1st Prune + Air Layer on 25 Gal Sabara - Plinia Jaboticaba Brazilian Grape Tree - Was Not Successful 

They usually respond well to pruning and especially if you open up the canopy to let more light hit the branches. They tend to start flowering afterwards.

I actually have a Myrtus communis bonsai, beautiful tree.

Great, do you have photos of this tree?

@@Myrtuscommunis yes I do,

Thanks William, I will be doing one within a couple weeks as an update on the grafts I did. I might include a bit of a tour then.

It was not successful. Ants and worms and grubs got into the air layer. I set up another air layer further up the branch as an experiment but it will likely fail too. If it doesn't work I might just try to cut it off and graft it onto another rootstock since this tree is a fruiting tree now.

Yes, you are right, I have rooted them from cuttings, but I have not been successful with air layering. I might try again.

I have several varieties of jaboticaba seedlings available. I can certainly ship them over after getting USDA inspections. I don't personally know anyone on Maui that sells them, but I did see someone on craigslist that had the standard Sabara variety available. Can see if they are still on there.

We have them on Big Island.

Yes it is possible to cause harm when pruning. Especially if you cut too close and end up cutting into the healing column or the collar of the branch. Thanks for the comment!

I understand, This is an experiment, since the branch is growing too close to the other branch and will reduce fruit development on those branches where they touch. So instead of pruning it off, I figured I would try to air layer it.

I probably have a couple more months before I will know if the air layer will be successful. I don't have much hope at the moment. Some of the cuttings I have rooted successfully. I can't say for sure if they were from the ones I did in the video since I placed them in the same rooting trays where I have several attempts mixed together. I plan on making a follow-up video on the subject. Thanks for your comment!

It is normal for the leaf tips to turn brown if they didn't have access to enough water and it started to dry out. Sometimes chemicals or salts in your water can cause it too. Rainwater is best or RO filtered water is also very good. Removing the leaves won't help anything. If you don't like the look of it you can use scissors and cut the brown tips off of the leaves. But keeping the leaves attached to the tree is ideal.

@@GrowTropicalFruits i usually water everyday to every other day but I’m worried about the soil being too wet, maybe the leaf tips are because I’m in Arizona and I’m growing it outside. Its a beautiful tree though. Should I look at the peeling of the bark over the leaf tips to determine overall health, the bark is peeling like crazy on this bonsai.

@@davidarden6942 yeah it is probably due to lack of humidity or the tap water. As long as it gets new healthy growth then it's happy. The old leaves won't improve if you change anything. So don't worry about the old leaves and just monitor how the new leaves are doing. The peeling bark is a great sign. That is an indication of a healthy jaboticaba tree.

@@GrowTropicalFruits thank you for your advice. I will let the leaves remain! These are awesome trees.

Yes, seeds mostly.

Right now I have been using Pro-Mix HP+ or SunGro Sunshine Mix #4. Mostly because I can only ship plants that don't use native soil. Although it is not a long term solution and can cause the plants to suffocate its roots if too wet, or can be hard to get wet again if it dries out. So I believe better results could be made with using your own soil blend. I have yet to gain all of the materials to build my own soil mix. From what I hear a mix with native soil + course fibers like ground peanut shells or something similarly loose + fermented woodchips + chicken manure should be a good starting point. I have also heard using native soil(mine is red clay) + kelp meal + crab meal + biochar + azomite + basalt rock dust + black volcanic cinder makes a good mixture. Hope that helps you get some ideas!

It was not. It had worms, ants and grubs inside the peat and they were eating away at the branch. So I removed the peat and set up another airlayer further up the branch to try to salvage it.

@@GrowTropicalFruits what are you using instead of peat?

I just posted an update video.

Unfortunately air layering jaboticaba is very difficult and takes a very long time because of the very hard wood doesn't like to root. I haven't been successful in air layering them yet, but rooting smaller cuttings is easier and faster. Also grafting fruiting scions onto Sabara rootstocks is another great way to clone them. I do sell seeds and sometimes I sell seedlings and grafted trees.

@@GrowTropicalFruits I was looking for a grafted Escarlate variety. I heard the fruit is pretty good.

I have successfully rooted several cuttings of jaboticaba. In my latest video "microscope grafting jaboticaba" you can see at the end I show a rooted cutting. The success rate for rooting cuttings is low, but it is definitely possible.