In February 2022 I took seeds from two types of carambola and planted them into small pots. These seeds were from starfruit that I ate at ECHO. They were in a greenhouse for about a year and a half. Now I have them in my house in Indiana and I was wondering when they would bear fruit or if they would ever bear fruit? They have a grow light and they are watered when the soil gets dry. They look great but I wondered if they needed fertilizer or other nutrients to help them.
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Hey Kayla!
Good to hear from you. Unfortunately, carambola from seed takes quite a while to bear fruit. (Maybe 5 to 10 years?). It isn’t frequently done because the seedlings have a lot of variability and won’t come true to type. They are mostly grafted because of this - lucky for you, you know how to graft! You’ll just have to get your hands on some budwood and voila, you will have fruit very soon. I’ve seen them fruit in pots within the first year after being grafted, but you may want cut off fruit and let the tree get a little bigger before you let it hold fruit. Hope that helps!