So far, one of the varieties I tried at Harry's place last night was just incredible. I believe it was a Black Gold X Tabouey ( sp?) Crispy, sweet, awesome.

We also cut up an "Orange Crisp" which was very good.

I don't have an experienced palate when it comes to jackfruit, but I imagine the Black Gold x Tabouey will be hard to beat.

I have planted in my yard:

1 Bangkok Lemon -( 1 fruit currently growing and at about 5 lbs)
1 Black Gold seedling - 2 years old and 12 ft. tall
1. Lara Farms Jack (Gold Nugget seedling Grafted) 2 ft tall
1. Chempedak ( just planted )

Hopefully the Bangkok Lemon will be similar to Harry's Black Gold x Tabouey ...

Did Harry mention where he got the orange crisp variety?

As Sleep mentioned, we were in a jakfruit cleaning mode last night. Up for tasting were two seedling fruits. One I call "Orange Crisp". I think it is a seedling of NS-1, but it isn't anything I can prove as the flesh and seeds in that flesh were given to me by a friend who took a cooking class and Brooks Bros. brought in some tropical fruits for them to sample and use in their cooking. The other was called Black Gold x Tabouey. This one is a cross out of the Fairchild Jafruit breeding program which was once in vogue. It is, as Sleep indicates, as good as any jakfruit I have ever had. I have tasted NS-1,Golden Nugget, Cochin, J-30, J-31, Cheena, Black Gold, Dang Rasimi, Rien Bhat, Mia/Mai 1, and a few more seedling varieties like Tabouey x J-30 and a seedling of Mia/Mai 3. I am still on the hunt to try Borneo Red, Ziman Pink, Mia/Mai 2, Bangkok Lemon, and Dang Suria. Probably a few more that I cannot recall at this time. Here are a couple of shots of the process and the seeds collected. If anyone wants them locally...for pick up only, they are free for the asking.

ah man...that looks great, Harry. I'd boil all them seeds and enjoy :)

Tim

Don't tempt me to fly from Bermuda for this

Hi Harry, what's your take on Golden Pillow?

-Tom

Never tried Golden Pillow...I don't believe. Add that to my want-to-taste list.

Harry

Wow Harry, looks delicious!

I wonder if there is a difference in the flavor of the seeds between cultivars? Do you remember how cochin tasted?

-Ethan

Ethan:

Can't help you on the possible difference in seed taste. Actually, I have never eaten the seeds. Not sure why I have never tried them.....I guess it is that they are just not appealing to me. And, while I have been told by many, many people in the know that the seeds can be roasted or boiled and then eaten, no one has ever used a hint of superlative when decribing the eating experience. The descritions have all left me with the feeling that you could eat them if you were starving......but not much more than that. I guess I get an "F" in the adventurous eating department.

Regarding Cochin.....it has been quite a while since I have had it. I tasted it first at Bill Whitman's back in the mid-90's. I believe he introduced it and was himself or with or through a nephew or someone, trying to plant out a commercial orchard of these to develop a jakfruit business. The reasons they were going with this culitvar were several. First, the fruits were of excellent flavor. Second, the fruits were small.....and therefore easier to pack and ship. These fruits got no larger than a good sized pineapple. Third, the fruits had an excellent seed to fruit ratio. This was enhanced by the fact that the rag, those underdeveloped portions of the interior of the fruit that are ordinarily too tough to really enjoy, in the Cochin were edible and really also quite good. I kind of lost track of the whole operation but I believe the business failed in its start up becuase for the all the great things about the fruit that existed, the trees were of extremely poor vigor. I had tried to plant out several of these and have friends that tried as well. I do not know of one that is doing well. Mine all died slow deaths. I do know of one that a friend has that was supposedly a grafted Cochin. Actually, he has two jakfruit trees in his yard. Both were obtained from Hopkins Nursery many moons ago. They both grow quite well. The grafted Cochin has never fruited. That is with about 15 years of being planted out. The tree has much better vigor than other Cochins I have seen. Obviously, I do question whether it is actually a grafted Cochin. The seedling Cochin has fruited quite heavily. The fruit is of really excellent flavor. Unfortunately, the flesh is so soft and mushy that it gags you to eat it. At least it does me. My Trinidadian neighbors will only eat this jakfruit. They absolutely love it. So....go figure. Anyway, I had the Cochin the last time in the late 90's at the Just Jakfruit Festival at Fairchild. It lived up to all the previous memories.

Harry

Thank you Harry for the input.

-E

How long approximately from seed to fruit? And are jackfruit true to seed?

Thanks.

Ray

Ray:

Jakfruit, I hear, can fruit in one year under perfect conditions, but it usually takes 3-7 years in my experience. It is my experience that they do come true from seed. You can get very nice quality fruits from seed, but, as I indicated in my previous post with the Cochin seedling, they definitely can vary from the parent in a variety of ways.

Harry

I was delighted to read that Black Gold was a crispy variety. I had my first harvest of this variety (maybe) last week it was NOT crispy. It was a slimy mess of cloying horror. I nearly gagged on it as part of it was being swallowed while still attached to the bolus that I was still trying to chew.

Diapponment is the second emotion right after revulsion.

Maybe my tree was mislabeled by the nursery but at this point I never want to try jackfruit again. It is a good specimen and amazing to show off and the seeds are not too bad but .... when you factor in the latex.... sayonara Black Gold. YUCK!!!!