Sweet Tamarind Seedling

We saved a lot of seed from an exceptional sweet tamarind tree in South Florida to grow out these plants. The fruit was exceedingly sweet, approaching the sweetness of a date with no acid. Eating this fruit, I was struck by what an underexploited crop sweet tamarind is! They truly ought to be a more common dooryard fruit tree in Florida. The mother tamarind tree was also producing during winter when not a lot of other fruits are available.

Do sweet tamarind trees grow true from seed? We really don’t personally know how true they grow at the moment or how long they take to begin fruiting. Two reputable fruit experts we know have said that sweet trees generally yield pretty similar seedlings provided there isn’t a sour tamarind nearby pollinating them. The tree we saved seed from was certainly within 1/4 mile of sour tamarinds but they were not bearing during our visit, which may mean they were not blooming at the same season to share pollen. Here at Cody Cove Farm we plan to plant some grafted sweet tamarind as well as some sweet seedlings to see what we get. The mother tree this seed came from was so incredibly sweet that introducing a little more acidity could even be considered an improvement. If you’re looking for a cheap way to have a good shot at a tasty tamarind, here’s your chance.