Tag Archives: Exotic Fruits

Tenerife, a dream place for exotic fruits in Europe

litchi-fruit-at-canarius Canarius | Tuesday December 13th, 2016 |
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Scientists working at the Canary Islands Institute of Agricultural Research (ICIA), an autonomous body attached to the Minister for Agriculture, Stockbreeding, Fisheries, and Food in the Canary Islands Government, continue to analyze the enormous possibilities of growing exotic fruits in the Canary Islands to explore new marketing opportunities.

To this effect, researchers focus their analysis on the farm Cueva del Polvo (Guía de Isora, Tenerife) with a collection of recent exotic fruit species in the Archipelago, such as Mamey Colorado or Jackfruit.

Particular attention in this field should be made to the lychee trials

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Particular attention in this field should be made to the lychee trials, also known as litchi, carried out with different varieties and which have shown the interest of this fruit of appreciated taste qualities to the point that, in ancient times, it was reserved for the emperors.

online-mango-treeTo these studies are added those developed in Papaya, aimed at identifying the best varieties of this exotic fruit to determine the most outstanding aspects of each of them.

We also seek to clarify whether, in the future and using innovative breeding techniques, crossbreeding could be achieved with plants considered more optimal to obtain better-adapted varieties in the medium term.

Additional tasks have also been developed related to the mango fruit aimed, among other aspects, to analyze the evaluation of plantations and the development of new cultivation techniques.

All these investigations allow to diversify the agricultural activity and that the farmers have a greater variety of the crop as a complement to the traditional ones; As well as obtaining better commercial-quality fruits.

The exotic plants we have at Canarius are grown within greenhouses in different areas of Tenerife, where the use of chemicals is kept to a minimum. Some of our nurseries are completely organic, and others are energetically self-sufficient.

In the Canary Islands, we enjoy a subtropical climate with a cool winter. However, our nurseries are not air-conditioned to produce robust and resistant plants that can be grown in colder climates.

The cold-hardy Gomera-1 Mango Tree

Canarius | Sunday May 29th, 2011 |
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Gomera-1 is a hardy variety of Mango suited to a coastal Mediterranean climate. It is used as a rootstock for grafting other cultivars of mango, because the roots of Gomera-1 grow better in colder or dryer areas and improve the cold-hardiness of the plant.

Two Mango Gomera-1 trees in a poorly irrigated terrace in Southern Anaga, Tenerife.

This variety of mango is well adapted to the environment of the Canary Islands. It can be seen thriving in windy areas with rocky soils. It is unscathed by cool and wet winters and fruits very well and regularly. It is found on many islands and it was probably, initially brought from Cuba. The name Gomera refers to the island of La Gomera, one of the seven islands of our archipelago. This is where Canarian agronomists collected the first samples to study this mango which is quite common in the rural areas of the islands.  Fruits are yellow, small to average size (250 g average), with  very good flavour, sweet, aromatic, with a high content in fibres.

Yellow fruits of the Cold Hardy Canarian Mango named Gomera – 1

Cultivation

It needs just the same conditions of any other mango trees. It is reproduced from seed. As a polyembrionic Mango, 90% of the seedlings are true to type. Adult trees are able to flower up to 3 times a year. If it is too cold or wet, they will loose the inflorescences and flower again, about 2 months later, until the right season for fruit set is matched. In order to achieve larger fruits sizes, it is good to remove by hand 1/3 of the fruits from the bunch. Gomera-1 fruits outdoors in coastal Mediterranean climates and it needs little or no protection in coastal Portugal, Spain, Italy and Greece and also in the French Riviera.

Use as Root Stock for Grafting

Mango Gomera is regularly used as a rootstock for grafting throughout the Canary Islands and also in Andalusia. The use of the Canarian Hardy Mango as a rootstock permitted to push the commercial production of Mango in the Mediterranean basin, because the roots are hardier to cold and wet soil. All the different varieties of mango trees that we offer for sale are grafted on Gomera-1 rootstocks, so our customers in Europe will get the benefit of some added cold resistance from the roots.

Gomera mango trees used as a rootstock to graft different varieties

Gomera mango trees used as a rootstock to graft different varieties

Scientific Literature in Spanish about Mango Gomera

Mejora del Mango en Canarias

Gomera-1 en el programa de mejora del Mango

Buy cold hardy mango trees in our Shop

In our shop you can purchase small trees of Gomera mangos and also a wide selection of mango trees of different varieties. All trees are grafted by hand, with specific cultivars. We ship them directly to your home. Try also our delicious Mango jam with or without sugar, in the honeys & jams section, produced with the mangoes of the Canary Islands.

Where do mangos grow in Europe?

Mango Irwin Canarius | Thursday January 20th, 2011 |
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Mango is not a strictly tropical tree. It grows better in areas with Subtropical climate because it needs a cooler winter for good fruiting. Mango trees do  grow and fruit in many areas of Europe with a Mediterranean Climate. Some varieties fruit better than others in cold climates.

Mango Irwin

Mango Irwin

Areas with Commercial Mango Production in Europe

  • Canary Islands (Spain)
  • Andalucía (Spain)
  • Sicilia (Italy)

Areas where Mango Trees Grow and Fruit

  • Coastal Southern Portugal
  • Coastal Southern Italy
  • Coastal Southern Spain
  • Coastal Greece
  • The Southern islands such as Malta, Crete and Cyprus.
  • Trees with little protection can fruit in Southern France, Riviera.

Mango trees are also grown in the Southern Mediterranean, in Northern African countries and Israel.

Buy mango trees in Europe

In our internet shop you can purchase a wide selection of young mango trees of different varieties. They are all grafted on the cold-hardy rootstock Gomera-1. Canarius offers more than 20 varieties of grafted mango trees. We ship from the Canary Islands to your place the same grafted trees that are sold to local farmers , ready to go to the field: same plants, same size, same deep pots. The plants you purchase are at least 2 years old, because the root trees are grown for 1,5 years before grafting.

Grafting Mangos in the Nursery

Grafting Mangos in the Nursery

Growing Acerola Fruits in Cold Climates

Canarius | Tuesday November 30th, 2010 |
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Acerola is a cherry like fruit native to tropical America. The fruit is extremely high in vitamine C. It grows from a small tree  which is also ornamental. The scientific name is Malpighia glabra. It is usually grown in tropical and subtropical countries but it can be tried further North.

Can Malpighia glabra grow out of the tropics?

  • Acerola is hardy to-2 C (28 F). It grows and fruits outdoors in coastal Mediterranean climates. Malpighia glabra needs no protection in warmer Southern Portugal, Spain, Italy and Greece and also in the French Riviera.

    Fruit of Acerola

    Fruit of Acerola

  • Malpighia glabra has a fast fruiting cycle. It goes from flower to fruit in just 3-4 weeks.  Acerola does not need a long summer. One or two crops of acerolas can be expected in northern latitudes.

    Flower of Malpighia glabra

    Flower of Malpighia glabra

  • Malpighia glabra grows well in pots. It can be kept as a small shrub and it will still fruit freely.  In colder areas, potted plants can be moved to a warmer site in winter, and can be placed in full sun during the warmer months.

    These are the plants of Acerola that we sell at www.canarius.com

    These are the plants of Acerola that we sell at www.canarius.com

  • Acerola stands drought and can do a winter rest. Potted shrubs can be kept on the dry side during the winter months. It will drop some leaves and will come back with leaves and new flowers when warmth and water are provided.

The Mamey Sapote – Mamey Rojo or Red Mamey

Canarius | Thursday September 2nd, 2010 |
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The Mamey Rojo – Mamey Colorado or Red Mamey. Information from the Canary Islands and a video with The Tropical Fruit Growers of South Florida.

We are proud to offer grafted plants of Mamey Colorado, a fabulous tropical fruit tree, which is hard to find in Europe. We sell the improved variety “Pantin” and we ship our grafted trees to anywhere in Europe.

Pouteria sapota Pantin – Mamey Colorado

This is a video published by the “Tropical Fruit Growers”, presenting the famous tropical fruit called – Mamey Sapote or Mamey Colorado - with Mr. Julian Lara.

Red Mamey is a tropical evergreen tree native to Central America commonly grown as an ornamental.

The tree has an open crown with a central thick trunk and some large branches. It could reach up to 20 m (60 ft) in tropical regions. Leaves are 30 cm (12 “) long and 10 cm (4 “) wide, the shape is obovate or oblolanceolate and they are group and the end of small branches. Flowers are small, whitish and sessile. The fruit is a berry, oval-shaped, with a persistent calyx; its size varies from 8-20 cm (3-8 “) length. The skin is thick and reddish, similar to very soft sandpaper. The flesh of ripen fruits is salmon-pink, orange or red and the texture varies from smooth, firm to finely granulate. It has a sweet unique taste similar to almonds. Usually there is a long, elliptic seed, but could be four. Fruits weight 0,3-2,7 kg (0,7-6 lb). Available in the summer. Could be eaten fresh and used in milk shakes, soups, preserves and deserts. The grafted variety “Pantin” is most spread in Florida and from all the varieties of red the mamey this has the best taste.

Canarius offers grafted mameys. Grafting trees is an art and it is very difficult to graft Pouteria as it takes many months and many failures to achieve the goal.

This fruit tree in Spanish is called:

  • Mamey Sapote
  • Sapote Rojo
  • Mamey Rojo
  • Mamey Cubano