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I can't wait to see how miraculous they are, but so far I have kinda had bad luck with them. They flourish in a pot, and then I reward them by moving them to an honored place in the sun and they die. I get another one or two. My garden helpers weed whack them to oblivion.
So today I picked up another pair. I hate to doom them to the same fate that befell the others. WHAT DO THESE PLANTS WANT FROM ME FOR THE PRIVILEGE OF MAKING SOUR THINGS TASTE NICE (if only for awhile)???!!! How much more can I give?
Do they want sun? A container? A container in the shade? Part sun and shade. Do they want to spend part of the time here, and then the rest on another island?
Gawd, just tell me what to do here so that I, too, can experience the miracle.
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When I bought my place there was a sad looking miracle berry plant in a pot under a tree. After some experimentation, the plant in now thriving. Here is what worked for me:
It likes full sun and regular water, but not too much water. I keep it in the greenhouse now because I think it was just getting too much rain where I am (Nanawale). It loves acid soil. I added some needles from a cypress tree as mulch for acidity.
Since trying to save it two years ago, it has since outgrown its pot so I replanted in a bigger pot and it has grown even more. Word of warning though, once it does start to fruit, you're going to want to put some sort of mesh on it to keep the birds away. Took me awhile to figure that one out. The birds will snag the berries before they are even ripe.
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I have 3 of them Ive grown from seed, that are now 1.5 years old.... and only about 7" tall
only thing I can add is I agree, I dont think they like the rain much, Im in upper HA.... Also Ive been told they grow slowly
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synsepalum_dulcificum
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save our indigenous and endemic Hawaiian Plants... learn about them, grow them, and plant them on your property, ....instead of all that invasive non-native garbage I see in most yards... aloha
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save our indigenous and endemic Hawaiian Plants... learn about them, grow them, and plant them on your property, ....instead of all that invasive non-native garbage I see in most yards... aloha
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Acid soil is a must.
The easiest thing to do is go to a garden center and buy a bag of acid soil. Sometimes the bags are marked "Azalea Camellia Mix". A bag of Peat Moss will also do, but it does take some effort to "wet" the peat to make it usable.
Next add lots of punice or perlite to either of these soils in your pot. This will help with drainage and allow you to keep the pot outside in the rain.
The plant will probably not ever get to the point where you'll have to think about putting it in the ground. Just keep planting it in larger and larger pots as it grows bigger.
-Veritas odium parit”(Terence 195–159 BC))-"Truth begets hatred".
-Veritas odium parit”(Terence 195–159 BC))-"Truth begets hatred".
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Very slow growing, likes full sung. Mine is 6 years old and under 3 feet tall. I water when dry and use triple 16 3-4 times per year.
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Ah, thanks everyone. That part about the slow growth and the container rings true for me. They just didn't seem to want to grow in the ground But they were happier in the container.....the container had better drainage I guess. As soon as I put them in the ground, they started looking kind of forlorn.
