Tell me I am not crazy - Fruit Tree Related

[nomad100]

It took some convincing, since the only fruit trees DH was familiar with are the giant standard sizes, but DH and I are planning on planting some dwarf fruit trees in pots in our backyard. Yay!

However, I think I am going a bit fruit tree crazy!  I have 8 trees in my Stark Bros shopping cart right now and I am thinking that is just too much.  2 apple, 2 pear, 2 peach, 1 cherry and 1 apricot, plus I want at least 1 plum too and maybe 2 nectarines.  Realistically, I know it will be 2-3 years before I will get any fruit so I am thinking that biting the bullet and making 1 big purchase this Spring is better than waiting until next year to spread out the cost. 

We have the pots already and have already started purchasing potting soil for all our planned containers so we won't need to buy 15+ bags at once.  So the main cost is the trees themselves.

I guess it is just the $250+ price tag that is hard to hard to swallow. 

Tell me I am not crazy and that it will be worth it when I can pick an apple (or other tasty fruit) off a tree in my backyard.

[Deleted]

I have one suggestion: don't buy genetic dwarf trees. They are bred purely for size. The fruit is not yummy. I've made this mistake. I have cute little peach, fig, and pomegranates; lovely for flowers and foliage, shitty fruit. Buy semi-dwarf trees, plant them in the ground (or massive pots might work, I don't know) and keep them small through pruning. My semi-dwarf (standard varieties grafted onto dwarfing rootstock) are totally awesome, and we keep them around 7-8 feet through pruning. They make fruit like crazy, and it's very good.

[nomad100]

That is interesting.  I was under the impression that it was the root stock that helped to "control" the size, along with pruning.

Unfortunately, I don't have room to plant in the ground in our backyard so that isn't an option but I have some large pots (like 30 inches tall) for the planting.  I want to be able to move them around if I need.

[Deleted]

Feb 23, 2013 16:31:34 GMT -5 nomad100 said:

That is interesting.  I was under the impression that it was the root stock that helped to "control" the size, along with pruning.

Unfortunately, I don't have room to plant in the ground in our backyard so that isn't an option but I have some large pots (like 30 inches tall) for the planting.  I want to be able to move them around if I need.

That is true if you buy a semi-dwarf.  The true dwarf trees are the ones I've had terrible luck with; they aren't grafted.  I have room on my deck as well for pots, so I though I would get cute and put dwarf trees out there.  I think that if you keep a semi-dwarf in a pot, you might need to periodically do some root pruning in addition to branch pruning?  treedimensional would know everything you need to know.  I'm just an amateur, learning from mistakes rather than training, haha.

[nomad100]

I think I should be OK since all the trees I am looking at are grafted versus being genetic dwarfs.

I know I will have to trim the roots every 3-5 years.  I found some great info on trimming the roots of potted trees on the Fruit forum on Gardenweb.

I think I am going to pull the trigger.  Nothing ventured, nothing gained, right?

[Deleted]

Sounds great! Another thing to think about: Are you certain you have pollinators around or are buying pollinating pairs or they are self-pollinating? My apple is a 5-in-1 grafted tree, so the varieties all pollinate each other. There are tons of neighborhood lemons to pollinate my tree. I had to get a self-fruitful peach and cherry. I think I'm going to try my hand at grafting on different cherry varieties next spring.

I did let my apples make fruit the second year because I just couldn't wait. I have heard you should strip the flowers until at least the third year, just so they get a chance to fill out and build a good support system.

Good luck!!

ETA: A chart like this might be helpful if you're choosing varieties and the site doesn't specify that your two choices are a good pair: www.acnursery.com/apple_pollinizer.pdf

[nomad100]

I checked with Stark Bros. on the varieties.  Thus the 2 apples and the 2 peaches.  The apricots and cherries are self pollinators so I should be all set on those.  Still trying to decide if I will pull the trigger on the plums this year.  I have plans for a raised raspberry bed and a strawberry patch so I am thinking I may just wait.

Spring can't come soon enough!

Oh, do you like your 5 in 1 tree?  I have seen them for several type of fruit but wasn't sure how they produced in "the real world." 

[Deleted]

LOVE my 5-in-1 so hard. That's why I'm itching to try it with my cherry. I took a one-day grafting class a couple of years ago, so I've been wanting to attempt a DIY one. The apple makes so much fruit of all the varieties. I do have to summer prune the granny smith because it tries to take over the whole operation. But when my mom looked into getting one, she read somewhere that they don't perform really well in the south (she's in GA, I'm in CA). So I'm not sure if they are really climate dependent or whether someone somewhere got a dud and decided to post somewhere that they don't work in the south.

I do think fruit trees are just easier in CA (low humidity, little-to-no frost, plenty of sunshine), so I hope your luck is similar to mine and I'm not making it sound too rosey. I do very little work and have a nice supply of apples, lemons and loquats.

I've built my collection up over time, and it really goes faster than you think So I don't think you have to buy everything at once. Buying over a couple of years would also stagger when you have to do the root prunings. I've done root pruning on one non-fruit tree. Such a PITA!

I have raspberries also, but I have mine in a wine barrel. They do pretty well there. Enough to get a couple of handfuls of fruit every week or so.

[Deleted]

Oh, and you're gonna want this when your apples start going nuts:

www.eatingbirdfood.com/2010/09/healthy-homemade-apple-butter/

Especially if you're growing sweet varieties (galas, pink ladies, etc.). The sugar in the fruit makes for a great no-sugar-added recipe. I struggle every year to use all the fruit before it goes soft. I still have a few granny smiths in my fridge from last fall that are still hanging on OK.

The two biggest problems I've had with my trees are fire blight, which I pruned out and it didn't cause a huge problem, and coddling moths. I put sticky traps out this past year and had almost zero problems with the moths.

[nomad100]

Thanks for all the info. 

I am in prime fruit growing land, Michigan.  So I am pretty lucky in that department. Especially since so many varieties have the cold hour requirements.  No problem meeting those here in the frozen north.  

The cold hour requirements may be why the Granny Smith's don't do well
in GA.  I know that there are some varieties that have been developed
for the south since it doesn't get cold enough for the more traditional
varieties (like with blueberries).  I don't know enough about those varieties since that isn't an issue for me.  If she wants to grow apples, she may want to check with her local nurseries to see what varieties they recommend.

[Deleted]

She did eventually get some apples for her area. The problem was getting a several-variety grafted kind. She read somewhere that wouldn't work for her. I can't imagine why though. If you're using appropriate varieties, I can't imagine why some extra grafts would matter. I mean they are already grafted onto rootstock. They are the perfect solution for small spaces IME.

I hope you get some great fruit!

[treedimensional]

Feb 23, 2013 17:13:38 GMT -5 @juno said:

Feb 23, 2013 16:31:34 GMT -5 nomad100 said:

That is interesting.  I was under the impression that it was the root stock that helped to "control" the size, along with pruning.

Unfortunately, I don't have room to plant in the ground in our backyard so that isn't an option but I have some large pots (like 30 inches tall) for the planting.  I want to be able to move them around if I need.

That is true if you buy a semi-dwarf.  The true dwarf trees are the ones I've had terrible luck with; they aren't grafted.  I have room on my deck as well for pots, so I though I would get cute and put dwarf trees out there.  I think that if you keep a semi-dwarf in a pot, you might need to periodically do some root pruning in addition to branch pruning?  treedimensional would know everything you need to know.  I'm just an amateur, learning from mistakes rather than training, haha.

To me, only NUT trees are "giant" (like Hickory or Pecan). Apples, Peaches, and Plums are small-medium.
I had really good full-size fruit off my "Bonanza" dwarf peach (which lived on my deck in a 15g pot), but I ended up selling the tree. It was only about 30" tall. The only fruit trees I have right now are Persimmon and Pawpaw, and they are new to my garden and living in pots.
Everything in my garden is a science project. All new plants are root pruned and repotted to grow out, and I monitor and record their growth. Eventually, most will go to ground. A few die. Some live in pots for many years, and usually will only be root pruned if I think it's warranted (like if they exhibit signs of drought stress).
I am kind of anti-Pear, because they are very promiscuous (cross pollinate and hybridize freely) and their offspring can easily become invasive.

[nomad100]

Feb 25, 2013 11:17:18 GMT -5 treedimensional said:

Feb 23, 2013 17:13:38 GMT -5 @juno said:

The only fruit trees I have right now are Persimmon and Pawpaw, and they are new to my garden and living in pots.

You will have to keep me posted on your Paw Paw.  I am intrigued by this particular fruit since one of its nicknames is the Michigan Banana and apparently does quite well in my area.  

We  have no plans on planting anything in the ground since we just don't have the space in our backyard.   In the fully fenced back yard, I don't need to worry about deer, I only have to content with birds, squirrels, racoons and possums.   That is enough of a battle for me.

[nomad100]

OK, now I am a bit geeked! 

I was a little worried about the cost of purchasing all the trees I wanted since it was more than I had thought it would be (because I went a little crazy adding stuff to my cart).  Well today all the staff at my workplace got a small bonus.  Not a ton of money but enough to cover the price of the trees and fruit plants I had planned on purchasing.

It is a sign that we are supposed to become backyard fruit growers! <)