Tanghe Winter Jujube

Tanghe Winter Jujube

　　Winter jujube (also known as Wild Goose Red, Apple Jujube, Rock Candy Jujube, Northern Shandong Winter Jujube, Zhanhua Winter Jujube, or Huanghua Winter Jujube) is a high-quality, late-maturing fresh variety from northern Shandong. It bears fruit early, producing yields in the year of grafting, and matures in mid to late October. The fruit is nearly round, with a smooth and clean surface, resembling a small apple in shape. Its vertical diameter is 2.7–2.9 cm, horizontal diameter 2.5–2.9 cm, average single weight 14 grams, and maximum fruit weight 45 grams.

Winter jujube belongs to the Rhamnaceae family, Ziziphus genus. It is a late-maturing, excellent fresh cultivar of the thornless jujube tree. It is mainly distributed in Hebei, Shandong, and other areas. The winter jujube is large and nearly round, with vertical and horizontal diameters of 2.9–3.2 cm. It has thin skin, a small pit, juicy flesh, tender and crisp texture, strong sweetness with slight acidity. The fruit is round or flat-round, with a reddish-brown color, averaging 17.5 g per fruit, with a maximum single weight of 35 g, and an oval-shaped pit. Fresh winter jujubes contain 34% sugar, 0.47% acid, and 303 mg of vitamin C per 100 g.

Winter jujube trees have moderate vigor and medium branching ability. They begin bearing fruit 2–3 years after planting and in the second year after high-grafting, yielding stably. The fruit development period lasts 125–130 days. Harvest can be done progressively from late September (during the white-mature stage) to mid-October (during the fully mature stage).