When getting a fruit tree, I recommend the following:
How to choose a fruit tree
1. Buy a variety that you can't find in stores! The store varieties are grown for commercial use, because they can be picked early, and transport and store well. But that leaves out so many varieties that taste better, and that you can't find normally! The good news is that you can grow them in your backyard.
2. Low chill (if in California, Arizona, etc) - this means that the fruit does not need a lot of "chill" hours to set fruit. In general, you need to select varieties that grow well in your local area.
3. Pollination - does it need a pollinator? If so, perhaps consider a multi-graft tree (2 or more varieties that pollinate each other on the same tree) or plant two trees within 50 feet of each other. You can even plant two (to four trees) in one planting hole!
4. Disease/pest resistant varieties
5. Rootstock - Dwarf (eventual height is 10-15 ft) vs Semi-dwarf (15-20 ft) vs Standard (25+ ft). Any tree can be kept to a manageable size if you prune it. Even a standard tree can be kept to 5 feet tall. The difference between dwarf and standard is that dwarf trees survive 15-20 years while standard are 35-50 years. Dwarf also do not have to be pruned as often and fruit in a couple years instead of the Standard trees which fruit in 5-6 years.
6. Sun requirements: Most fruit trees need a lot of sun, at least 4-8 hours. Some fruit trees, like plums and pears, are a little more shade tolerant.
Here is a list of fruit trees I have/want/recommend:
Stone fruit orchard:
1. Fruit salad tree - this was my very first tree, when I initially thought I'd only be getting one tree.. lol. It is a "multi-graft" tree and has 4 fruits on it - Santa Rosa Plum (this is a good plum variety that pollinates other plums and pluots), Gold dust peach, Independence Nectarine, and Bleinheim Apricot. These varieties were grafted by the growers because they are all self-fertile and do not need a pollinator. If you only have space for one tree, then fruit salad is a good one!
2. NectaZee - this is a dwarf nectarine (won't grow taller than 5ish feet) and is adorable. If you do not have a lot of space and you do not want to prune, a tiny dwarf tree is great. It can be grown in a pot as well. Another good stone dwarf tree is the 2-in-1 peach/nectarine mini trees, which have both peaches and nectarines.
3. Multi-cherry tree - this one has 4 cherry varieties in 1 tree. It was the one tree my Dad chose because he likes cherries. I do not have recommendations for cherries because I am not a cherry person.
4. Donut peach - I pre-ordered mine and can't wait until next year when it arrives! Donut peaches are sweeter than regular peaches. And go for $1 each at trader joes!
5. Nectaplum - nectarine/plum hybrid which has burgundy colored leaves and apparently tastes good
6. Aprium - this is an apricot/plum hybrid that has more apricot in it. There are a lot of varieties. I hear the cot n candy variety is good.
7. Pluot - this is an apricot/plum hybrid that has more plum in it. There are a lot of varieties. I hear the Flavor Grenade and Flavor King varieties taste the best. They also pollinate each other and are low chill varieties, suitable for California. Flavor grenade also sets a lot of fruit, so can be maintained at a small size, and it can be pollinated by santa rosa plum variety, if you don't want to get 2 pluot varieties. You can also find a multi graft pluot with 4 varieties of pluot on it. The same goes for any stone fruit (4 apricots on 1 tree, 4 peaches on 1 tree, etc).
8. The above include the more popular hybrid stone fruits, but there are other ones you can explore like peacotums and pluerries (plum+cherry).
Deciduous trees:
1. Apple - I'm not big on apples, but I saw one in San jose recently that was no taller than 3 feet and had 50 fruit growing 6 inches up from the ground. It was adorable and I will be growing one against our 3 foot wall and pruning to that height as an experiment. For apples, make sure to get one that is low chill for our California climate. Apples prefer pollinators so you can consider one multi-graft tree, 2 apple tree varieties, or a self-fertile variety. An espalier apple tree with 4-6 apple varieties on it could be great. Apples also can be bought as columnar trees, which grow in columns.
2. Pears - I plan on getting a multi-grafted pear tree. There are self-fertile pear varieties, but generally they fruit much better with a pollinator. Similar to apples, you can grow them as espalier.
3. Asian pears - I love asian pears! We have a couple varieties that are 40 years old and now declining, but still pumping out some fruit. I hope they last a long time, but at some point, we may need to replace them. Asian pears can also be found as a multi-grafted tree. I believe there are also some self-fertile ones, but they do better with a pollinator. Some Asian pear varieties can be pollinated with (European) pear varieties.
Apples, pears and asian pears are prone to coddling moth and other pests. Pears are also prone to fireblight. I would recommend keeping the trees small and manageable so you can spray them with organic pesticide (neem oil is good, or pheromone traps for moths).
4. Jujube - these are small fruit, a little bigger than grapes and popular in Asian culture. They grow on a thorny tree and are a bit like apples. The cool thing about jujubes is that they can be eaten fresh or dried. If they are left on the tree or shelf, they shrivel and turn into a date-like chewy fruit. Jujubes have invasive roots which can shoot up thorny suckers 30 feet away. I am growing mine in a pot, but I know it would do better in the ground. I'll have to prune it to keep it small so it does not get root-bound quickly - roots grow big when you let the tree grow big. The most common, popular variety is the Li variety. More recent sweeter ones are Sugarcane, Honey jar, and GA866. I have a honey jar because it is supposed to be slightly more compact so I thought it would do the best in my pot. Jujubes are somewhat self fertile but do better with a pollinator.
5. Pomegranate - I am trying out the "Eversweet" variety. It is supposed to be nearly seedless and very sweet. Pomegranates can be grown as shrubs.
6. Fig - I like panache fig, which is a beautiful yellow fig with green stripes, tastes like strawberry (apparently) and makes a good jam. Popular varieties are also black mission and brown turkey. Figs can have invasive roots but I see them planted on sidewalks and near home buildings all the time. Better to plant away from buildings to be on the safe side.
7. Persimmon - we have super tasty Fuyu persimmons that are now 40 years old. Persimmons grow well, and I highly recommend any Fuyu variety. They ripen in the fall before Thanksgiving time, and are nice to have during the holidays. Also store bought ones are ridiculously priced, are harvested when still green and small, and don't taste great. If you have to buy persimmons, please buy good ones from a farmers market.
I really like Hachiya persimmons, which can only be eaten when they are super over ripe and soft, or the bitterness will leave you reeling. It still has a mild bad bitter aftertaste (to me) when super ripe, but it is probably the tastiest fruit I have ever had, like candy! My sapling is currently in the shade under the Fuyu canopy, so I will have to see how well it grows with such little sun.
Citrus circle:
I will be growing my citrus trees as fruit shrubs, no taller and wider than 3-5 feet. Citrus are great for a front yard or in front of a window as they are evergreen. Most citrus can also be grown in pots.
1. Lemon - if you want a standard lemon tree, then an improved meyer lemon is a solid choice. I went with a pink lemon because the leaves on this tree are variegated, and the inside of the fruit is pink.
2. Lime - I recommend a limequat! They are a lime-kumquat hybrid, and are basically like yellow oblong small limes. They look nice on the tree, and your visitors will all ask you what it is! Normal popular limes include Bear and Key lime.
I got a Key lime (also known as Mexican Lime) from someone's home nursery on facebook marketplace. I had gone to purchase some clivia plants, but then saw a tiny lime for $10. They had a humongous beautiful lime tree in their front yard and grafted several branches for sale. This tree is now growing more successfully than all my other nursery bought citrus.
3. Palestine/Indian sweet lime - this was a request from my Dad, as they eat a lot of sweet limes in India, specifically in lemonade. Sweet lime does not have/is low on acid so it is sweeter than other limes.
4. Mandarins
- Kishu mandarin - this is a cute mandarin variety and great for kids. The fruit are bite size and peel easily.
- Golden nugget mandarin - this was the highest rated one on the Menlo growers website. I'm looking forward to eating these, in a couple years!
5. Meiwa kumquat - kumquats are interesting fruit. The peel is sweeter than the inside, so you eat it with the peel. They are very good for your health. My acupuncturist recommends making a tea with the peel. Most people have the oval shaped nagami kumquat. The meiwa kumquat is round and is the sweetest one. Kumquats grow well in pots.
6. Orange tree - I do not have a recommendation for an orange because I do not find them interesting. But we have a navel orange which we use for juice. If you want an orange, tangelo, etc, please check out Menlo Growers nursery citrus page for descriptions of over 100 varieties of citrus, including orange.
7. Pomelo - I saw a pomelo in our local produce store, and was super intrigued as it's a huge fruit/citrus fruit! The variety I have is Tahitian. It is like a grapefruit but minus the bitterness, and tastes good. Pomelo and grapefruit interact with a lot of medications.
8. Oro Blanco grapefruit - if you want a grapefruit, Oro blanco is the sweetest variety because it's a Pomelo-grapefruit hybrid. I gave it away because pomelo and grapefruit interact with a lot of medications, so our household cannot eat them.
9. Kieffer (makrut) lime - these limes are not eaten, but the leaves are very fragrant and used in cooking, particularly Thai food. We cook a lot of Thai food so I got one of these and keep one in a pot. They can be kept in the house in a sun facing window and treated like a houseplant or herb. You can also plant outside like any citrus, but I am not sure it is worth the space as you only need a few leaves when cooking. Unless you own a Thai restaurant!
Guava hedge:
1. Pineapple guava - this is an interesting tree and getting quite popular, especially as it can be pruned into an edible hedge. The beautiful pink flowers are edible and taste like marshmallow. You can eat the petals and leave the flower, so that it still turns into a fruit. The leaves are a silvery blue. The fruit itself are tiny and taste decent. I found it to be a little gritty.
2. Pink tropical guava - there are so many varieties of tropical guava. This was another one that my Dad wanted, as they eat a lot of pink guava in India. I got the Ruby-X variety as it is more disease and pest resistant. The skin is thicker on the fruit and more resistant to fruit flies which plague guava trees.
3. White tropical guava - I think the variety I have is a Mexican cream called Diamond. This was early in my fruit days when I didn't know about varieties, but it was recommended by the nursery as the most popular variety of white guava. I have found nothing on the internet about a "Diamond" variety so this is now my mystery guava tree.
4. There are also guavas called strawberry guava, lemon guava, etc. I am not sure how these taste, but let me know if you try one!
Guavas, like citrus, can be grown in pots.
Tropicals/sub-tropicals (tougher to grow):
These trees are evergreen in tropical regions, but a few may drop leaves in our winters.
1. Loquat - loquats are trendy right now, and grow easily. They have beautiful large evergreen leaves and apricot-like fruit. They make great front yard trees. Champagne, Big Jim and Golden Nugget are popular local varieties.
2. Longan - I killed two lychee trees in our heat waves:( Apparently longan is somewhat similar to lychee and a little better suited to our climate. They are brown colored on the outside instead of pink like lychee. Fingers crossed it survives!
3. Avocado - I have a lamb hass tree, which is a fairly self fertile. A lot of avocado varieties are self fertile but do better with a cross pollinator. Avocado varieties come in "Type A" and "Type B". Type A and Type B varieties pollinate each other. The lamb hass is a more compact avocado tree and produces a lot of fruit. Avocados need to be a little protected in our summer heat or they will get sunburn, so plant in a slightly protected area, or protect the tree until it is older. Avocados have extensive roots so do not plant too close to buildings.
4. Carabao mango - this is a popular Philippine mango, and seems to be very happy and snug under all the mulch I have on it. Mango roots grow really wide and can be invasive because the trees grow up to 100 feet in the tropics. That should not be an issue here as they won't grow that big due to the cold. Just don't plant it next to a building wall. Mangoes can also be grown in large pots.
5. Alphonso mango - I have been searching for this tree for a while now. It is the most popular Indian variety and I'll be surprising my Dad with it, whenever I can find it!
6. Nam doc mai mango - this is the most popular Thai variety. I need to stop getting fruit trees, but I can see myself getting this in the future because I can't help myself.
7. Sapodilla (chikoo) - this is a popular fruit in India that produces brown egg sized fruit and tastes like brown sugar. It is a very slow growing tree. I have the hasyo variety which should be good.
8. White sapote - this fruit is supposed to taste like custard, and is related to the persimmon tree. This is also an invasive tree as it grows huge and the roots extend wide. It should be in some shade when it is a young sapling. Mine is not growing well, but they are supposed to grow well normally and may be a fun tropical experiment.
9. Moringa trees - not a fruit, but it is a tropical tree. Google "Moringa leaves". They are AWESOME. A bit tough to grow here, but can buy cheap saplings on fb marketplace and experiment. I've seen some youtube videos of Arizona home orchard gardeners who grow them as a shade trees to give a canopy to other fruit trees. Fruit trees love sun, but heat waves over 100 degrees F are too tough on them, so they can use a little protection. The moringa tree can grow 20 feet in 1 year! Even with that type of growth, the roots are not supposed to be invasive.
10. Banana! - these can grow in our area but do not easily fruit. Just keep them protected in winter and mulch heavily. I have a cavendish banana and an ice cream banana, which produces bananas that taste like vanilla ice cream. Let's hope I can get it to fruit at some point!
11. Annonas (atemoya, cherimoya, sugar apple, etc) - I have a cherimoya because someone was selling one for $12 on fb marketplace. It's growing well, but apparently these have to be hand pollinated in our area as they are not bee pollinated... not happening.
12. Jamaican cherry - they are tiny berries like the size of cranberries, and taste like cotton candy. I've already killed one. Now on my second, wish me luck. These grow in the Philippines. They are invasive and can sucker 30 feet away. They can be grown in a pot, which is better for our climate as they can die when the temps get below 40 degrees F, so pots can be brought inside on those days.
13. Ice cream bean - this is another fun experimental one I am growing. It does not like when temps get low in winter and can die down. But once established, it grows to a giant size. Roots are extensive but not totally invasive. The fruit are actually legumes and are long green pods that you crack open. The inside fruit is a white fluffy substance which tastes like cotton candy.
14. Dragonfruit - very popular in Bay area home orchards.
15. Starfruit - I do not have one, but if you like the taste, these can grow in our area.
16. Jaboticaba - these are interesting trees that can grow in this area. The fruit grow on the tree trunk/bark.
17. Papayas and pineapples - I've tried.. and failed.
There are so many tropical fruits! Just go on facebook marketplace and start browsing a few local home nurseries. Tropicals are harder to grow in general than stone fruit, citrus fruit, apples, etc.
Berries:
1. Mulberries
- Pakistan mulberry tree - I first had mulberries some years ago and they are super tasty!! The roots on this tree are invasive so plant far from buildings, and prune it before the trees grows into a 30 ft monster! I plan on keeping mine 6 feet tall.
- Dwarf everbearing mulberry - this is a smaller mulberry tree that can also be trained as a shrub.
2. Fall gold raspberry - yellow raspberries! These can be grown in part shade, and will appreciate that in our summer heat.
3. Blueberries - I think any variety you find in the local stores is fine. Blueberries like acidic soil, and can be grow in pots.
4. Blackberries - these can be grown in part shade, and will appreciate that in our summer heat.
5. Goji berries - these grow well even in extreme heat.
6. Loganberries - a hybrid raspberry and blackberry. One of the few berry plants that survived for me in the spring and summer heat waves.
Fruiting vines:
1. Grapes - they like sun! At Alden Lane nursery, I saw them grown them in pots and trained up a trellis arch. It was beautiful.
2. Passion fruit - these produce the most stunning flowers. Passion flower vines grow rapidly and can take over an entire area. Ours is somewhat in check because it's in partial shade instead of full sun which it prefers. The lifespan of a passionfruit vine is 7-8 years.
3. Kiwi - I realllly want to grow hardy kiwi. They are kiwi but the size of a grape, fuzzless, sweeter, and can be eaten with the skin. They also can be grown in and prefer shade/partial shade.
This list changes frequently as I learn about new varieties but I hope it helps. Please use it as a starting guide and do some online research before getting any fruit tree!
No comments:
Post a Comment