Growing dragon fruit plants and care
Overview
Although Dragon Fruit is a member of the cactus family, all of the Hylocereus species grow like vines, climb, crawl and spread up to 9 meters. At best, some can grow up to about 1.5 to 2.5 meters in their first year. Most grow by rooting and climbing into the soil. Their dense smooth stalks are frequently branched, the stems have deeply angled spines that are short.
The cactus family has the largest flowers and blooms at night. A flower bud can grow up to 11 inches (28 cm) long before flowering and an open flower can grow up to 12 inches (30 cm) in diameter. A flower lasts less than 24 hours. In fact, nocturnal pollen, like bats and insects, dies at the earliest before dawn, depending on the pollen. Only one dragon fruit is obtained from a pollinated flower. Large dragon fruits can weigh about 2 pounds (900 grams), but most weigh less than one pound (450 grams).
The perennial cactus dragon fruit or pitahaya is one of the many fruits native to Mexico, Central America and South America, and grown from cacti. Spring is a good time to plant dragon fruit cactus. This fruit cactus can take up to seven years to bear fruit from seed.
But if you plant in a cutting method, you can get the fruit in one to three years. You need to have enough space in your garden to grow dragon fruit cactus. It is a heavy cactus, spreading with long stalks. It usually needs to be supported by a strong trellis.
How to grow dragon fruit cactus plant?
Propagation by Seed
or
Propagation by Organ
Propagation by seed
If you grow a plant from a seed of dragon fruit, it may take a few years (like five to seven years) before it starts to bear fruit.
Prepare the seedbed
Dragon fruit cactus plant needs full sun to grow. So choose a sunny area of your garden where you get at least six hours of sunlight a day. For soils, choose soils that are well-drained and rich in organic matter. As a tropical plant, dragon fruit prefers more water than other cactus and retains some good moisture.
Prepare the seeds
Cut a ripe dragon fruit in half and take out the black seeds. Wash the fruit flesh and pulp from the seeds and cover the seeds with a damp paper towel or damp tissue for at least twelve hours.
Plant the seeds
Sprinkle dragon fruit seeds on the surface of the soil and cover it with a thin layer of soil. The seeds should be covered with a little soil, but they do not need to be planted deep. Water the soil seedbed consistently, or keep it evenly moist. If your soil dries out, cover the soil bed with plastic wrap until the seeds germinate.
Transplant the seedlings thinly
As your dragon fruit seedlings continue to grow around, replace them thinner for each new tree to grow. If the plants continue to grow indoors, replace them in larger containers. For the optimal health of a ripe dragon fruit, a pot at least twenty inches wide is required at the end.
Support
Once your dragon fruit tree is twelve inches tall, it will need a support system to keep it growing. Set up a trellis or wooden loft so that your plant can be of great help.
Propagation by Organ
Dragon fruit trees can grow from the cuttings of a mature tree. By dragon fruit cutting or organ of a tree grows about one hundred percent and bears fast fruit. After 20 to 30 days the roots will come out from the base of the cutting.
Prepare the seedbed
Organ collection from mature plants
Carefully cut a twelve-inch branch from an established dragon fruit tree in the garden using scissors. Be careful not to take too much of an established organ. If it is cut too much, its growth will stop.
Organ Cut and Cure
Cut the tree organ cutting into three to five pieces. Each piece can create a new dragon fruit plant. Make sure you plant them by tracking the top for each cut. The pieces need to be planted straight to allow them to grow properly. The cuttings should be kept in a warm, dry place. Once the cuttings are white they are ready, it can take from two days to a week.
Plant the cuttings
Leave one inch or two under each cutting soil, press the surrounding soil and plant straight. Make sure you plant the cutting in the direction that the main branch was growing. The end near the base of the dragon fruit tree should be planted in the ground and close to the tip of the main branch.
Watering
Water the soil bed regularly and keep it evenly moist. Within three or four weeks each of your cuttings will continue to gain new growth and begin to see a root system.
Transplant
If you grow your cuttings indoors, replace them in a larger container with a suitable climate as they grow. If you grow your cuttings in the garden, replace them with a garden bed with a suitable climate as they grow.
Support
When the dragon fruit tree is twelve inches tall, then it will need a support system to keep growing. Above all, the dragon fruit climbs into the cactus so set up a trellis or wooden platform for the tree to grow.
How to grow and care Dragon Fruit Cactus indoors?
Dragon Fruit Cactus produces an attractive and delicious, colorful fruit. If your home has plenty of sunlight, such as a sunroom or a large window where the tree receives six to eight hours of sunlight, you can grow a dragon fruit plant indoors. Out of the branches and stuck to the object, the tree needs help to grow straight. So make sure it is strong and strong enough to support the branches with fruit, which can be heavy.
Reference:
https://animals.sandiegozoo.org/