Posts Tagged: dragon fruit

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

https://ufl.zoom.us/rec/share/c6EIqwOMhCLJuQ7cf7YnufEAp3OB8pADxbcAwxhXUrfMoOx2FXm9x4kXX8QdrTo.0J8pZgFcwWC-Aa0v?startTime=1611153287000

 

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

Learn to Dragon Fruit

2018 Pitahaya/Dragon Fruit Production Seminar

San Diego County Farm Bureau

420 South Broadway, Suite 200 | Escondido, CA 92025

Friday - August 24, 2018

7:00am – 4:30pm

TOPICS TO BE COVERED:

• San Diego County Agriculture – Water, Policies and Regulatory Update
• Pitahaya Research Update – Variety Evaluation and Performance, Genetic Characterization
• Irrigation Water Management Strategies and Pitahaya Irrigation
• Pitahaya Post Harvest Management & Sensory Evaluation
• Pitahaya or Dragon Fruit Markets and Marketing - An Overview and Global Perspective
• Pitahaya Orchard Establishment & Economics Considerations
• Pitahaya Fertility Management & Soil Analytical Reports (Tentative)
• Nematode Issues and their Impact for Pitahaya Production
• Insect Pest Management & Pesticide Use Safety for Pitahayas and Other Specialty Crops
• Weeds and Weed Management Strategies for Specialty Crops, including Pitahaya
• Diseases – Diagnosis and Management Strategies for Pitahaya Production
• Hydroponics – An Evaluation of Soilless Substrates for Pitahaya Production (Tentative) 

 

2018 Pitahaya/Dragon Fruit Festival/Field Day

UC South Coast Research and Extension Center

7601 Irvine Boulevard | Irvine, CA 92618

Saturday - August 25, 2016

6:30am – 3:30pm

TOPICS TO BE COVERED:

• Review of Pitahaya Varieties and Hand Pollination Demonstration
• Integrated Pest Management Strategies for Specialty Crops Production
• Pitahaya Irrigation Research and System Design Consideration
• Pitahaya Trellis Systems Demonstration
• Pitahaya Production for Home or Backyard Growers
• Pitahaya or Dragon Fruit and Ice Cream Tasting 

 

REGISTRATION INFORMATION

-PLEASE READ-

REGISTER EARLY. This event has sold out in the past!! Attendance is limited to 60 participants for the seminar on August 24th and 100 for the festival/field day on August 25th. This would also help us plan for handouts and cuttings. No refunds will be issued, but substitutions are allowed.

 

PRICINGincludes continental breakfast, refreshments, lunch, (Catered by Phil's BBQ on 8/24), pitahaya/dragon fruit ice cream, smoothie tasting, and an information packet:

• Package Registration for Seminar & Festival/Field Day: $80.00, 

If paid online with a credit card or post-marked by Friday - August 17, 2018.

No package registrations after this date.

 

• Seminar Registration ONLY: $60.00, 

If paid online with a credit card or post-marked by Friday - August 17, 2018

$70.00 after this date or at the door, if space allows*

 

• Festival/Field Day Registration ONLY: $ 40.00,

If paid online with a credit card or post-marked by Friday - August 17, 2018

$50.00 after this date or at the door, if space allows*

 

*Walk-ins will be allowed if space is available, but you MUST have exact change or checks. Credit cards will NOT be accepted day of.

 

Please be aware that you WILL be turned away if space is not available! NO EXCEPTIONS.

 

TO REGISTER,please complete the online registration form at:

https://ucanr.edu/survey/survey.cfm?surveynumber=25236

 

For registration questions, please contact

Erin Spaniel

Administrative Assistant II

858-822-7919

enspaniel@ucanr.edu

pitahaya flower

Fire Recovery and Frost Refresher

University of California Cooperative Extension, USDA Farm Service Agency, California Avocado Commission and California Avocado Society

Fire Recovery and Frost Refresher

Santa Paula Agricultural Museum, 926 Railroad Ave, Santa Paula

January 10, 9 – 11 AM, Wednesday

 

Introduction – Ben Faber, UCCE

Fire Damage to Santa Barbara and Ventura County Agriculture – Henry Gonzales, VC Ag Commissioner

Damage to Avocado Orchards – Ken Melban, CAC

Disaster Resources Available from USDA – Farm Service Agency – Daisy Banda, USDA- FSA

Assessing Fire and Frost Damage and Recovery Practices – Ben Faber

Fire Loss Calculator – Eta Takele, UCCE

Fire Experiences – What Works, What Doesn't and What Might – Grower Panel

 

Representatives from Ventura and Santa Barbara Agriculture Commissions will be present

 

FSA will be present from 8-12 to take Disaster Applications

 

Refreshments will be served.

For information contact: Ben Faber (805)645-1462

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