The Sugar Apple aka Annona squamosa
Growing Sugar Apples is a rewarding process, but growing sugar apple from seed is an even more rewarding feeling! Have you tried to grow your own sugar apple from seed but are having trouble? Read below to find out how you can successfully sprout your sugar apple seeds and get growing your own very own fruit!
Step 1: Select Your Healthiest Sugar Apple Fruit
Growing your sugar apple all starts with first selecting the right seeds. The way to guarantee a high yield when germinating sugar apple seeds is to make sure you are getting them from a reliable parent-fruit. Select only the best sugar apples you have – the best ones often can be characterized by their bright green skin, harmonious sweet scent, and sweet creamy taste. If you are in an area where the sugar apple fruit is not available, I recommend ordering them off of these trusted sugar apple seed distributors
Once the fruit is selected (or ordered) enjoy the delicious fruit as you remove all seeds from the fruit to prepare them for the germination process.
You can order sugar apple seeds grown from Florida from here
Step 2: Create The Best Environment Growing Environment For The Sugar Apple Seeds
Sugar apple seeds are known to be tough germinaters! Creating the best environment for them to sprout is essential – here is how
- Create a ‘mini’ greenhouse. These miniature greenhouses are perfect to grow your sugar apple seeds. Here are very affordable mini-greenhouse starting kits that can be used to start the growth.
- Use coconut coir to start the growth – NO GARDENING SOIL OR ANY HEAVY SOILS/ DIRT… The reason? Coconut coir is a very soft – natural and nutritious base that allows the roots of your seedlings to grow with ease – many gardeners use heavy soils that prevent efficient seed growth.
- Creating a mini-greenhouse will allow humidity build-up giving the seeds the correct combination to start growing.
Step 3: Planting The Seeds The Annona Way
Seeds should be planted in an upright position where the sugar apple seed hole is facing up towards the sky. Make a small hole just fingernail depth (about 1/2 an inch) and place 1-3 seeds in each of your seedling pouches. Cover up the sugar apple seeds slightly but DO NOT add pressure to the tops of the seeds, lightly cover it with your selected soil.
Step 4: Watering And Maintenance.
Watering your newly planted seeds is very important. Many times gardeners will experience difficulty sprouting their sugar apple seeds due to many reasons. When watering your sugar apple seeds make sure to…
- Keep the soil moist for the first month of their lives as well as in a 50/50 shade + sunshine area.
- Depending on how you covered your greenhouse you want to allow a few hours every day for the seedlings to receive wind – this will help strengthen the roots and base of your new sugar apple saplings
- Mulching your new saplings ensure the best coverage for maintaining soil moisture levels without going dry.
Problems while growing sugar apple seeds
Many things can arise to sugar apple saplings while growing them – here are some to watch out for
- Adding fertilizers to the soil – Adding fertilizers to sugar apple seeds can do more harm than good – it is better to let the seedling absorb natural nutrients through the air, water and soil rather than adding fertilizer. Too much fertilizer can kill young seedlings and burn their leaves before getting a chance to grow.
- Fungi- Adding too much water and not enough sunlight can cause fungus problems in your greenhouse that starts in the soil and spreads to the seedling – killing the seedling. Avoid this by placing your seedlings in a well sunlight area where it will receive the proper heat to stay at a correct moisture level.
- Soil staying to dry – At the same time, sugar apple seeds need to be moist enable to sprout for at least 2-3 weeks. If the soil is too dry the seeds will not absorb enough water to be able to sprout.
Growing Sugar Apples or Annona squamosa is a very fun and rewarding process to embark in. Not only are these wonderfull fruit - but they are a beautiful tree to have in your yard and enjoy!
If growing sugar apple from seed is just too long of a process and you want a faster solution – check out here on ordering sugar apple trees already grown for your garden!
