If you obtain seeds from the flesh of a sugar apple, you’ll have to wait one week after removing the seeds from the flesh before planting them. They don’t germinate very well if you put them in the ground right away. Cut open your sugar apple fruit and pull out the big, black seeds. Put them in a seed envelope and wait one week prior to planting. If you purchased sugar apple seeds from a garden center, you don’t need to wait before planting.
Alternately, you can scarify the seeds. Lightly sand the seeds. Then, soak them in warm water for twenty-four hours. In this way, you can speed up the seed preparation process and improve germination time. [1] X Research source
Sugar apple trees do well in most soil types as long as there is good drainage. They will not tolerate any water-logging, so avoid getting the potting soil sopping wet at this stage. It should be moist but not soaking. [3] X Research source
Alternately, you could purchase a grafted sugar apple tree from a nursery. Once the seedlings are mature, you can transplant them outside.
You can use a fan to ensure movement of air over the seedlings, which will help prevent disease. Symptoms of water-logging or “flood stress” include yellow leaves, stunted growth, wilting and browning, as well as fallen leaves. [6] X Trustworthy Source EDIS Electronic database of the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences’s peer-reviewed articles Go to source
If you are using grow lights, you’ll need to raise them as the seedlings grow.
It will tolerate USDA zones 11-12. [7] X Research source The lowest temperature range it will tolerate is 40-50 Fahrenheit (4-10 Celsius). If the temperature drops below 0 Celsius (32 Fahrenheit), the plant will die. [8] X Research source
The location should be sunny at least eighty percent of the time. [11] X Research source Make sure it gets at least six hours of sunlight per day, although it will do better with eight hours or more. [12] X Research source
If you are planting more than one, put them five meters apart from one another. You could also plant the sugar apple tree in a large pot. [14] X Research source
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If you are getting a lot of rain, you should stop watering. Ideally, they will get an annual rainfall of between 750 and 1,200 mm.
If you have a young tree, you should fertilize it every six to eight weeks during the growing season. [21] X Trustworthy Source EDIS Electronic database of the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences’s peer-reviewed articles Go to source After the third year of growth, you should reduce the number of applications of fertilizer. In the first year of growth, you should apply fertilizer five to six times. In the second and third years of growth, you should apply fertilizer three to six times.
Use your shears to cut any dead branches. [23] X Research source Remove branches that are growing towards the ground. After ten years, you can do renewal pruning to give new life to your sugar apple tree.
