Cherimoya

a.k.a. Custard Apple, Chirimoya, Chirimolla

Annona cherimola

Synonym:Annona tripetala
Synonym:Annona pubescens

Custard Apple

Native to the Andean valleys of Peru, Ecuador, and Colombia.

You are bidding on one small seedling with vigorous root systems 4-8 inches tall with * leaves born and growing in a peat plug for ease of transplant.

   Are you looking for a exotic fruit that will rock your world? The cherimoya is the finest fruit of all the Annona species and considered one of the most exquisite fruits in the world.

The cherimoya is often considered one of the best-tasting fruits in the world, its commercial production hampered by its short shelf-life, often tender skin and difficulty harvesting the fruit.

The cherimoya's rich and creamy pulp, with a hint of a sweet fruity flavor, makes an excellent dessert fruit and is becoming increasingly popular in temperate climates.

photo of similar item

 The Cherimoya is a special kind of fruit called a syncretism, where several pistils are fused together and united into a single mass along a central receptacle. The primitive fruit form has spirally arranged carpels, resembling a raspberry, with each segment of flesh surrounding a single hard black seed. Cherimoya Fruit size is generally proportional to the number of seeds within.

            The sub acid flesh is creamy white, soft, juicy, sweet and very fragrant, with a custard-like consistency. The flavor is rich and aromatic, a blend of sweetness and mild acidity resembling a cross between banana, passion fruit, papaya and pineapple. “Melting” is the best way to describe the flesh of cherimoya as it literally does melt in the mouth.

The tree grows well in the coastal and foothill areas of southern California, doing best at a slight elevation, 3 to 15 miles from ocean. It is worth attempting in sunny, south-facing, nearly frost-free locations from San Francisco Bay Area to Lompoc, and may survive to fruit in a very few protected Central Valley foothill locations from Chico to Arvin. Resentful of the excessive dry heat of the interior, it is not for the desert.

         Cherimoya's like cool summers and cool nights. Very hot or cold weather, and cold or hot winds can be damaging. Water frequently when the plant is putting out new growth, infrequently when the plant is dormant. Fertilize every three months for best growth.

         The cherimoya is subtropical and when full-grown can survive to 25F. Young trees are susceptible to frost.

Annona cherimola

            Trees do not like intense heat or desert conditions. 50-100 hours of winter temperatures between 32-55F is usually necessary for fruit production. Cherimoya's prefer a summer temperature of 65-80F, and a winter temperature of 41-65F. In cool climates, branches will defoliate for a few months in winter.

            The cherimoya is subtropical or mild-temperate and will tolerate light frosts. Young growing tips are killed at 29° F and and mature trees are killed or severely injured at 25° F.

          If cherimoyas do not receive enough chilling, the trees will go dormant slowly and then experience delayed foliation. The amount of chilling needed is estimated to be between 50 and 100 hours.

        Cherimoya Trees are fast-growing, producing fruit from seed in 3-4 years. Flowers are formed in small groups at nodes along the branches. A single flower first opens as female, which lasts for 36 hours, followed by a male stage, lasting for another 36 hours. Flowers are almost never pollinated by their own pollen, and without proper pollinators which do not exist outside its native range, cherimoya's must be hand pollinated. Pollen is generally collected from a few male flowers and stored in a small bag while it is used to pollinate female flowers. Pollen cannot be stored for more than a few hours before it loses viability.

       Flowers bloom from late winter to early summer, followed by fruit which ripen from October to May. Fruits are large, from 4-8" long, and sometimes weighing over 5 pounds. Harvest fruits when skin turns slightly yellow or pale green, or when skin gives a little to touch.

Height:15-20 ft. (4.7-6 m)

Spacing: 12-15 ft. (3.6-4.7 m)
15-20 ft. (4.7-6 m)

Hardiness: USDA Zone 9b: to -3.8 °C (25 °F)

Sun Exposure: Full Sun

Bloom Color: Pale Yellow, Pale Green

Bloom Time: Late Spring/Early Summer

Foliage: Deciduous, Velvet/Fuzzy-Textured

Soil pH requirements: 5.6 to 7.5 (neutral)

Danger:Seed is poisonous if ingested

Other details: Average Water Needs; Water regularly; do not overwater

 

    

   Shipping    

ATTENTION USA BIDDERS!

     All live plants are shipped bare-root wrapped in moist sphagnum moss to ensure the plant’s healthy transit to you. All live plants are Inspected By USDA Plant Inspectors before they are shipped to insure you get healthy pest free plants and seeds.

We ship via USPS Mondays-Wednesday with Delivery confirmation.

  All plant materials are required by LAW to inspected and certified by USDA prior to export Hawaii to the US Mainland.

 After Inspection, USDA stamps released for export Hawaii to the US Mainland. All items are delivered to USDA Inspection Station at Honolulu International airport.

USDA Certification charge is included in Shipping and Handling @ $5 fee per item/species.

There is a packing & custom boxing fee.

Last and usually least is USPS postage (shipping).

 

ATTENTION INTERNATIONAL BIDDERS!

  We can ship certified live plants to the US only. Only Domestic Shipping and Handling includes USDA Certification.

We ship Seeds Internationally.

  All International shipments are at Buyer's Risk. Please spend no more more than you can lose!

Proper Permits and Documents are the BUYER's responsibility. Please request any documents prior to shipping.

For foreign customers, please check your laws concerning permitting and customs, additional shipping and handling costs may apply.

 The additional charge for any Phytosanitary Certificate is not included in this offer.

INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING ON LIVE PLANTS is available only under these conditions!

All international orders are shipped at the BUYER's RISK  (shipped with or without documents) and no refunds or replacements are offered for Dead On Arrival, loss, confiscation, Customs Seizure, unanticipated charges, etc.

 

   Payment

            We accept online payments only through PayPal, Cash payments are only acceptable for in-person payments and cash-on-delivery (COD). Cash payment can not be sent through the mail.

      Please only one Paypal payment. SO THE COMBINED SHIPPING RULE WILL CAN BE USED. Multiple paypal payments are NOT eligible for discounts.

        We will ship once a week - ON or BEFORE WEDNESDAYS, because of the special stamps needed to ship plants and cuttings to you.  This can only be done at the Dept. of Agriculture.  If payments are not met before that MONDAY, your items will be shipped the following week and lose the combined discount opportunity.

         Non-paying bidders may receive negative feedback and will be reported as an unpaid item to eBay.

 

COMBINED SHIPPING POLICY

INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING is not included in this offer.   INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING ON LIVE PLANTS on a case by case basis.

We will combine shipping for auctions won on the same week paid with same PayPal payment.

   This policy is good for auction items bought and paid for in the week ending MONDAY.

We ship on Tuesdays.

Payment must be received within 4 days of the auction ending. 

Combined Discounts Won Auctions

     For 2-3 winning auctions, the combined discount is 10% of the total Shipping and Handling charges.

For 4-7 winning auctions, the combined discount is 20% of the total Shipping and Handling charges.

For 7+ winning auctions, the combined discount is 30% of the total Shipping and Handling charges.

 

         As each order is packed and prepared separately you will pay the quoted S/H charges individually per item. If you buy the same species in that item it does calculate out the discount (i.e.: additional item $7.61). My stores' combined shipping is built in for same items rather than a varied selection. S/H includes postage, USDA certification and inspection, proper packing and delivery to Airport for prompt delivery. I can't really change any of these. If you want one of this and one of that, it is hard to discount much as each different species requires it's own prep, packing, then at USDA each has to be unwrapped and inspected then repacked. USDA requires me to clean and prepare every last piece before we drive them to the Inspection Station on the other side of the island. It takes my wife and I, a day to pack items and get ready to ship. The whole next day we drive around the island and get inspected (2-3 hours), then drive to the Airport Post Office to drop off. It takes the same work with the same type item if you can understand.

 

LIVE PLANTS ARE PERISHABLE.

For this reason uninsurable.

        When you order a plant we assume you are prepared to care for it. Please have potting media and a container prepared for your plant before it arrives. Shipping can be stressful on a plant, and any mistakes that you make upon arrival can stress the plant further, which is not good. Proper care is critical upon arrival. It is your responsibility to know how to care for the plant.

Not every plant that I order through the mail survives, and I am aware of that and accept the risk when I order. This is the risk that you as the buyer accept, because there is no way to know what kind of conditions it will endure in the trip to your door. My responsibility ends when a live plant is delivered to your door. Live arrival is guaranteed, eternal survival is up to you.

Please Do NOT email me a week after potting your plant, and make a claim it arrived damaged. From delivery confirmation, you have only 48 hours from delivery confirmation to make any claim.

 

All claims need to be supported with Photos of the damaged plant(s) as packed/unpacked, the box if damaged, the packing materials and any documents. I am very reasonable and understanding, anything can happen to small plants in transit.

The expense to send it to you is most of your payment. To send any replacement(s), I try to piggy back with your next order.

Replacement is not an option for CUSTOMS SEIZURE.

ALL OF MY ITEMS ARE SHIPPED USDA CERTIFIED WITHIN THE U.S.- USDA and USPS fees are included in the actual cost of shipping and Handling.

Please do not leave a 1 or 2 in my detailed seller ratings for postage fees or any reason really because I will block you from any further purchases. I ship items the best and least expensive option. These are coming from Hawaii. The only thing inexpensive here in Hawaii are my items!! I do ship all my items promptly via best method--if you feel like the combined shipping fee is wrong, please wait to be invoiced and check back with me-I value your business and will work diligently to keep you satisfied. I am very generous and reasonable with reasonable people, just ask.

 

my dog Taz will fetch your email to me

If you are dissatisfied with the item, please contact me   

before leaving a negative or neutral comment.

I want you to be satisfied.

Mahalo iâ `oe no ke kipa `ana mai. E kipa mai hou!

Rare Palm Seeds

Fresh Highest Quality

         Seller warrants seed to be of the variety and quantity advertised. Safe delivery is guaranteed and seeds lost or damaged during shipment will be replaced at seller's expense. Claims must be made within 7 days of shipment. All other replacements, refunds, returns and exchanges will be made at the sole discretion of the seller.

  Seed is a live product which depends on many important related grower skills such as proper planting time, seed depth, type of soil, irrigation, proper use of fertilizers, weed controls, fungicides, insecticides, disease free soil, and reasonable weather conditions during the growing period. Germination is affected by such factors as temperature, moisture content, light intensity and contamination of planting media. These factors are totally out of the seller's control and are the buyer's responsibility and risk. Consequentially, the seller cannot unconditionally guarantee seed to perform properly regardless of conditions or the buyer's methods or mistakes.