It’s key to keep the soil evenly moist, especially for young trees as they establish their roots. Also, regularly weed around your jackfruit tree to prevent other plants from competing for nutrients and moisture in the soil. Mulch around the tree both can help to suppress weeds and to retain soil moisture. Plus, it can keep the roots warm if the temperatures happen to dip. The jackfruit tree doesn’t have many serious problems with pests or diseases, though wildlife might be attracted to its fruit. The fruit turns from a green color to a yellowish-green when it is ready for harvesting. Simply cut it off by its stem with loppers.
Light
This tree needs full sunlight to grow well and produce fruit. That means it should get at least six hours of direct sun on most days. A tree grown in conditions that are too shady might never bear fruit.
Soil
Jackfruit trees prefer a nutrient-rich soil with excellent drainage. They are not overly picky about soil pH, though they seem to grow best in slightly acidic soil.
Water
As tropical plants, jackfruit trees like consistently moist soil year-round. Water them whenever your soil begins to dry out due to a lack of rainfall or extreme heat. However, be sure the tree roots aren’t sitting in pooling water. This can inhibit fruit production and ultimately kill the tree.
Temperature and Humidity
These trees like warm temperatures and are very heat tolerant. However, they are quite sensitive to frost (especially young trees), and temperatures below about 35 degrees Fahrenheit can easily weaken or kill them. Moreover, jackfruit trees prefer humid conditions and don’t tend to thrive in dry climates unless you can keep their soil very well watered.
Fertilizer
Fertilize jackfruit trees twice a year in the spring and fall with a slow-release granular fertilizer. It also can be beneficial to mix compost into the soil around the tree annually.
Pruning
Young jackfruit trees don’t need much in the way of pruning except for removing any diseased, damaged, or dead portions. For mature trees, you can keep them at a manageable height for harvesting fruit by annually pruning off select upright branches. This will encourage more lateral growth, rather than vertical growth. Also, remove some old branches throughout the tree to improve air flow and ensure that sunlight can hit all parts of the tree. But don’t remove more than a third of the overall branches. Wait until after your fruit harvest to prune the tree.
Jackfruit Tree Varieties
There are several varieties of jackfruit available, including:
‘Black Gold’: This variety produces a high yield of medium-size fruits.‘Gold Nugget’: This tree bears a high yield of relatively small fruits.‘Dang Rasimi’: This tree produces a very high yield of medium to large fruits.‘Kun Wi Chan’: This variety is very vigorous and bears a high yield of large fruits.‘Lemon Gold’: This variety produces an average yield of small to medium fruits.
