problem is other than Mauritius (the only lychee flavor i dont like) they are hard to find. look for Kaimana, Sweetheart, hak ip.

I have a sweet cliff in a 5 gallon container for $25 if youre interested email me.

Thanks mango_kush. Does anyone have another variety they suggest for good flavor?

Thanks,
Adiel

Adiel:

Your question is soooo very subjective. One person's appreciation of "best flavor" will be very different than another person's. Since you are near me, during this season be sure to stop by and you can sample for yourself before you make that all important decision on the final lychee addition to your collection. However, BE WARNED....looking into my crystal ball I see at least 3 more lychee trees in your future. For the record, I am growing Brewster, Mauritius, Bengal, Early Large Red, Bosworth, Bosworth 3 (Kwai Mai Pink), Seymour, Garnet, Hak Ip, Ohia, Red Ohia, Pink Ohia, Peerless, Emperor, an Emperor Seedling, Farwell Farm, and Sweetheart.

Harry

Harry, good to talk to you again! Ok, let me rephrase it, what is your favorite Lychee variety? :)

Thanks,
Adiel

Something I forgot to mention, another important point would be picking a variety that gives lychees at a different time from the Brewster(not sure the exact month of this one). That way I have more days each year to enjoy them...

Adiel

My two favorites are Kaimana and Garnet. Brewster is later than either one.

Harry

Thanks Harry. Is 'Mauritius' and 'Sweet Heart' earlier than 'Brewster' and what do you think about those two?

Adiel

Harry, out of the ones you are growing, how would you rank them all in taste (if you feel like doing this...).

Thanks,
Bluepalm

If you want it, I have a Mauritius airlayer that is ready to be removed from the mother tree. Email me if you are intersted.

Adiel:

Mauritius and Sweetheart are both earlier than Brewster. Only Emperor is later than Brewster. Mauritius, for me is good, but not great. They tend to have more of a sub acid flavor than the lychees I prefer. I suppose that if you like tart fruit, you may enjoy Mauritius more than I do. Sweetheart is still somewhat of an unknown for me. I have planted it out on three separate occasions. The first two plantings have died. The final planting has survived the juvenile stages and I have two trees growing in the yard now. The trees have completely different growth habits. One had bloomed three times before but set very little fruit. The other has only bloomed once and has never held fruit to maturity. I don't know why. So, there has been so little fruit produced that I still do not think I am qualified to pass judgment on the flavor of the Sweetheart lychee. And, if it doesn't start producing more prolifically, I am not going to care. I did notice my more reliable flowering Sweetheart to have flower buds coming from the axils of the newly pushed vegetative growth.

BluePalm:

I really don't think I can line them up for you in a list as to flavor. There is some variability from year to year. Also, unless you are doing a side by side comparison it is really hard to say one is better than the others. Some do have what I describe as a more medicinal lychee flavor (like Hak Ip) and some are more mild without that medicinal flavor (like Kaimana, Garnet and Emperor). Emperor, while large, can be insipid. I will say that I have never tasted a bad lychee that was ripened on the tree.

Harry

Lychees dont really vary in flavor as much as mangos or other fruit, Mauritius and to a lesser extent Hak Ip definitely have an aftertaste I would describe as perfumey. I think this comes from the seed, if you bite it you can taste it, its almost like a bitter flavor.

Kaimana is a dry clean lychee, it doesnt drip when you peel it, which is prized in China but leaky fruit here I guess isnt as frowned upon. Brewster I would say is the opposite, more gelatinous and drippy. both have excellent flavor. I prefer Brewster.

Sweet Cliff is my favorite lychee, but Ive only had container grown ones, Im not sure if it will fruit in ground here because of our calcerous limestone soil. they were smaller but the flesh ratio was excellent and flavor was very berry like

of course when i sampled these it wasnt around the time i had other varieties available so direct flavor comparisons are difficult.

I think soil plays a large part in lychee flavor and production, i think this is the case with varities like Emperor

Thanks everyone! I don't like tart fruit. I prefer the sweet taste like the Brewster. So I guess my choice comes down to Kaimana and Garnet...

Adiel

im somewhat a minoirty opinion, espically on this forum but for me mauritius wins hand down in many categories, especially taste

The mauritius is delicious. I like it because it has a good amount of tart. My wife, who is more of a sugar fan, prefers the sweetheart. The drawback with the mauritius for me is the big seed.

Jeff

I heard some people not doing good with the sweetheart. Has anyone had fruiting from a sweetheart lychee?

Thanks,
Adiel

My sweetheart has bloomed 2 years in a row with no fruit set. Looks to be blooming again but I don't have my hopes up.

Phase has had a descent harvest from his sweetheart grown in San Diego. We hand pollinated his tree, there were also a lot of bees and he harvested I think about 50 fruits that were absolutely huge, I posted some pics of his fruit next to a golf ball and they were the same size. Do a search for Sweetheart.

How about in South Florida? Anyone getting fruit from the sweetheart lychee?

Thanks,
Adiel

Both my Sweethearts are now showing some amount of bloom. Let's see if this year will be the break out year for Sweetheart. I have my reservations, but time'll tell.

Harry

Mine (in containers) consistently flower and set a handful of fruit each year.

Jeff

Jeff, where did you purchase your tree from?

Adiel

I buy them wholesale from various stock dealers here in FL. For retail, ECHO in Fort Myers used to have good prices on them years ago...

Jeff