LAUSR

All jujube (Ziziphus jujuba) cultivars can be used as fruit trees and in landscaping, but there are four striking ornamental cultivars in our collection: Dragon,Mushroom, So, and Teapot. These cultivars are decorative and can be used for fruit, tree shape, or both as edible landscape plants. We evaluated these four ornamental jujube cultivars in central and northern NewMexico. All four cultivars grew and produced well but performed differently. ‘So’, imported from China in 1914, was a productive and contoured cultivar with medium-sized, sweet/tart fruit and bushy trees, with a decorative tree shape in winter. ‘Dragon’, a recent import from China, was the most dwarf cultivar tested, with small fruit and gnarled trees, and suitable for four-season ornamental use in landscapes. ‘Mushroom’, another recent import from China, had the most decorative fruit shape among the four cultivars tested, with vigorous and productive plants. ‘Teapot’, also a recent import from China, had irregular fruit shapes and vigorous and productive plants. All four cultivars were good edible landscape plants depending on customers’ preferences and space availability/limitation.