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{{SPlantbox
|genus=Loquat
|Min ht metric=cm
|Temp Metric=°F
|image=Upload.png
|image_width=240
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Loquat. Fig. 2212. The loquat, or biwa of the Japanese (Eriobotrya japonica, Lindl.), is a small evergreen fruit tree with handsome foliage, considered to be a native of China and Japan. It has long been cultivated in those countries as well as in northern India; within recent years it has become fairly common in the Mediterranean basin, especially in Algeria and Sicily, and in the milder sections of the United States. In Florida and the Gulf States it is seen in dooryards and gardens, but is rarely planted in orchard form; in California its cultivation is conducted commercially. It is also grown in some tropical regions, but does not succeed so well as in the subtropics. In Japan the annual production is said to be over 20,000,000 pounds.
The tree, which attains an ultimate height of about 25 feet, is more or less densely clothed with elliptical to oblong-obovate, nearly sessile, remotely toothed deep green leaves, varying from 6 to 10 inches or more in length. The small, white, very fragrant flowers, which are produced in fall, are borne in crowded woolly panicles 4 to 7 inches long. The fruit, which ripens in spring, varies in shape from spherical to pyriform, in color from pale yellow to deep orange, and in the best varieties is sometimes 3 inches in length. The skin is thin and smooth, but tougher than that of an apple. The flesh is firm and meaty in some varieties, more melting in others, almost white to salmon-orange in color, juicy, and of a sprightly flavor suggestive of a cherry. The seeds, which are about ¾ inch long and dark brown in color, vary from one to eight or nine in number, four or five being common. They occupy a large amount of space in the center of the fruit, the reduction of the proportion of seed to flesh being one of the points most sought in breeding. The loquat is eaten while fresh or is made into pies, jams, jellies, preserves and the like.
The tree is successful on a wide variety of soils, but has done best on clay loam. Ikeda, a Japanese authority, considers that the fruit reaches its highest degree of perfection when grown near the seacoast. For orchard-planting a piece of well-drained land should be chosen, and the trees set 20 to 24 feet apart. Their culture presents few difficulties; in fact the loquat will thrive and produce good crops with less care than many other fruit trees. It does not require a great amount of fertilizer on reasonably good soils, but leguminous cover-crops have been found highly beneficial. Occasional pruning is required to admit light to the center of the tree, and to keep the branches somewhat thinned out. To obtain fruit of good size and best commercial value, it may be desirable to thin the crop as soon as the young fruits have set, leaving no more in a cluster than the tree can properly mature. Picking for market should be done when the fruit has lost its acidity and is fully ripe; if picked too soon the loquat is quite sour. For jelly only acid fruit is used. When packed in boxes holding about thirty pounds, the fruit can be shipped successfully to nearby markets, but for distant markets smaller packages and great care in packing are necessary.
Pear blight (Bacillus amylovorus) and loquat scab (Fusicladiurn eriobotryae) are at times troublesome in the California orchards, and a borer is reported from Japan which occasionally attacks the tree.
While in many countries the loquat is usually propagated from seed, there is as much variation among the seedlings as with other tree-fruits, and good varieties can be perpetuated only by some vegetative means of propagation. Both budding and grafting are practised, budding being the method preferred in the United States, and usually employed when trees are desired for commercial planting. Seedlings are often planted in dooryards, where they not only serve as admirable ornamental trees, but produce an abundance of reasonably good fruit. In budding and grafting, seedling loquats are generally used as stocks. When budded on quince, the tree is considerably dwarfed; this stock is sometimes used, however, because its fibrous root- system readily permits of transplanting. Seeds should be planted as soon as removed from the fruit, either singly in pots, or in flats from which they can be potted off later on. A light loam should be used, covering the seeds to a depth of about 1 inch. When the young plants have attained a height of 6 or 7 inches, they may be planted in nursery rows in the open ground, where they can be grown until the stems are about ½ inch in diameter at the base, when they are ready for budding. This is best done during October or November, depending upon climatic conditions. The buds are allowed to lie dormant until early spring, when they must be forced into growth. Budwood should be of young and smooth wood, preferably that which has turned brown and lost its pubescence, and from which the leaves have dropped. Shield-budding, essentially the same as practised with the citrous fruits, is the method commonly used. The buds should be cut somewhat larger than for the orange, preferably not less than 1 ½ inches in length. After inserting them in T-incisions made in the stocks at a convenient point not far above the ground, they should be tied with raffia, soft cotton string, or waxed tape, and left about three weeks, when they should have formed a union. At this time they may be unwrapped, and if necessary, rewrapped loosely, so as to allow the buds to start into growth. When not rewrapped, the bark sometimes opens up around the bud and exposes it to the air, causing its death. The stock must be cut back to a point about 3 inches above the bud, and all adventitious buds rubbed off as fast as they make their appearance. Difficulty is sometimes experienced in forcing the bud into growth.
In grafting, a simple cleft graft is used, with a cion of about the diameter of a lead pencil, and of well- matured wood.
Most of the named varieties of the loquat have originated in Japan, Algeria and California. Ikeda mentions forty-six varieties of Japanese origin, of which eight are recommended as the best for cultivation. Trabut of Algiers describes twelve varieties of Algerian origin, though none of them is considered so desirable, from a commercial standpoint, as Tanaka, with the possible exception of Taza, which resulted from a cross between Tanaka and one of the local forms. Tanaka is of Japanese origin, but has been grown in Algeria for several years, and also to a very limited extent in California, where it has not, however, become as popular as several varieties of local origin. Most of the varieties originated in the United States have been produced by C. P. Taft, of Orange, California, who has done more to improve the loquat than any other man. Among the best may be mentioned Advance, a bright yellow, pyriform fruit, sometimes 3 inches in length, produced in very large, compact clusters and ripening from March to June; Champagne, oval to pyriform, 2 to 3 inches in length, white-fleshed, produced in clusters as large as those of Advance but less compact, considered the best of all in flavor; Premier, oval, not quite so large as Advance, salmon- orange in color; Victor, a very large and showy fruit, in loose clusters, not considered valuable in California because it ripens late in the season; Early Red, a pyriform, deep orange-colored fruit, 1 to 2 inches in length, produced in medium-sized clusters, valuable because it is the earliest of all, commencing to ripen in late January. Tanaka is an attractive fruit of large size and deep orange-color, with unusually good shipping qualities, but it ripens too late to be of commercial value in California. The earliest fruits are the ones which yield the greatest returns, because they come into market at a time when fresh fruits are scarce.
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__NOTOC__{{Plantbox
__NOTOC__{{Plantbox
| name = ''Eriobotrya japonica''
| name = ''Eriobotrya japonica''