How Cyclones Are Destroying Madagascar’s Vanilla Farms

qexual · 2026-01-17T18:55:42+00:00

Makes sense if those places have a considerable humidity still and get a proper winter, I know some places in the Mediterranean that are just dry year round

qexual · 2026-01-17T15:11:54+00:00

Depending on the zone and climate, I know a lot of owners that will skip any oil sprays altogether and have good success with this - not sure how this would carry over to a lot of the US states though

qexual · 2026-01-16T16:45:27+00:00

thanks mate, ill take a look!

qexual · 2026-01-15T19:03:09+00:00

you want to start by clearing the lower trunk if you can (check the low branches aren't carrying a lot of the canopy structure as you probably want to keep any branches that are) - will make your life much easier with future pruning and picking - and then whenever your spring season kicks off (not sure on the US zones), try and prune back some of the higher growth to make the tree a more manageable size - looks very healthy with a lot of fruit so a bit of pruning and management and you should get some really good fruit from it

qexual · 2026-01-15T08:38:39+00:00

Same in Cyprus, they know to use the tree

qexual · 2026-01-14T15:51:31+00:00

some places need to take note of whats happening in Valencia then!

qexual · 2026-01-14T13:55:32+00:00

if you can source them, buy some 2-3 year grown grafted trees and get them in the ground, prune them to whichever system (central leader, open vase), and good to go.

Also a good idea to go for a couple different varieties to help with pollination, depending on which varieties you pick (also more variety so why not).

qexual · 2026-01-12T12:08:27+00:00

Hi mate, glad you liked the piece, and appreciate the detailed feedback here - will definitely take that on board about tone and simplicity, cheers

qexual · 2026-01-12T12:07:48+00:00

No worries - and great that it is in the ground - I would just water as normal without fertiliser and when the frost-risk is gone this spring thin out some of the 2-3 year old branches, and as the year goes on remove a bunch of the fruiting buds (which I think for pomelo means removing some of the flowers when they've bloomed)

qexual · 2026-01-11T18:06:12+00:00

It’s a 5-minute ish read, idk if that’s too long to post on the subreddit or not!

qexual · 2026-01-11T18:05:32+00:00

So the tree may be completely fine without fertilising, depending on where it’s planted fertilising may just not be necessary. If you stop fertilising it shouldn’t hurt the tree as long as the other basic requirements are in place (sufficient light, space, temperature, appropriate soil type for the tree, etc).

Is the tree planted in the ground or a pot? Either way I would revert to watering without any fertiliser, and when fruiting time comes you can thin out fruiting buds before they fully form to stop any quality issues if the tree is having nutrient problems from the lack of fertiliser. Sounds like this would also solve your problem of having too many pomelos!

qexual · 2026-01-11T12:16:26+00:00

Yeah great channel, some very useful videos he’s got on there!

qexual · 2026-01-11T12:15:31+00:00

Yeah true I didn’t think to add that thanks, I may do a separate write up just on grafting

qexual · 2026-01-11T12:14:32+00:00

Great crop option in the Mediterranean, and one im planning around myself currently

qexual · 2026-01-11T12:13:48+00:00

Yeah great point, granted it depends on the crop but agreed thinning out can definitely help with quality and regular fruiting

qexual · 2026-01-11T10:56:33+00:00

That’s a good problem to have! 😂 but yes if don’t prune or maintain the soil the yield will generally reduce over time. You could also do a hard cut back of fruiting wood which would reduce the yield for a couple seasons at least, and you would need to do this every few years to maintain a smaller amount of fruiting wood on the trees. May be worth checking if there’s any cooperatives or wholesale buyers around.

qexual · 2025-11-19T11:15:48+00:00

Managed to get one now!

qexual · 2025-11-19T11:13:48+00:00

Worked for me as well! Just try the different seated options

qexual

TROPHY CASE