Cocoa in SoCal?

[rizla023]

Just received some yellow cocoa seeds. Has anyone been successful with these? 
I’m in Santa Ana. 

[Silas_Sancona]

Just now, rizla023 said:

Just received some yellow cocoa seeds. Has anyone been successful with these? 
I’m in Santa Ana. 

🤞 They are fresh since Cocoa seeds tend to loose their viability fairly quickly, or is what i have been told repeatedly..   I've heard there are " hardier " varieties ..but i use " hardier " very loosely.. 

Can't recall what variety they were but tried a couple in FL and ..even there.. they croaked.  ...Likely a rookie mistake i'd made ( First time attempting them )

You might look over the Tropical Fruit Forum just to see if there have been discussions regarding Cocoa from any of the S. Cal members. https://tropicalfruitforum.com/

[rizla023]

1 hour ago, Silas_Sancona said:

🤞 They are fresh since Cocoa seeds tend to loose their viability fairly quickly, or is what i have been told repeatedly..   I've heard there are " hardier " varieties ..but i use " hardier " very loosely.. 

Can't recall what variety they were but tried a couple in FL and ..even there.. they croaked.  ...Likely a rookie mistake i'd made ( First time attempting them )

You might look over the Tropical Fruit Forum just to see if there have been discussions regarding Cocoa from any of the S. Cal members. https://tropicalfruitforum.com/

they are already germinated and look in good condition. Planted in cactus soil on a heating pad. I covered one with plastic to see how they do with the humidity. I know I have almost 0 chance of them thriving and producing, but thought it would be fun.

thank you for the forum link! 

[Silas_Sancona]

3 minutes ago, rizla023 said:

they are already germinated and look in good condition. Planted in cactus soil on a heating pad. I covered one with plastic to see how they do with the humidity. I know I have almost 0 chance of them thriving and producing, but thought it would be fun.

thank you for the forum link! 

    Never know until you try.. If you make the best effort possible, never know, you might just be surprised. No one ever imagined a fruiting Jack Fruit would be found growing ..in North County San Diego, or that Coffee could be grown out there.  Maybe not on a massive scale but,  ..a large enough presence to be noticed by many.

[rizla023]

6 minutes ago, Silas_Sancona said:

    Never know until you try.. If you make the best effort possible, never know, you might just be surprised. No one ever imagined a fruiting Jack Fruit would be found growing ..in North County San Diego, or that Coffee could be grown out there.  Maybe not on a massive scale but,  ..a large enough presence to be noticed by many.

That’s a great point. I actually have a mature coffee plant that gives me berries each year so maybe it will work. Thanks 🙏 

[tropicbreeze]

Cocoa needs high humidity. The leaves are thin and don't cope well with dry air. When well watered things like Mangosteen manage a lot better with periods of hot dry air (in shade). If you can grow Mangosteen there then there might be a possibility of also growing Cocoa. Otherwise, not much chance unless you artificially provide the right environment.

[mnorell]

I don't think it's the dry air that will be the problem as much as the long period of chill in the winter and spring. I haven't tried them in SoCal but the only place I've ever seen them fruiting out of doors in the USA is at Fairchild. The leaves are rather papery, and Cacao does like some shade and depending on how close you are to the coast...you may need to make sure you're growing under canopy...and in any event with a good south-facing (southwest the closer you get to the coast) exposure to make a perfect "suntrap" microclimate. I say go ahead and try them because, as Nathan said above, you never know until you try. (And the old rule is to try three times before giving up!) But I would advise you treat them the same way you might treat a coconut, in the warmest spot you have.

One thing I have learned about humidity and foliage is that in a normally humid climate, such as one finds in the cool coastal "fogbelt" in SoCal, the Santa Anas will often fry foliage, while the further inland you go, since the leaves are forming under much drier conditions, they are much less affected by Santa Anas or other low-humidity stretches. Out here in the low desert, I've been able to grow pretty much anything as long as I can get a new flush or crown of foliage that has developed under desert conditions. After that adjustment to the local climate, the lamina have a thick cuticle and are prepared for just about any level of dryness, as long as the roots have plentiful moisture available for transpiration.

[rizla023]

Update:

Just an update after even one day, showing amazing results. They love humidity. 
 

First picture is with a plastic cover, the second without. the first you can already see cracking and they are double the height. 
 

Edited February 17, 2024 by rizla023