The very first tropical fruit I began growing here at the farm was dragon fruit aka pitaya. I wanted to focus on growing the red and purple varieties specifically for their health benefits. I was amazed at how healthy they were, their deep red pigments are a powerhouse of nutrients for your body. Additionally, they have their own natural prebiotics so they are excellent for your gut health which is important for your overall health. Dragon fruit is a low calorie no fat fruit so you can eat a good amount without the guilt of over eating. Plus they will keep you feeling full for a long time.
When I began reading about growing dragon fruit I became obsessed. I realized how easy they were to grow and care for and how productive they could be. They can live for 50 years and only slow down in production after 30 years. The cool thing about these plants is when propagated by mature cutting they can produce fruit with in 1 – 2 years. It only takes the plant 4 years to fully mature so you will get a lot more fruit at that point. Some varieties can produce up to 110 pounds of fruit per plant per fruiting year June – December. They will fruit in continuous cycles and one plant can have flower buds opened, closed and mature fruit all on it at the same time. They can be grown in a pot, but they get very large roots so do not overcrowd them in your pots or if you can cut the base. They prefer to grow in a soil of compost mixture blended with a well draining soil and a pH of 6 to 7. They prefer continuous feeding throughout their growing season. A schedule recommendation from the University of Florida is listed on our website underneath nutrient needs. They are climbing cactus and can climb 30 feet if you let them so it’s important to grow them on a structure where you will be able to easily harvest the fruit. They love sun but too much can burn them a bit and too much shade and you won’t get a lot of fruit. Aim for 6 – 8 hours minimum. They prefer to stay above 38° and need to be protected from frost. I have read that copper spray can be used to protect against sunburn as well as frost however we do not use these methods because we have bees so we limit any kind of spraying of anything unnecessary. From flower bud to open 15 days and from set fruit to harvest between 30 – 45 days based on the variety. Once harvested, they can last at room temperature for about 5 to 8 days before they will start to deteriorate. If you keep them in the fridge, they will last at least 3 -4 weeks.
We sourced our plants from California, where dragon fruit is very popular. The varieties that we have all have their own unique flavor profile and color. A detailed list of each one is found in our website.
English