Source tree from Top Tropicals, Feb 2017
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DIED WINTER 2018/2019: This was my big heartbreak loss of 2018/19. By the end of summer of 2018 it is hard to overstate how pretty this tree was. 8+ ft tall, *gorgeous* foliage, full and beautiful. But there is so little known about Ross Sapote (it is still classified as Pouteria sp. after all) and the cold tolerance is a big unknown. But it turns out that like Abiu this Pouteria is on the tropical side of subtropical. And while the Fairchild II Canistel and Pace Mamey Sapote right next to it were just fine this winter, the Ross was dead to the ground. I think the roots were technically alive, but the Ross above the graft was completely dead.
I got another tree in the Spring of 2019 and I will keep it covered in the winter in my nursery area.
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I am really impressed with this one. I love all Pouteria leaves. The are all large and oblong and always looks full and lush in summer. They are some of my favorite trees to admire. But Ross looks especially great. This one is planted where it gets full sun from morning until about 2-2:30 pm and never has any leaf droop even in summer. It really takes our heat and sun incredibly well (unlike mamey sapote which is much more sun/heat sensitive). However it is a very cold sensitive Pouteria. It completely defoliated this winter even being covered and some smaller branches / top 2 feet of tree died back. However when it started getting hot again in March, it budded / leafed out with a vengeance.
Ross sapote is an unknown Pouteria species / hybrid. People who have tasted it (I have not yet) say it has the texture of a canistel but the flavor of a lucuma. Basically it would be a combination of the best parts of those two other fruits. So I am very excited for this one.
Ross Sapote on the right, summer 2017
Spring 2018
