Dragon Fruit

mike anders · #1 October 20th, 2009, 06:09 PM

Hi All

Does anybody know anything about the Thai dragon fruit & how to grow it please? I have already got about 100 seedlings but the ones I have potted on do not seem to grow very fast. They look healthy though. Also, what is it's proper name?

Mike

**Junglekeeper** · #2 October 20th, 2009, 10:53 PM

The large, red dragon fruit would be Hylocereus undatus. There are yellow ones that look like small pineapples that are sometimes called dragon fruit; they're Selenicereus megalanthus.

**wolf** · #3 October 22nd, 2009, 05:31 PM

Dragon fruit is a kind of cactus. You need to grow on bare ground. Like all cacti, it should never be over watered. That's all I know.

By the way, most dragon fruits sold on market really really REALLY suck because they were picked unripen. It is a good thing to have. It has good medicinal properties and health benefits.

**Blake09** · #4 October 22nd, 2009, 06:31 PM

Heres some types of dragon fruit:

http://www.tropicalfruitnursery.com/dragon/index.htm

I have a plant myself but this is onley its 4th month its ben in pot.

blathanna · #5 October 27th, 2009, 04:41 AM

Pitaya fruit is easy to grow espcially in thailand if thats where your grown it, once u get a parent plant growing (or a cutting from a friend to start u off) you break off the extending stems and plant straight in a pot or the ground, u will need a stalk or a trellis as they tend to be strangly.
growing from cutting is much faster then from seed
what ever you do not look after them!!they will look after themselves! just basic water is all they require

mike anders · #6 November 1st, 2009, 06:38 PM

Hi
Many thanks for the info. I am following your advice & now they seem to get a bit bigger.

Mike

**The Hollyberry Lady** · #7 November 1st, 2009, 10:00 PM

I wonder how well they would grow in zone five, and if they propagate well from seed...

: )

**Katalina25** · #8 November 2nd, 2009, 01:50 AM

Quote:

It is a good thing to have. It has good medicinal properties and health benefits.

Thanks Wolf !!

Thanks Blake for the very imformative link. We have these fruits in our supermarket. I looked at them (red ones) for weeks then passed them by but last week I decided to buy one.

Then forgot about it, by that time it had rotted lolol

I cut it open..wow seeds by the several dozen which a few I dried out to experiment.

**The Hollyberry Lady** · #9 November 2nd, 2009, 09:56 AM

I have seeds too, and wonder if anyone knows if they in fact do grow true from seed, or if cuttings would be preferable?

: )

**Blake09** · #10 November 2nd, 2009, 05:30 PM

HBL,
Cuttings are the best way to go, seeds uasually arnt true to type unless hand polinated.

**The Hollyberry Lady** · #11 November 2nd, 2009, 05:36 PM

I thought as much ~ thanks for the confirmation, Blake. I can get cuttings from a friend.

: )

**Millet** · #12 November 7th, 2009, 08:27 PM

To demonstrate how easy Dragon Fruit are to grow, I have several varieties all growing in 5 gallon containers in the greenhouse. However, one of the yellow Dragon Fruit plants never got transplanted, therefore it has been stuck in the initial one gallon container and just setting on top of a 55-gallon barrel in the greenhouse all this time. Just this afternoon while working in that area I noticed that the plant has put out a fruit that is now about 1-1/2 inches long and an inch wide. Any one, even if you have a black thumb, can grow this plant. - Millet (1,166-)

**Katalina25** · #13 November 8th, 2009, 01:51 AM

- Millet (1,166-) ??

Well done Millet!

**The Hollyberry Lady** · #14 November 8th, 2009, 03:14 PM

Would love to see a picture of how these look grown in containers - if you get a chance, Millet...

: )