Saturday, December 6, 2008

Oh Hawaii why can't you grow citrus?

I don't get it. It's tropical here. Hawaii has the ugliest citrus I've ever seen. 
And this is one of the good ones. 

It wouldn't be so bad, if it actually tasted good, but I have yet to find a sweet one. 

I'm all about buying local,  but if I want decent citrus punch in the morning. 
I gotta go with California Valencia. 


24 comments:

  1. I'm no agricultural expert, but it doesn't make sense to me either!

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  2. Aloha Jorge, seems your Hawaiian citrus either had have contact with the Citrus Blackfly or closely related whitefly and the 2000 released parasitic wasps are on vacation back home in Guatemala
    or
    it is the newer Asian citrus psyllid, an aphid-sized, mottled-brown insect and an exotic-pest threat for citrus and nursery plants. The psyllid alone causes direct damage to citrus and related species by feeding on sap and depositing massive amounts of honeydew that promote sooty mold.
    Its threat becomes magnified when it is infected with the bacterium that produces CGD, ranked as one of the most serious pests of citrus in the world! The disease is transmitted not only by the insect but also by grafting and possibly citrus seed.

    So perhaps you should take that citrus and bring it to the University or to the Department of Agriculture to make them noticed and perhaps you will do a good deed with this!

    Btw, thanks for your blog comment!
    I still puzzle over which Ids are wrong! ,-)
    and we once met at the Police beach while you were filming with Froghurt!
    Yeah, I was one of the handful people watching it!

    Aloha and mahalo!

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  3. Love the blog.

    To answer your question:
    Citrus fruits grow best in a Mediterranean climate (like California) or the areas above and below the tropics. They like warm areas with lower humidity :-) Too humid in Hawaii to make a good orange I suspect.

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  4. James took the words right out of my mouth. Guess you'd better get back out to Southern California and stock up... :o)

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  5. Tropical bugs easily penetrate "soft shelled" fruits. Majority of Hawaii fruits are more "hard shelled".

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  6. Hey, Jorge, sawyer840 says you posted a comment on his blog. I am outraged that I have received no such thing. I have posted offensive and derogatory posts on this blog for over a year and what do I get in return? Nothing.

    I'm joking of course. Your hilarious outlook on often random issues is why I love you. Bethany has competition...

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  7. You just grabbed the wrong kind, J. I'll put a Kau Navel up against anything they grow in CA.

    (And I grew up in a citrus grove in FL so I vouch with some cred.)

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  8. Ugh, that in that top picture the fruit looks diseased. That stinks that you cannot get good citrus in Hawaii!

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  9. Actually, citrus do fine with humidity - Florida and here in Louisiana - but most do not like it constantly warm. They are mostly subtropical, not tropical. Look for a pummelo (pomello). They are fine in the tropics and usually taste great, but not really for juice.

    Your tomatoes look like they need more fertilizer and probably more sun.

    I enjoy reading your blog.

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  10. This reminds me of my friend Jen. She lives up in the arctic here in Canada, and has to get her groceries mailed to her. most of the time the produce comes in rotten or stuff like crackers are about 2 years over the expiry date, yuck. If she wants the "fresher" stuff at the local store it costs her and arm and a leg. a 12 pack of pepsi is about $18, lol.

    I think a "fresh" lemon cost her about $4.50 for one.

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  11. From what I understand, citrus trees are supposed to like their roots very dry. I have an orange/grapefruit grafted tree in my backyard in California and I NEVER water it. The only water it gets is the rain that falls or what seeps through the ground from my neighbors yard and we have a ton of fruit. My guess is Hawaii is too wet.

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  12. Thank you for being such an awesome actor. It is so easy to be your fan. You are real. How many other actors have you seen blog about their citrus fruit. I pledge my eternal fandom, long after Lost is over.

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  13. Jorge,

    That bottom valencia looks like a perfect yellow snowball. Don't throw a yellow snowball if you can avoid it at all cost! :-)

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  14. calif has all those chemicals and radiation that pollutes the land there,thats why they look and taste so good from cali. you die faster to there,lol. ah freash fruits from california where all the friuts live,lol.

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  15. Seems like I'm learning new stuff all the time here. Entertaining and educational...What more could a gal ask for?

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  16. Hey, Jorge!

    You should to come in Sicily and try our citruses (and the rest of the other good things we have!!!)

    I'm waitng for you in Siracusa.

    :)

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  17. Ew. Just looking at that makes me feel like I'd break out in hives.

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  18. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  19. Wanna a bunch of real tasty food?

    Come to Brazil!
    The land of Samba!

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  20. I am really interested in understanding more about citrus in Hawaii. Is the University someone mentions the University of Hawaii? I read an article about some researchers in academia who were working on the citrus problem, but the individuals retired. Anyway, I am very interested, and thank you for the blog!

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  21. I just harvested some really nice oranges on Oahu

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  22. From what I've heard/read Citrus got infected with canker and bugs and such so much so that there is essentially not much of a citriculture in Hawaii. That's why it looks so bad-gets infected. Ive read where Calif. doesn't want it to spread there because it would destroy they citrus industry on the mainland (there were medfly threats and other pests that seems to threaten it too, and don't forget urban sprawl and more recently fire). But yeah keep it local if you can, more diversity is better, maybe some backyard farmer will develop a pest and canker/mold resistant variety.....I wouldn't trust corporate ag with their GMO's to do that.

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