Loquat

Loquat: how do you recognise it?

Habit

Small tree or large shrub with a broad, rounded crown, up to about 5 m high and 4 m wide. Moderate growth rate.

Leaves

Elongated, up to 25 cm long, stiff and leathery with deep veins; dark green and glossy, rusty-brown felt underneath. Evergreen.

Flowers

Small creamy-white flowers in felted, upright panicles at the tips of the branches, from October to December.

Scent

Sweet and honey-like, especially on mild, sunny days.

Fruit

Round to pear-shaped, orange-yellow fruits of 3–5 cm with juicy, sweet-sharp flesh and a few large brown seeds. Ripe in May–June, only after a mild winter.

Flowering: October–December · Harvest and fruit: May–June · Plants: April–May · Pruning: April and June

Why grow it?

• Large, glossy evergreen leaves that give the garden an exotic look all year round.
• Flowers in autumn and early winter with a sweet scent, when almost nothing else is in bloom.
• Late nectar and pollen for bees and bumblebees on mild days.
• After a mild winter: your own fruit in spring, fresh from the tree.
• Fairly hardy for a southern tree, to about −12 °C.
• Also handsome in a large container on a sunny patio.

Loquat: where does it grow best?

• Full sun and warmth: the best spot is against a south- or west-facing wall.
• Any free-draining soil: sand, loam or clay, acid to chalky. It dislikes wet roots in winter.
• Sheltered from cold easterly winds, which brown the large leaves.
• Allow a spread of about 4 m; against a wall you can keep it flatter.

Light

Sun

Soil type

Sand, loam or clay

Acidity

Not fussy

Moisture

Normal

Size

5 m tall, 4 m wide

Hardiness

Half hardy (to -12 °C): protect it in harsh winters

Goes well with

• Fig: Another southern fruit tree that thrives against a warm wall.
• Chusan palm: A hardy palm that adds to the exotic feel.
• African lily: Blue flowers in summer at its feet, in the same sunny spot.
• Rosemary: Evergreen and scented for a dry, sunny base.

Loquat: when and how to plant it?

Plant in April–May.

1. Plant in April–May, after the hardest frosts: that gives it time to root in before winter.
2. Dig a hole twice as wide as the root ball and loosen heavy soil with some coarse sand or compost.
3. Set the plant at the same depth as in the pot, at least 50 cm from the wall.
4. Give it a stake for support against the wind.
5. Water in well and spread a mulch around the base.
6. In a pot: a large container with drainage holes and good potting compost mixed with some coarse sand.

Care

Water

Regularly in dry weather in the first year. Later it tolerates some drought, but for good fruit it needs enough water in spring.

Feeding

In April, some compost or organic fruit tree feed.

Mulching

A thick mulch in autumn protects the roots from frost.

Harvesting

Pick the fruits when they are fully orange-yellow and slightly soft to the touch. They only keep for a few days.

Repotting

Container plants every two or three years in April, into a slightly larger pot with fresh compost.

Tip: Plant it against a south-facing wall out of the wind: that is where it has the best chance of fruiting. Even without fruit, its large evergreen leaves make it a real eye-catcher.

Loquat: when to prune it?

Pruning months: April and June.

When: Little needed. Prune in April, after the hardest frosts; if it is carrying fruit, only after the harvest in June.

How:

• Cut frost-damaged and browned shoots back to healthy wood.
• Remove dead, crossing and overcrowded branches to let light into the crown.
• Shorten over-long branches to just above a leaf or side branch to keep it compact.
• Against a wall, tie in the strongest branches as a fan and remove anything growing forwards.

Caution: Do not prune after June: the flowers appear in autumn at the tips of this year’s shoots.

Pruning: when and how · Pruning calendar and basic rules

Propagation

Seed

Sow the large seeds straight after eating the fruit, in a pot of seed compost; they germinate readily. A seedling takes quite a number of years to fruit, and the fruit is not always as good.

Layering

In spring, bend a low branch down to the ground, lightly wound the bark and pin it under some soil. After a year it will have roots.

Loquat: how does it get through the winter?

Hardy to −12 °C: protect in harsh winters.

• The tree itself is hardy to about −12 °C; flowers and young fruits are damaged by even a light frost.
• In autumn, put a thick mulch over the roots, and protect young plants with a double layer of fleece in severe frost.
• In a pot: overwinter in a light, frost-free place, or stand the pot against a sheltered wall and wrap it in hessian or bubble wrap.
• Cold easterly winds brown the leaves: unsightly, but rarely serious.

Diseases and pests

• No fruit: Normal after a cold winter: the flowers or young fruits have been frosted. A south-facing wall and a mild winter give the best chance.
• Brown leaves: Brown patches or edges after winter, caused by frost or cold wind. Cut off the worst in April; new leaves will follow.
• Fireblight: Shoot tips and flowers suddenly wilt and blacken, as if scorched; the tip bends over like a shepherd’s crook. Cut well back into healthy wood and disinfect your secateurs after every cut.
• Root rot: Yellow, drooping leaves and a plant that languishes in wet soil. Ensure good drainage; in a pot, never leave water standing in the saucer.

Through the year

• January: Flowering may continue in mild weather. Protect in severe frost.
• February: After a mild winter the young fruits swell. Fleece in frosty weather.
• April: Planting. Prune after the hardest frosts. Feed.
• May: Planting. The fruits colour up. Water in dry spells.
• June: Harvest the fruit, then prune. Sow the seeds.
• July: Water in dry spells. No more pruning.
• August: Flower buds form at the shoot tips.
• October: Flowering starts with scented panicles. Bees and bumblebees.
• November: Flowering. Thick mulch over the roots.
• December: Flowering. Move pot plants to a frost-free place.

Edible and useful

Fruit (May–June)

Here, loquats seldom ripen outdoors: the tree flowers from October to December, and the flowers and young fruits freeze in even a light frost. Only after a mild winter against a sheltered south-facing wall, or on a plant overwintered in a light, frost-free place, do the orange-yellow fruits ripen in May–June. Pick them when they are fully orange-yellow and feel slightly soft: once picked, they do not ripen any further. They are juicy, fresh and sweet-sour, rather like apricot and peach. Pull off the thin skin, halve them and remove the large brown stones with the membrane around them. Eat them fresh, in a fruit salad, or make a compote or a clafoutis.

Storing

Ripe fruits only keep for a few days, even in the fridge, and soon get brown patches: use them quickly. Peeled and stoned, they turn brown in the air; sprinkle them with lemon juice. Cooked compote can be frozen for up to 6 months.

Caution: Only eat the flesh. The large stones, like the young leaves, contain substances that can release hydrogen cyanide: never eat them, do not grind them, do not cook them in jam or compote and do not use them for liqueur. Do not make tea from the leaves either. Remove the stones before preparing the fruit, and only give young children stoned pieces. Here you only get fruit after a mild winter or on a plant overwintered frost-free.

Eating and using is at your own risk: see the terms of use.

Recipes

• Loquat compote with vanilla (Compote · 4 people · 25 min)
• Loquat clafoutis (Dish · 6 people · 1 hr)

Good for wildlife

Bees

Nectar and pollen for honeybees and wild bees.

Did you know?

• Despite its Japanese associations, it comes from China; it has been grown in Japan for so long that it is strongly linked with that country.
• It runs on a reversed cycle: flowers in autumn and winter, fruit in spring, when there is hardly any other fresh fruit.
• In Spain and other Mediterranean countries it is grown for its fruit, which is called ‘níspero’ in Spanish.