
Miami-Dade County Extension Service
18710 SW 280 St., Homestead, FL 33033
Tel: 305-248-3311
or you can attend on-line through Zoom
Online participants – Zoom
Once registered you will receive a link to the Zoom meeting through Eventbrite
Agenda |
|
Jeff Wasielewski, Commercial Tropical Fruit Agent (20 min) |
Introduction, logistics and an introduction to passion fruit and dragon fruit |
Daniel Carrillo, Entomologist – Tropical Fruits (30 min) |
Passion fruit and dragon fruit pests, beneficial insects, and pollinators |
Romina Gazis, Plant Pathologist – Ornamentals/Tropical Fruits (40 min) |
Major Diseases Affecting Commercial Dragon Fruit and Passionfruit Production in South Florida |
Trent Blare, Agricultural Economist (10 min) |
Tools to determine the profitability of passion fruit and dragon fruit; cost of pest control |
Jonathan Crane, Tropical Fruit Crop Specialist (20 min) |
Cultural practices to mitigate pest problems and what conventional and organic pesticides are registered for these crops |
Questions and Answers |
passionfruit
dragon fruit pile
Know Thy Pitahaya
UC Cooperative Extension advisor Ramiro Lobo has found that the unusually beautiful fruiting cactus - pitahaya or dragon fruit - thrives in Southern California's mild climate. Pitahaya do well in regions where avocados are produced, but use much less water. They can also make excellent landscape plants, adding interest to the garden while producing healthful fruit.
Pitahaya fruit begin as large, showy, nighttime-blooming flowers, each of which contain male and female parts. In many of the most-desirable varieties, the anthers (the male part with pollen) and the stigma (the female part that needs to be pollinated) are separated by a distance that prevents night-flying pollinators, such as moths, from consistently making the connection.
For a uniform and bountiful crop, Lobo suggests hand pollination. Pollen can be collected by shaking a bloom over a bowl or trimming the anthers into a cup with a pair of scissors. He stores pollen in the freezer until the night or early morning hours when cacti bloom. He dabs up pollen with an inexpensive makeup brush and lightly swishes it onto the flowers' stigma.
“It's easy and takes just a few seconds per flower," Lobo said. "If you don't hand pollinate, you end up with fruits that are very small. And uniformity isn't there."
Hand pollination also allows farmers to accurately project their pitahaya harvest and work in advance with fruit marketing companies to sell the crop. Lobo said he carries a mechanical counter to click as he pollinates flowers. Forty days later, that precise number of fruit will be ready for harvest.
And here's his chart of the characteristics of different selections.
dragon-fruit-recommendations chart
Dragon Fruit Workshop
A recent workshop was held in Florida for pitahaya growers. The presntations are on line now
AGENDA
Speaker |
Topic/title |
Time |
Jeff Wasielewski, Commercial Tropical Fruits |
Introduction – background on the industry |
10 minutes |
Daniel Carrillo, Entomologist-Tropical Fruits |
Pitahaya pests and beneficial insects |
25 minutes |
Romina Gazis, Plant Pathologist/Dir. Plant Diagnostic Clinic |
An overview of diseases affecting dragon fruit production |
15 minutes |
Tiago de Paula Lelis, Plant Pathology Postdoc |
Stem and fruit canker of dragon fruit: management strategies |
15 minutes |
Jonathan Crane, Tropical Fruit Crop Specialist |
Cultural practices and environmental factors that affect dragon fruit production |
20 minutes |
Q&A |
|
15 minutes |
Jonathan H. Crane, Tropical Fruit Crop Specialist
UF-IFAS-Tropical Research and Education Center
18905 SW 280 Street
Homestead, Florida 33031 U.S.A.
Office 786-217-9271
Cell 786-255-5878
Email jhcr@ufl.edu
TREC main website https://trec.ifas.ufl.edu/
Faculty webpage https://trec.ifas.ufl.edu/faculty/jcrane/
Tropical fruit production & research HOS5555 class https://trec.ifas.ufl.edu/teaching/tropical-fruit-production- and-research-hos5555/
FruitScapes https://trec.ifas.ufl.edu/fruitscapes/
pitahaya
Dragon Fruit Conference
Just When You Though You Could Take the Week Off from Webinars
Here's a two-day conference on Dragon Fruit
September 22 and 23, 2020 (you have an option of viewing it live or later recorded).
Note Taiwan is 15 hours ahead of California.
https://sites.google.com/fftc.org.tw/dfnet-workshop-en/home
To register for this conference follow the link: FREE registration.
https://sites.google.com/fftc.org.tw/dfnet-workshop-en/home?fbclid=IwAR1bE79iCEaBvauKQMW-iPNwlIQNNSH88YVxcBDARd_jVQKbsO7s1q1GIXM
Please use the following link for the agenda
https://sites.google.com/fftc.org.tw/dfnet-workshop-en/program
Besides the presentations on export there will be presentations on:
- Good agricultural practices
- Nutritional and functional traits of dragon fruit
- From production to consumption-the missing links
- Value-added programs
In addition: There is a lot of information on dragon fruit production through the
- Dragon Fruit Network (https://dfnet.fftc.org.tw/Page/Home.aspx)
- You can view previous conferences at:
- (https://www.fftc.org.tw/en/activities/detail/129) and (https://www.fftc.org.tw/en/activities/detail/116)
pitahaya