ICI Journals Master ListICI Journals Master Listgrow fruit and nuts in temperate areas
EVOLUTIONARILY
APPROPRIATE INGREDIENTS & GROWING
YOUR OWN INGREDIENTS & GROWING
FRUIT & NUTS & FRUIT &
TEMPERATE AREAS
Fruit & Nuts in the Home Garden in Temperate Areas
WWW.NATURALHUB.COM
[THE NATURAL FOOD HUB]
The following notes
intended to show you the range of different fruit and nuts that can be
grown in temperate areas, and how they might fit into a strategy of
some food in either a suburban or peri-urban garden.
Detailed notes and
illustrations
on pruning, culture, and local pests and diseases affecting the plants
sorted out from this
list as possibly worth growing can be found in some of the excellent
on fruit and nut
growing in your local
or mailorder bookstore or library.
Note: this 'web page'
out as about 12 printer pages.
You can help our home
growing community of interest.&
if you can add to this information.Or write a
(save as a .html page and e-mail it). You are creditted as author (or
if you want) Write about a fruit in your climatic zone! All
contributions
Or just give me details
on cultivars you have tried or know about, or corrections. Lots
of information is lost in a mobile and changing society - help make
our permanent record!
Temperate areas
areas that are cold in winter, but not so cold that the fruiting plant
is killed. Fruit trees adapted to temperate areas often need quite a
of winter chill before their flower buds will be initiated and break
of winter dormancy. Marginal temperate areas might sometimes experience
severe tree killing cold, or the summer may be a little to short to
ripen fruit. These marginal areas are often inland areas, away from the
ameliorating influence of the sea or large lakes. Indicator plants:
pears, gooseberries, brambles.
Fruit trees that flower
early in Spring are likely to have their flowers damaged by frost,
in no fruit for that year. Time of& spring bloom varies with the
of fruit- the earliest to bloom is the almond, followed by Japanese
and apricots, and then peaches. And it is this early bloom that makes
particular fruits poorly suited or unsuited to the coldest part
temperate areas.& Sweet cherries are next to bloom, then pears,
plums, sour cherries, and apples.& In the very coldest part of the
temperate zone, it may be necessary to rely on cold hardy species that
have adpated over aeons to freezing conditions, such as the native
of the North American prairies. Micro climate, such as being on a sunny
slope with good cold air drainage, or against a heat storing and
re-radiating
wall, can be important in avoiding frost damage to blossoms, or even
damage to trees.
Our choice of type of
tree, or even variety of apple or plum or whatever, is not infuenced
by our particular local climatic conditions. Soil, and overwhelmingly,
soil drainage, is a vital factor. In general, stonefruit are least
of clay soils (especially where there is a high water table), except
plums are much more tolerant than other stonefruit. Apples are more
still of wet soils, and pears are the most tolerant. Paradoxically,
soils need heavy mulching or irrigating in hot summers. Lack of water
one of the most important factors in reduced fruit yeild. Luckily, the
home fruit gardener can overcome problems of both poor drainage and
sandy soil, by the same methods-using lots of organic soils amendments
such as peat or compost, using raised beds, and selecting dwarf trees.
The ultimate work around for poor soils is to grow dwarf trees in large
containers.
When we chose which
trees to plant, we have to take into account our personal circumstances
and preferences. How much space is available for fruit trees? Is it
or rather shady? Is my lifestyle too busy to put a lot of time into
spraying and pruning? Do I take pride in doing the whole cultural
well? Will this tree grow very big and shade views or damage paved
or drains? What does it take to keep assorted varmints-opposums, crows,
blackbirds, bullfinches, rats, voles rabbits, wandering children, etc
from the fruit (and bark), and realistically, am I likely to do what it
takes? Will the tree start fruiting before I am likely to leave this
What landscape values (form, blossom, fragrance, foliage, fruit color)
does the tree have, and how important is that to me and my 'significant
other'? Am I looking for particular health benefits in growing some of
my own fruit, and if so, which fruits will deliver those benefits? Am I
looking for particular connoisseur taste experiences in growing some of
my own fruit, and am I willing to give up productivity if the best
is poorly productive? 'Growing all my own fruit' is a dream, but an
impractical
dream even on the basis of there not being enough daylight hours in a
to accomplish such a task, so what are the best strategies-very early
very late varieties when market prices are high? Grow only the species
such as Mayhaw or Medlar that never appear in the market? Grow a lot of
one fruit very well and can/bottle it? A mixed strategy?
The answers to many of
questions is found in dwarf fruiting trees and in varieties that cannot
(for a variety of reasons) be grown commercially. It's a delicious
challenge,
and a very personal one, because everyones situation and motivation is
different.
These notes are intended
to help you decide how much of your food you would like to grow, now,
in the future.
States Plant Hardiness Zones JJJJ
Agriculture Research Service map not only tells you which hardiness
you are in, you can zoom in on any part of the map, or go to your
individual
stae. State or zoom in maps also give you typical cold hardy plants,
align the cold hardiness information to a typical city.
ACTINIDIA- see
Kiwifruit' .
ALMOND-see 'NUT,
sylvestris.The undisputed King of all fruit for the Urban food
and one of the hardiest temperate zone fruits. Apples are reliable and
heavy croppers (usually), and are a fruit that everyone likes. Most
importantly,
they start bearing very quickly.The range of flavors is the most
and complex of any fruit, encompassing perfumed, anise, honeyed, spicy,
and with a wide range and combination of sugar levels and acids.
trees should be on a semi-dwarfing rootstock such as MM106. Small free
standing bushes can be created by buying a tree grafted to an ultra
rootstocks such as MM9. These mini trees do needing staking. Dwarf
either espaliered against a wall or fence, or as small bushes, are the
only game in town for the small garden of urban man. The two major
are codling moth and bird damage. Moth can be confused by placing
lures around, and birds can be netted out of the tree, or a variety of
cunning and reasonably priced commercial bird scare devices can be
Some apples are subject to some quite damaging fungus diseases unless
however, there are disease resistant varieties, and most
will get by with indifferent attention to copper sprays. Most of us
house so frequently that by the time a tree perhaps bady affected, we
have moved anyway. Conversely, remove badly diseased trees you may find
in a property you move to and start with healthy new stock-but don't
them in the same place as the old trees were removed from.
The kind of apple or
should be decided by the purpose you have in mind-cooking or fresh
eating-and
what you like. Some like complex apples with high acid and high sugars,
such as 'Cox's Orange', others like perfumed sweet apples with low
such as 'Gala'. In the flush of the season, apples are relatively
so a good strategy is to grow an apple that is simply not available,
that has superb eating qualities. Paradoxically, even common commercial
varieties can reveal extra sweetness and depth of flavour when they are
allowed to hang on the tree longer than would be commercially feasible,
and when their soil is amended with lots of organic material and flavor
promoting materials such as seaweed and fish manure leaf sprays.
Virtually any soil will
grow apples, but light or sandy soils need to be mulched and watered in
summer, especially if the weak-rooted MM9 rootstock is being used. The
trees need to be kept healthy with good nutrition, adequate sunshine,
to suppress weed competion, and summer watering.-an apple tree is said
to need at least 20 healthy leaves to mature one fruit. It is advisable
to keep pruning to a minimum, but any pruning that needs doing should
done in summer, even if you have to sacrifice a few fruit. Prune the
grown summer laterals back to 3 or 4 leaves, cut vigorous shoots right
back, and when necesary, shorten main branches to a downward pointing
or spur. Take out the occasional larger branch when necessary to keep
tree open and uncrowded, and prune back some excessively long spurs.
apples are 'tip bearers', and for these kinds, pruning all the laterals
means few fruit next year! Prune them in winter. Only the strongest
should be pruned- to about 6 buds. The leaders should also be cut back
by about a third. All in all, 'tip bearers' are not as well suited to
small garden. Spray with copper when half the leaves have fallen and in
spring at bud burst. Winter pruned trees are much more likely to get a
fairly serious disease called 'silverleaf' unless each cut is treated
a top quality wound sealing paste, or unless the tree had been
vaccinated
against the disease early in it's life.
Some apples get into a
of bearing heavily every second year, with little or nothing in the
in-between
years. This 'biennial bearing is difficult to correct. Sometimes hand
the fruit when it is newly set will restore a more regular annual
Thinning& gives better sized apples anyway. There is often a
drop of small fruitlets, and once this has passed, it is a good idea to
thin the apples to about 4inches/100mm apart.
-40&C is about the
coldest temperature that even the hardiest apple varieties will endure
therefore in the coldest parts of temperate areas
it is important to select special cold hardy cultivars. In the coldest
ares, apples will need every advantage-shelter against wind chill,
frost pockets and low lying areas, and planting close to buildings to
capatilise
on radiant heat.
Disease resistant
varieties-Belmac,
Prima, Primevere, Priscella, Redfree, Jonafree, Liberty.
Alphabetical
list and brief description of over 100 apple cultivars page.
General apple
APRICOTPrunus
armeniaca- Home grown apricots can be so sweet and flavorsome they
find every unfilled cavity in your teeth! The main challenges are to
birds away from them, and to avoid freeze damage to the blossoms. They
require less winter chilling than most peaches, but because they flower
very early in Spring, the blossoms are often damaged by frost. To make
it worse, their buds swell and lose their winter hardiness in late
making them also liable to be damaged by late winter freezes. This
apricots suitable only for the warmest microclimates and/or growing
a wall and protected from frost.
Cold hardy Apricots: Prunus
armeniaca siberica Pararie Gold, Sunrise, Broocot, Westco.
JJJJ Brief
on the fruit& and tree characteristics (especially chill
requirements)
of 11 cultivars of apricot for USA, from Sierra Gold Nurseries,
California,
website. These are primarily Californian notes, but useful to identify
late blooming types which are better able to escape frost damage.
APRICOT-PLUM
HYBRIDS These very exciting hybrids between the two species are
the work of Zaiger genetics in USA. Pluot& is a trademark name for
varieties derived from complex interspecific hybrids between plum and
Generally, a 'pluot&' is a cross between a plumcot (P. armeniaca
x P. domestica) and a plum (P.
domestica). Thus
it usually has 75% plum genes and 25% apricot genes. Reflecting this,
have smooth skin like a plum. As already mentioned, plumcots are a
plum/apricot hybrid.& An aprium& is also a trademark name for
varieties derived from crosses between& plumcots (P. armeniaca
x P.domestica) and apricots (P. armeniaca).Because this
in 75% apricot genes and only 25% plum genes, the fruits are scantly
in a very fine fuzz as are apricots.
One of the features of
hybrids is that they are very sweet, and have complex and excellent
Plants grafted on
'citation'
rootstock are semi dwarfed. The only real drawback has been sorting out
pollenizers for these very new fruits. 'Dapple Dandy' has been
as a pollenizer for some of them, and the ubiquitous 'Santa Rosa' for
Dandy itself.
Dapple Dandy
(Plumcot)-pale
greenish yellow skin with distinctive red dots. The firm flesh is
white streaked with crimson, and is sweet and highly flavored. It is a
very useful pollenizer for other apricot-plum hybrids.(US)
Flavorella
Early season.Flavorella is a medium sized, translucent golden yellow
fruit, with a slight red blush and very slight fuzz.It is firm, juicy,
and with a very good flavor. The tree is spreading and a pollenizer is
required.(US)
Flavor Delight
Flavor King
(Pluot&)-Late
season.F.K. has large attractive fruit, with yellowy red sweet,
flesh. The
moderately
spreading tree is mid to late season blooming, an advantage in areas
to late spring frosts. A pollenizer is required.(US, NZ)
Flavor Queen
(Pluot&)-Mid
late season. F.Q. is medium to large sized, has yellow skin and sweet,
juicy, yellow flesh of excellent flavor.The fruit hold well on the
a useful advantage for extending the season. F.Q. blooms early, so
a pollenizer that also blooms early.(US)
Late season.The black fruit are large, with orange, sweet flesh of
flavor.The moderately spreading tree is mid to late season blooming, an
advantage in areas prone to late spring frosts. A pollenizer is
Flavor Supreme
(Pluot&)-red
fleshed, early, and with better flavor than early red fleshed plums.(US)
Flor Ziran 'Black
Apricot'-(Plumcot)-dark purple skin, tender, juicy, fine grained orange
flesh somewhat suffused with red. The tree is vigorous.(US)
Plum Parfait
(Plumcot)-Early
season. The medium sized fruit are dark yellow heavily blushed with
the flesh is dark yellow, streaked red at the freestone pit, and with
good flavor.The tree is naturally relatively small (3M/10 feet) and
spreading.
It has the twin advantages of being self fertile and low chill.(US)
PEAR Pyrus serotina 'Nashi', 'Misunashi', 'Apple Pear',
Pear', 'Water Pear'- These are fruit that look more or less like
but have somewhat pearlike flesh, are extremely juicy, with little
and moderate to high (depending on the variety) sweetness. Some
have rather coarse and gritty flesh, hence the name 'Sand Pear'. These
cultivars are now not much grown, for obvious reasons. They can be
anywhere apples succeed and where there are no late spring frosts to
the blossom. Like the European pear, they are suceptible to fireblight.
Commercial Asian pears can be pretty tasteless. They flower a little
than stone fruit, and just before most European pears, altho' European
pears whose flowering period overlaps will pollinate Asian pears.
Shinseiki&
is usually recommended as the pollenizer for most cultivars. Early
fruit ripen in early to mid summer, mid season are mid summer to late
and late season ripen late summer to early autumn. (US,
is early season, small to medium sized, russet brown, juicy, very sweet
and moderately gritty. Its best pollenizer is 'Nijisseiki', then
'Shinseiki'
or 'Hosui'. The tree is extremely vigorous.(US, NZ)
is early, with greenish gold skin, medium sized, crisp, very sweet,
juicy and tender fleshed. Kosui seems to maintain it's sweetness over a
wide range of growing conditions. Kosui can be cross pollenized by, and
will pollenize, 'Nijiseiki' and 'Hosui', but it is poorly compatible
'Shinsui' and vice versa.'Shinseiki' is also an effective pollenizer.
usually sets very heavy crops. Kosui has rather brittle branches, so it
should not be planted in a very windy position. Kosui is relatively
suceptible
to disease, and in humid areas it is inclined to have some degree of
die back. (US,
is rather a medium to large golden brown mid season variety with
lenticels on the skin. It is highly flavored, sweet and juicy, except
areas with cool summers, when it tends to be acidic and with low
The tree is vigorous, medium to large sized with willowy, drooping
It flowers heavily. It has limited self fertility, but sets well with
'Nijisseikeiki',
'Shinseiki', and 'Shinsui'. (US,
Shinseiki ('New
Century')& is mature mid season, and is a medium sized
yellow-green
medium to large smooth skinned fruit.It is firm fleshed, crisp and
but fairly mediocre flavored. The tree is upright and moderately
Pollenizer are 'Shinsui' and 'Kosui'. Shinseiki is a good pollenizer
other cultivars. (US,
Nijisseiki ('Twentieth
Century) is a late season variety. It is medium sized, yellow-green
thin skinned, just sweet but rather flavorless unless left on the tree
for as long as possible. 'Kosui', 'Hosui', and 'Shinseiki' and
will pollenize it. It is one of the most productive varieties of Asian
pear. (US,
Sierra Gold Nurseries site
their chilling requirements, in particular, can be found at the Sierra
Gold Nurseries page
very good overview of cultivars, disease resistance, varietal choice,
hardiness, and general care.
Asimina triloba 'Papaw', 'Pawpaw', 'Asimoyer'. This
relatively
small (to about 6metres /20 feet) decidous North American tree is the
temperate climate member of a family of& tropical and subtropical
fruiting trees, the best known of which is the 'cherimoya' or 'custard
apple'. The British, Australians, and New Zealanders call the tropical
papaya fruit 'pawpaw'. The papaya is no relation whatever of Asimina.
avoid this cultural misunderstanding it is best to simply call this
'Asimina'. The fruit are 75mm-125mm/3-5 inches long, green skinned, and
carried in clusters of two to three vaguely stumpy banana shaped fruit.
The smooth pulp is browny yellow to almost orange, depending on the
with a double row of smooth dark brown roughly lima bean sized
flavor is variable, according to the seed source, but in the best types
it is tropical, intense, and sweet. The friuit are an excellent source
of vitamin A and C, and it's& mineral content is as good or better
than many common fruits such as apple, peach or grape. The fruit ripen
in autumn, and is highly productive if the right pollinating insects
present This is definitely a tree to consider, but it does come with
difficulties. The fruit is highly desirable, it is unlikely to be
commercially
available because of it's short shelf life once ripe, the leaves are
drooping, and elliptical, giving an almost tropical look, the tree is
once established (trees have survived 3 days at minus 28 degrees F
unharmed),
it does well in sha but it tends to send out
suckers, which while not vigorous-the tree is slow growing-are
The tree must have some shade for the first 3 or four years of its
Unless you have one of the few self fertile cultivars, you will need to
plant two for cross pollination. In some areas, and in some countries,
such as New Zealand, there seems to be an abscence of the correct
pollinating
insect-the trees flower well, but set few or no fruit.Planting grafted
plants, or suckers from known varieties is a good idea, as the quality
of the fruit is guarenteed. There are many different cultivars include
'Davis'-excellent flavor, large fruit, 'Sunflower'-good
and size, 'Well's Delight'-very large, excellent
- Pawpaw - JJJJ an
from Purdue Universities' New Crop Proceedings (USA). The information
slanted to commercial potential, but it is rich in nformation on the
distribution, nutrtional content, propogation, varieties, and growing
conditions
for this fruit.
compounds in Pawpaw JJ also
from Purdue, the original research showing activity of a chemical in
(asimina triloba) against cancer cells. Note these were in laboratory
tubes only, not in living organisms, and the cancer killing effect also
damaged mormal body cells, altho' to lesser degree.
http://www.purdue.edu/UNS/html4ever/9709.McLaughlin.pawpaw.html
AURORABERRY-
like a blackberry, it has large, firm black shiny fruit.& Flavour
is very good, 'perfumy', clean taste, with none of the sulfur and
notes that boysenberries, for example have. It is blander than an
olallieberry,
and can be acidic if it isn't fully ripe. This is a fairly early
as it ripens in early summer. It is a weaker plant than other brambles,
which is an advantage in all areas except wet and humid areas where
are subject to disease. All brambles need to be tied up on wires, free
standing, against a fence or a wall. This doesn't suit every situation,
especially as they really need good sun to ripen the fruit and minimise
disease. Not unaturally, thorned brambles such as this can be a
in small spaces. Otherwise recommended.
- variety notes on boysenberry, youngberry, and other hybrid berries
to the home gardener. It includes new hybrids that the home gardener is
unlikey to see. Commercially oriented, and rather brief, but some good
pictures of the fruit
There is a species, Musa basjoo, the Japanese Fibre Banana,
touted as " the world's cold hardiest banana. It is hardy planted in
to -3 degrees F. and with protective mulching, down to -20 degrees F".
It is from Southern Japan, and is usually grown or the fibre in the
rather than the fruit. The fruit are small and seedy, but edible.
An excellent page from a Canadian
grower/nurseryman,
complete with very good photos of the banana being grown - with
protection
- outside in British Columbia.
BLACKBERRIES
ursinus-The thorny wild blackberry has the most exquisite sweetness
and floral flavor. It is invasive, spreading, trailing, painfully
and unattractive. The cultivated blackberry usually has stout, usually
semi erect, easily managed canes that can be trained to a fence or
very attractive large flowers, is non-invasive, and nearly all are
o but the fruit, while much larger than it's wild
progenitor, very often lack sweetness and flavor. Black berries start
bearing virtually the year after they are planted. Like most brambles,
they are bird magnets, and realistically, have to be netted.One of the
advantages of the blackberry is that tolerates partial shade. They are
reasonable easy to grow, tolerating most soils, altho sandy soils will
have to be heavily mulched to keep it moist. In wet and humid areas it
can be subject to fungal diseases. Erect growing varieties have the
disease resistance. pruning is easy, immediately after harvest simply
the canes that have just fruited and cut out any new canes that seem
Keep only about 8 new canes a plant. They can then be tied in tiers
your wires or tied against a wall in a fan shape. In the summer the new
canes do need to have their ends cut off at about 2.4M/8 feet, to
flowering laterals for the following spring. These laterals can have
length pruned off (down to about 30cm/12inches) in winter to make them
easier to net, if you want. With many brambles-especially vigorous
types like boysenberry-it is a good idea to pick up the new canes as
grow over spring and early summer and temporararily tie them to a wire
to keep them off the ground and stop tip rooting. With erect and stout
caned blackberries this is not really necessary. Blackberries need
fertilser beyond some nitrogen.
Waldo-is very early, crops
reasonably, has very good flavor, and is not too vigorous, but is
thorny.(UK)
Ashton cross-is mid
heavy cropping, very good flavor, but thorny.
Loch Ness-early to mid
heavy cropping, desirable semi-erect habit thornless traits, flavor
(for a thornless).(UK)
Thornfree-late fruiting,
very productive, poor tasting fruit, subject to fungal disease in wet
humid areas. (US, NZ)
Other erect blackberries
include Darrow, Cherokee, Cheyenne, Comanche, and& Shawnee (US)
Chester Thornless-one of
the hardiest blackberries.
- variety notes on boysenberry, youngberry, and other hybrid berries
to the home gardener. It includes new hybrids that the home gardener is
unlikey to see. Commercially oriented, and rather brief, but some good
pictures of the fruit
http://www.hortnet.co.nz/industry/berryfed/bvd/bvd2.htm
Information
for commercial growers from MAFRA, Ontario, but the basic cultural
requirement
information is the same for us homegardeners. Includes an equal amont
the somewhat similar black raspberry.No real variety notes, primarily
http://www.gov.on.ca/OMAFRA/english/crops/facts/98-059.htm
Blackberries
and brambles in USA, Oregon. JJJ
page briefly discussing aboout 12 blackberries and hybrids, plus a
discussion on the pros and cons of several pruning systems, including
'alternate
year bearing'. For commercial growers, but good home garden facts are
http://berrygrape.orst.edu/fruitgrowing/berrycrops/blackberry.htm
ashei, V. australe, V.corymbosum-Fresh blueberries of the most
flavorsome
varieties are a d run of the mill varieties are
worth bothering with. But-birds love blueberries-they must be netted,
you will get very little. In addition, they are rigorously demanding in
soil type-either it is a naturally highly acidic soil, or the soil will
have to be extensively amended with peat, acidifying agents such as
and/or acidifying plant material such as pine needles added as a mulch.
Alternatively, container mixes for acid loving plants can be used.
Blueberries
have a fibrous root system, and will not tolerate the soil drying out.
Conversely, the soil needs to be reasonably well drained. Heavy
incorporations
of peat to either sandy soil or to heavy soil will help fix drying out
in the one case, and poor aeration and drainage in the other.
There are two main types
of blueberry-'highbush', V.australe and V.corymbosum;
'rabbiteye', V.ashei.
The highbush types grow
to about 1.8M/6 feet, and are entirely self fertile. The fruit mature
early to mid summer.
Rabbiteye types are taller
plants, are more tolerant of heavier and less acid soils, need less
chill to flower well, and tolerate heat and drought better than the
types. Their fruit follows on the highbush types, maturing from around
mid through to late summer. These are the types adapted to the warm
areas. On the minus side, they are self infertile, so two varieties are
needed for cross pollination, the berries are a little smaller, and the
flesh texture perhaps a little grainy.
Providing it's somewhat
exacting requirements are met, you can expect light crops from your
in the first few years, building to around 2.25kg/5lbs by the fifth
and 4 or 5 kgs/approx.10lb when the bush is mature. Pruning is not
for the first 3 or 4 years, and is simple, a matter of removing about a
quarter of the very oldest stems every year. Blueberries have variable
autumn colors, depending on the cultivar. Some are yellow, some orange,
and some red.Those with the strongest autumn colors have strong
value. Blueberries flower early in spring (don't plant them in a frost
pocket or you won't get fruit), and the pendant white tubular flowers
very pretty.
Highbush Blueberry
Varieties-
Earliblue-Early season.
Large berries and good autumn color, rather low yeilds.(US, UK, NZ)
Bluecrop-Early season.
berries, highly productive, orange and red autumn colors.(US, UK, NZ)
Nui-Early season. Large
berries, moderately productive, very large fruit, good flavor,
has a bonus light autumn crop.(NZ)
Stanley-Early to mid
Medium sized berry, moderate yeilds, excellent flavor.(US, UK, NZ)
Berkley-Mid season. open
and spreading bush. Very productive of very large berries. Relatively
chill requirement.(US, UK, NZ)
Herbert-Late season.
bush, heavy cropper, very large fruit, one of the best tasting
blueberries,
unremarkable autumn colors.(US, UK, NZ)
Colville-late season.
fruit on a productive, vigorous bush. Holds it's fruit well without
them near maturity.(US, UK, NZ)
Rabbiteye Blueberry
Climax- produces heavy
of good sized fruit.(US, NZ)
Delite-Mid season. Very
vigorous (more than 2M/6ft 6inches), high yeilding and very good
flavor.(US,
Walker-Mid season. In good
years it is a particulalry sweet blueberry.(US, NZ)
Woodard-Mid to late
The bushes are medium sized and rather spreading . Woodard is large
a rabbiteye, anyway), light blue, and has good flavor. (US, NZ)
- the Highbush blueberry JJJ
good one page overview based on an Oregon State University Extension
publication
- soil and climate requirements, description of the plant, what yield
expect, general care.
http://berrygrape.orst.edu/fruitgrowing/berrycrops/blueberry.htm
page at the NZ BerryFed site describes 7 or so mainly NZ bred varieties
of blueberries available to commercial growers in New Zealand. There is
also good basic cultural information, and photos of some of the fruits.
Only a very limited range of berry fruit varieties are available to
gardeners in New Zealand, so many of those mentioned may be
unobtainable.
JJJJ Written
by the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture & Rural Affairs for home
gardeners,
this page covers all the relevant details of home garden blueberry
chiefly for highbush and cold climate conditions, but with much useful
general cultural information. Soils,
fertilizer, varieties,
water, pests etc.
nutritional requirements JJJ
by& The Hort and Food Research Institute of New Zealand Ltd, this
useful page covers the nutrient requirtements, what sort of fertilisers
are useful, nutrient disorders, and how to correct them. Commercially
but still good for the home garden.
pruning JJJJ The
principles
behind pruning blueberries and the practices for new and older bushes
explained in this Oregon State University Extension web page.
http://osu.orst.edu/dept/infonet/guides/blueberr/pruning.htm
BLACK CURRANT-
BOYSENBERRY
boysenberry is a raspberry-blackberry hybrid with 'Himalayan Giant'
blackberry
being one parent. The
boysenberry is acid, but sweetens if left to darken and become plump
turgid, at which point they fall off the vine at a gentle pull.
boysenvberries still have a very slight bitter and sulfurous& note
even when fully ripe. They start fruiting in very early& summer
have a short picking season. The thornless variety is the best one to
grow-altho
it should properly be described as 'semi-thornless'. One of the virtues
of the boysenberry is that it is drought tolerant, relative to other
fruit, and thrives on lighter free draining soils, where others fail.
boysenberry tolerates a wide range of soils. Boysenberries are not
found in the marketplace as they are very soft when ripe, so if you
to eat fresh fruit you will have to grow them yourself. Boysenberries
a wire or fence to grow on, they need to be sprayed against fungus
unless you have a fairly dry climate, and they must be netted against
if you are to harvest fully vine ripened fruit. Pruning is as for
blackberry. Boysens
require winter protection below 0 degrees F.
- variety notes on boysenberry, youngberry, and other hybrid berries
to the home gardener. It includes new hybrids that the home gardener is
unlikey to see. Commercially oriented, and rather brief, but some good
pictures of the fruit
CHERRYPrunus
avium-. Sweet cherries are more cold hardy than peaches, but not as
hardy as pears and plums. The varieties 'Windsor', 'Governor Wood', and
'Lyon' are considered to be among the most cold hardy of the sweet
cultivars. They need about 1000 hours of winter chilling& .'Bing',
'Lambert', and 'Napoleon' have the longest chilling requirement.
need good drainage, and that will do badly on poorly drained clay
Bird theft is problematical, but cherries are easy care and can be very
productive of premium taste treats. Large trees. Usually need two to
In some areas, they are suceptible to brown rot, which badly damages
fruit. In humid, maritime areas, cracking after rain can be a big
most particularly in the firmer varieties such as 'Bing', rather than
softer types such as 'Van' or 'Stark Gold'. Because cherries mature
in the fruit season, they can also be damaged by hail. Birds are a real
problem, and until a reliable dwarfing rootstock is found, (dwarfing
for cherries are really semi-dwarfing, the trees going to 4.5M/15 feet
plus) the best the home gardener can do is to grow cherries trained as
a fan against a wall, and then net them. This requires a high degree of
skill, effort, and dedication. So most of us will either chose another
fruit, or enjoy the blossoms without high expectations of beating the
to the fruit. 'Ulster', a late fruiting split resistant red cherry is a
relatively small cultivar and may be wwell suited to training, but it
needs another variety as pollenizer. Tangshe -self fertile, fruits very
well, fruit are pleasant but not as good as most other cultivars. With
the exception of 'Stella' and 'Compact Stella', all sweet cherries need
a pollenizer to bear well. Generally, dark colored varieties will
dark varieties, and light colored varieties pollenize light varieties.
Sour (pie) cherries bloom later than sweet cherries and bear heavily
a pollenizer, as well as being more cold hardy. Unhealthy trees can
winter kill of the buds.& These may be the only cherries that can
grown in areas with late spring frosts.
Cold hardy cherries-there
are some cherry species adapted to continental cold. Their fruit is
only suitable for making jellies/jams or pies.
Nanking Cherry Prunus
tomentosa-small, red, low acid cherries that are edible as a fresh
fruit as well as for conserves. A large shrub. There is a selected
of this species which has best cold tolerance-'Northern Limit'.
Mogolian Cherry Prunus
fruiticosa-small, sour cherries on a suckering shrub.
Sandcherry: Prunus
besseyi -small black sour fruit.& There are selected strains
superior fruit sometimes offered.
Pincherry - Prunus
pennsylvanica-Cv.'Jumping Pound'. Sour.
Chokecherry Prunus
virginiana& Grown as an ornamental or for conserves. Sour.
JJJJ Brief
on the fruit and tree characteristics of 15 cultivars of cherry for
from Sierra Gold Nurseries, California, website. Includes a photo
of the 'Bing' cultivar.
CHESTNUT- see 'Nut,
CRANBERRY- Myrtus ugni- highly recommended - knee high
shrub that bears heaps of sweet, resinous, aromatic fruit, about
size or less. Nothing quite like it, a late summer treat. Frost hardy,
easy to grow, productive. It is never found in the markets and is
chock full of health promoting substances.
CHOKECHERRY-Aronia
sp. A native of northeast USA, this small deciduous shrub is grown
commercially in Northern Europe for the health giving (supposedly)
properties
of the mild and pleasant, somewhat blueberry like berries. The foliage
is very ornamental in autumn. Unusual and hard to find, if you are a
freak, this is an easy grow plant. Requires two for cross pollination
berry set.
and autumn foliage JJJ are
beautifully illustrated at this page on the Cornell University site.
http://www.fvs.cornell.edu/Faculty/php/MarvinPritts/Ornamentals/page8.htm
CRANBERRY-
macrocarpon These small wiry stemmed bog plants live in an acid
soil and produce oval approximately grape sized sour red fruit. The
should be prepared as for blueberries but& even more acidic
and wetter. This& can be arranged by digging a hole and lining it
with plastic to create an artificial bog. Fill the lined hole with peat
or a mixture of peat and lime free soil, and plant your cranberry in
Mulch heavily with peat. You should obtain a yield from a well grown
of about 0.5kg per square metre/1 Ib per square yard. Cranberries don't
need pruning, but their rambling wiry stems may need cutting back every
now and then. Cranberries keep very well in the refrigerator- up to two
months-so the fruit can be progressively stored as they ripen over
Cranberries form a low mat, and so can be incorporated in borders or
gardens, and to that extent are well suited to small space gardening.
delicate little pink spring flowers are charming, and the fruit
attractive,
they require no pollenizer, seem to fruit satisfactorily in warm
areas (although their may be cultivar differences), and seem to be
unaffected
by pests and diseases. The only question that remains is why grow the
little devils, hen you can buy canned cranberries and cranberry juice
outstanding
simple, clear, fact sheet aimed at growing cranberries in a home garden
situation. It covers cultivars, soil, making a bed, flowering,
fertilising and more, and has five nice photos illustrating the
of your own cranberry bed. Written for USA conditions, but applicable
all temperate areas.
http://www.cranberrycreations.com./info.html
entertaining
history of cranberry cultivation since European colonisation of
NorthAmerica.
A good basic paragraph on cranberry culture included.
http://www.burlco.lib.nj.us/pinelands/cranber.htm
photos JJ Some nice
of the fruit (and the lingon berry) are at this page at the Cornell
University
siet (slow load).
http://www.fvs.cornell.edu/Faculty/php/MarvinPritts/Ornamentals/page11.htm
Easy to grow, packed full of vitamins, don't take up much space- as
as pollination is good and you throw a net over to keep the birds off,
you'll get heaps.
Black currant (Ribes
nigrum)-There is quite a lot going for the black currant. It is a
tonic in a berry' due to it's high vitamin content, it is more tolerant
of wet soil than most other berry fruit, they are more adaptable to
acidity, the bushes are small, they bear heavily in suitable climates
/IOlb is normal for a healthy well grown bush), they come into bearing
within two years of planting, they are not as attractive to birds as
berry fruit such as raspberries, and they are easy to prune (cut off a
third of the shoots every winter at about 50mm/2 inches from the soil
oldest shoots). On the down side, they are early bloomers, and
subject to damage in frost pockets, they are not particularly
attractive
looking plants, the fruit are only sweet enough to eat as a fresh fruit
if they are planted in ther full sun. They can be affected by a serious
disease called 'reversion disease', but this is just bad luck.
This page at the NZ BerryFed site describes 6 or so varieties of black
currants available to commercial growers in New Zealand. Only a very
range of berry fruit varieties are available to home gardeners in New
so many of those mentioned may be unobtainable
White currant (R.sylvestre)-uncommon,
similar to the black, but not! (black, that is). The comments under
Currants' applies equally to white currants.
Red currant (R.rubrum)-
Red currants produce a lot of fruit (4.5kg /IOlb is normal for a
well grown bush), and unlike blackcurrants, can be pruned into
particular
shapes, such as cordons (yeilding around 0.5-1kg/1-2lb) or fans. Red
are not subject to reversion disease. Red currants are easy to prune-in
winter cut laterals back to one bud to encourage fruiting spurs, and
out branches that have been fruiting for three years or so to allow a
continuing
growth of younger branches. The long 'strigs' of bright red shiny
fruit is attractive in itself, and fan or cordoned bushes have
architectural
landscape value.
White currant (R.sylvestre)-uncommon,
similar to the black, but not! The
cultivar 'Blanca' is noted for especially good levels of sugar in the
of black, red, and white currant fruit JJ
- the citation refers to a page on the Cornell University site
http://www.fvs.cornell.edu/Faculty/php/MarvinPritts/Ornamentals/page10.htm
ELDERBERRY
canadensis- These stemmy bushes produce heaps of small black
with a slightly soapy taste, whose main use seems to be to feed the
The big panicles of creamy ethereal flowers are very attractive in
The shrub/bushes have a habit of sending up suckers further out from
base of the plant, especially if the roots are cut at any time.
The Ontario Ministry of Agriculture & Rural Affairs has a
good fact sheet on all aspects of growing elderberries in the home
including a photo
of the fruit. The pest and disease aspect is particularly strongly
(North American pests and diseases). While
for a temperate climate, the basic facts are equally applicable to warm
temeprate areas.
http://www.gov.on.ca/OMAFRA/english/crops/facts/95-005.htm
brief but useful home garden notes from Michigan State University
http://www.msue.msu.edu/msue/imp/mod03/.html
fruit and flowers JJ are
featured in two first rate photos on this page at the Cornell
University
http://www.fvs.cornell.edu/Faculty/php/MarvinPritts/Ornamentals/page12.htm
GOOSEBERRY
uva-crispa. Gooseberies are usually an acid fruit (although when
bush ripened some are very mild and good eating out of hand), and
used for pies (originally they were used in sauces served with
acidity was a counterpoint to the fattiness of the goose). The berries
can be green, greenish yellow, yellow, pink, or red, smooth or with
hairs.& You are dealing with a very thorny plant (There are a few
varieties with greatly reduced thorniness). Grown as a bush (preferably
on a single stem), the plant it about 5feet/1.5m high and wide.
Gooseberries&
will grow well on most soils, provided they are not too wet, and there
is plenty of organic matter incorporated in the soil. Gooseberries need
a lot of potassium, so the fertiliser you use should be high in
or give additional potassium in winter (about 1oz/
34gms/square
metre) Fruit laden branches can break if& grown in a windy
situation,
so they either need a bit of shelter, or grow them as cordons.
Single cordons can be grown 12 inches/30cm apart. The birds will eat
gooseberries unless you drape a net over the plants as they ripen. In
areas, bushes yeild about& 8lb/3.5kg& and will keep fruiting
for 20 a single cordon yeilds about I-21b/0.5- 1 kg . In
late summer prune all the laterals back to about 5 leaves, but don't
the leaders. In winter cut the main leaders in half at an inward
bud or lateral (this helps overcome the gooseberries tendency to droop)
A particularly devastating fungus called 'American mildew' haas meant
only mildew resistant varieties can be really successfully grown.
Invicta -A small plum
green gooseberry that is mildew resistant.
Pax-A sweet,&
thornless mildew resistant gooseberry.
of various goosebery fruit JJ
citation refers to a page on the Cornell University site
http://www.fvs.cornell.edu/Faculty/php/MarvinPritts/Ornamentals/page10.htm
JJJ Information
on wild USA grapes, mainly from the botanical and winemaking point of
Interesting.
excellent page on pruning grapes in areas subject to spring freeze,
by the Michigan State University Department of Horticulture. Covers the
'Geneva curtain' and 'Hudson River umbrella' modified cordon pruning
http://www.msue.msu.edu/vanburen/e-1935.htm
these are the 8 commonest diseases of Michigan State, powdery and downy
mildew are present in all grape growing countries. This very good fact
sheet describes the symptoms, goes thru' the life cycle, and outlines
methods of control. Not only are there links to good photos of the
symptoms, there is also a table of the disease resistance of some
including 4 common table varieties. From Michigan State University
Extension.
USA http://www.msue.msu.edu/vanburen/e-1732.htm
KIWIFRUIT Actinidia arguta, A.kolomikta, A.melanadra,
A.purpurea,
A.eriantha and others. 'Tara berries', 'Baby kiwifruit'.
have been many different 'wild', unimproved but still edible, species
kiwifruit introduced to the West from China and Russia over the last
years or so, altho' suprisingly, very few are available. They vary in
from 'famine-only food' to very nice, with most species being very
nice-sweet,
sometimes fragrant,& usually soft green fleshed, and pleasant. A.eriantha
has astounding levels of vitamin C, but unfortunately is unpalatable,
peppery tasting. However, most species have very good levels of vitamin
are very cold hardy and thus recommended for temperate areas, but
paradoxically,
some (especially A.arguta) have exceptionally good bud break in
spring-better, in fact, than their much larger warm temperate cousin
'kiwi', and so are successful in both climatic area. The vines are
remarkably
free of disease, and the green fruit seem to be ignored by
birds-presumably
on the basis that they look unripe. Their fruit is generally from
to about large grape size, depending on species, variety, and how well
pollinated the flower was. The fruit are completely smooth, and the
is edible, unlike the commercial 'kiwi'. The fruit of A.arguta
sometimes marketed, but is still not readily available. These vines
reasonable drainage and wires to grow along or a pergola to grow over.
They do need to be pruned every year, and A.arguta, in
particular,
becomes a dense mass if it isn't dealt to. Pruning is easy, pruning
to two buds at the base of the current seasons growth when the plant is
dormant. A few cultivars are self fertile, but others must have a male
plant for cross pollination (the sexes are on different plants). The
of self fertile varieties are larger in the prescence of a pollenizer.
A.kolomikta-'Kishmish'&
'Arctic Beauty Kiwi'..
kolomikta is the hardiest of this group, with some claims that it
withstand -30F when mature.Does best in light shade, which makes it a
particularly
valuable plant. After about 4 years, the leaves of some plants may
a natural purple and cream leaf variagation, which is quite attractive.
The A.kolomikta cultivar& 'Ananasaya' ('pineapple') comes
bearing early and bears very well.It is overwhelmingly the major
commercially
planted cultivar.
JJJJ showing
the ornamental purple/pink variagation in mature plants. From Oregon
University USA Landscape site
Actinidia arguta-'Bowerberry',
and is sometimes called the 'Tara berry', 'baby kiwi' and 'grape kiwi',
and this first name may well end up as the generic name for all the
fruited hardy kiwifruit species. The fruit are one of the largest of
Tara berries.& The vines are vigorous, and prefer full sun, altho'
they will tolerate some shade, and is very widely adapted altho' it is
not regarded as being as freeze tolerant as A.kolomikta. Allow
3-5M/10-16 feet for the vines to run on. The vine can be tipped and
pruned to keep it in bound. 'Noel' is said to be particulaly large and
productive (NZ), 'Geneva'(CAN) is early maturing.
flowers and vine of Actinidia arguta JJ
beautifully
photographed at this page on the Cornell University Site.
http://www.fvs.cornell.edu/Faculty/php/MarvinPritts/Ornamentals/page7.htm
Actinidia arguta x
species- 'Red Princess' (CAN) is a delicate looking, highly
ornamental
vine which bears green fruit with a reddish blush and reddish tinge to
the flesh. The fruit drop readily as they approach maturity, which is a
useful attribute for the home gardener. 'MSU' (CAN) has exceptionally
fruit (2-3 inches/50-75mm long) and is slower to come into bearing than
most and not as productive. 'Ken's Red' (NZ CAN) is very similar to an
fruit, but with a red blush and dull reddish flesh. 'Issai'
(US CAN), (possibly x A.polygama) is said to be self fertile,
precocious,
and late ripening (this is one of the major commercial cultivars)
? A. chinensis -
This is from seed from China, grown at the Pacific Agri-Research Centre
at British Columbia, in Canada. It appears to be A. chinensis;
in New Zealand A. chinesis are considered prone to late frost
so this variety may be a breakthrough for colder areas. More
information
is needed.
this is a journal devoted to kiwi fruit species. Volume 6,
at the NAFEX kiwifruit interest group page, has a very good photograph
of a group of Actinidia species fruits, including fruit of A.arguta,
A.eriantha, A.melanandra, and others
JJJ brief notes on
of Actinidia, propogation, germplasm resources from the USDA
Agriculture
Research Service& National Clonal Germplasm Repository.
species citation& J extremely
cryptic -of who described the species, when, in what publication, the
range, and previous names. - 42 odd species and hybrids at the
Resources Information Network (GRIN) database. For the extreme
enthusiast,
not 'garden useful' for most of us.
kiwifruit JJJJ primarily
and A.kolomikta, are discussed in good detail in this fact
for home gardeners from Ohio State University Extension.
page with general information on adaptation and culture, then brief to
good notes on four species and 19 cultivars of hardy kiwi. From
Tripplebrook
Farm in USA, which sells plants of the varieties described.
Particulalry
useful for cultivars of the Russian&& A. kolomikta.
lovely photograph
of hybrids between Actinidia arguta and various other hardy
at North Americas main arguta commercial research site.
in Oregon, USA JJJJ Lots
of information on cultivars - notes on over 16 types. Also links to all
elements of growing and harvesting.
http://berrygrape.orst.edu/fruitgrowing/berrycrops/kiwifruit.htm
page on 'Jia', an Actinidia chinensis, yellow fleshed variety.
Arguta in Canada& JJJ A
page on the general requirements for arguta and other hardy kiwi in
with details on structures, varieties, and commercial properties. From
the Pacific Agri - Food Research Centre of Canada. Commercially
but useful. Good photos of several cultivars.
a very good, detailed fact sheet covering all aspects of growing in the
home garden, with particular accent on zone hardiness in continental
t JJJJ California
Rare Fruit Growers very good review of all the hardy kiwi species and
and their culture.
fact sheet on kiwifruit in UK and where to see kiwi species at Kew
HILDABERRY
the tayberry and the boysenberry. Early season. The berry is very
red, and the flavor has been described as 'good', whatever that means.
The plants are thorny and vigorous. We have found no other details on
bramble, but suppose it is grown the same way as a blackberry
RAISIN TREE Hovenia dulcis-fast growing handsome and
bears strange nibblie fruiting bodies on the tips
of the branches, which when partly dry, taste for all the world like
Weird. Quite good autumn colours. Quite a good landscape tree, but the
fruit have novelty value only really. Most people taste them, find them
acceptable, but don't bother with them again.
KIWIFRUIT,
HARDY Go to ''.
LOGANBERRY
raspberry/blackberry hybrid. A
large dusty maroon red berry that ripens about 10 days before
Boysenberry.
It bears heavily, and is quite well adapted to cool summer areas. It is
quite acid in flavor, and not something you would any a lot of as a
fruit. Trailling and thorny, it is best as a canning/bottling
propostion,
but even then you have to add a lot of sugar, which defeats the purpose
The selection LY 654 is
thornless.
Grow as for Blackberry
VINE Schizandra chinensis - a hardy deciduous vine (a
of the magnolia) growing to about 6M/20 feet that produces very
attractive
red berries which are tart but aromatic.The pink flowers are pleasantly
fragrant. Sweetened, the berries used for juice and preserves. The
are said to be high in vitamin C, and shizandrin, a stimulating and
supposedly
healthful compound.
MARIONBERRY-
bramble is a cross between a blackberry and the Olallie
berry from Marion County, Oregon, USA. It is a bright black, medium
to large sized fruit.& It fruits at the same time as boysenberry.
It's advantages over the boysenberry are that it is more attractive
it has better flavor, the seeds are much smaller than boysenberies
intrusive seeds, and the plants are probably a bit hardier.
The plant itself is very
vigorous and very thorny, and the strong canes seem elatively disease
resistant.
Marionberries need a wire or fence to grow on, they need to be sprayed
against fungus diseases unless you have a fairly dry climate, and they
must be netted against birds if you are to harvest fully vine ripened
Pruning is as for.
aestivalis "Applehaw'- These hardy trees produce fruit in spring.
trees are extremely adaptable to soil type, and can stand both
occassional
flooding and drought. They are also relatively disease resistant. While
they tolerate freezes to minus 40F, they flower very early and the
are liable to be frosted. The fruit are usually red, carried in
and about an inch/25mm in diameter. The flavor is politely described as
'wild', but they are palatable.
'Super Spur' produces
quatities of fruit on a heavily spurring tree-a well established tree
produce as much as 80 gallons!
'Texas Star' has intense
red berries and is a& late blooming variety.
'Royalty' is also
lateblooming
and it's with showy white flowers are over an inch/25mm in diameter.
'Gem' is late
blooming and has a concentrated fruit ripening.
Turkey apple-the largest
fruit of the mayhaws, and the fruit mature in autumn, not spring.
germanica- This unusual fruit is the size of a small apple. It has
dry brown skin and contains firm flesh and some furry pips. The fruit
inedible straight off the tree-they have to be picked and left to
soft-a process known as 'bletting'. When the flesh has become soft, it
is a mid brownish color, and tastes exactly of compote of apples/stewed
apples. If you blett them for too long, they rot. As the fruit are ripe
about the same time as apples, there seems little point in growing it,
except the small (3-6M/10-20 feet) tree is austere, slow growing,
deciduous,
with attractive white flowers, and it will puzzle all who see it. It is
relatively indifferent to soil and position in the garden, and seems
unaffected by pests and diseases.
White Mulberry (Morus alba), Black Mulberry (M.nigra),
mulberry (M.rubra)
White Mulberry - The
are white, pinkish, or blackish purple 25-50mm/1-2 inches long. Some
are sweet, others are insipid. The tree is fast growing, with large,
green, smooth and shiny leave. The fruit of the best cultivars is OK,
especially
if cooked, but it will have to be netted from the birds, which love
They have to be fully ripened on the tree, otherwise they are rather
and certainly tasteless. To be nettable, the trees need to be heavily
each year, which doesn't faze them, as fruit are carried on new growth.
Black Mulberry-The fruits
are very jicy, sweet, and stain when they fall from the tree.
Paradoxically,
while it is by far the best mulberry, it is also a nuisance from the
of view of the staining fruit. A very large deciduous tree with dark
lobed leaves that are downy underneath. Because it is large and
it is hard to contain.
Red Mulberry -The native
American mulberry, most often it is often used as a rootstock for the
mulberry (the black mulberry is difficult to propogate from cuttings
may be incompatible with the white mulberry).& The fruit is edible.
persica- Nectarine flowers are a bit more susceptible to frost
than peaches, otherwise the comments that apply to
apply to nectarines-the nectarine is a smooth skinned, fuzzless peach.
There are, of course, connoisseur nectarine varieties, as there are
connoisseur
peach, just not so many.
JJJJ Brief
notes on the fruit and tree characteristics of 11 cultivars of
for USA, with particular reference to Californian climatic conditions,
so you may need to espalier these varieties against a wall and cover
against frost damage. From Sierra Gold Nurseries, California, website.
Includes a photo of the 'Fantasia' cultivar.
ALMOND Prunus amygdalus- almonds are the first spring
In the temperate zone, their blossoms are usually destroyed by frost so
they are not a practical proposition-unless you grow a dwarf form in a
large tub that can be wheeled into a sheltered area. There is no
to home grown almonds over fresh commercial ones, so almonds have no
in the urban& food garden.
JJJJ Brief
on the nut type and tree characteristics of 17 cultivars of almond for
USA, from Sierra Nurseries, California, website.
CHESTNUT Castanea sativa, C.crenata, C.x sativa Chestnuts
in early-mid autumn, and are usually regarded as too large for the
garden. Grafted trees start to bear nuts when less than head high, so
may be possible to keep them small with severe pruning. That said, the
flavor of chestnuts is so close to the sweet potato (Ipoemea batatas),
that it is probably better to use the space for another food bearing
and simply buy sweet potato, which are easier to prepare, and much
Besides, the racemes of inconspicuous flowers smell musty.
C.crenata-Japanese
C.sativa-sweet or
Spainish chestnut.
very good overview of growing chestnuts in all aspects, both Eropean
Chinese, by the NSW Department of Agriculture. Covers everything in
sensible detail. Intended for commercial growers, but still very useful
for us home gardeners. There are notes on 9 Australian varieties.
http://www.agric.nsw.gov.au/Hort/Decid_pub/h3150p3.htm
- JJJ brief
16 cultivars of Chinese and hybrid cultivars that are blight and gall
resistant, and the characteristics of the nut and tree. At Englands
Site, Kentucky.
http://www.nuttrees.net/ntree.html
JJJ A fact
sheet from
the Northern Nut Growers Association covering all aspects of growing
chestnuts.
http://www.icserv.com/nnga/faqchest.htm
JJJ American
native chestnuts were almost destroyed by an introduced blight. This
is devoted to helping the community find and grow blight resistant
of this valuable timber and nut tree.
http://ipm.ppws.vt.edu/griffin/grow.html
A very good fact sheet on the history, and culture of chestnuts
in New Zealand. A publication of the New Zealand Chestnut Council, it
therefore commeercially oriented, but the basic growing and varietal
are very useful. Useful for all countries.
http://www.nzcc.org.nz/factsheet.html
HAZEL Corylus avellana 'Filbert', 'Fillbasket'. The hazel
a superb tasting nut, an ideal hominid food, a graceful small bushy
(it can be trained as a standard), tolerates light shade, and a
ideal home garden food source except that it suckers like crazy from
base of the tree. Hazels need a lot of winter chill, altho,
paradoxically,
because they flower in winter they can be damaged by severe frost, so
plant in a frost pocket. Once the tiny female flowers have set, they
resistant to freezing temperatures again. Two different cultivars are
for cross pollination.
The major problem is a
called 'Eastern Filbert Blight'. The major commercial pollinators are
suceptible
to this disease, so only resistant cultivars should be grown. Trouble
there are not many, altho further resistant cultivars are being bred
'Grand Traverse' is known
to be resistant.
very good general overview of hazel growing from the NSW Department of
Agriculture. It covers everything you would expect, from site to
to prunng, and briefy discusses particular problems such as suckering
drought. It includes a couple of nice pictures of the nuts and a mature
PECAN Carya illinoisensis-Most commercial pecan varieties
only be grown in southern New Mexico. Pecan varieties grown in the
part of the U.S., such as 'Major' and 'Peruque', and trees selected by
the Northern Nutgrowers Association such as Fritz, Lucas, and others
have limited success. The pecan is a very big tree, and it usually
cross pollination. It is not really a practical proposition for the
of temperate food gardeners, unless you are a plant experimenter with a
very big lot and who likes to try to push the boundaries.
very good page on varieties, culture, and insect pests of pecan in
Carolina. As North Carolina is regarded as at rather much at the
limit for pecans, the information may have relevance to other cool
or short season areas. Produced by the North Carolina State University
Co-operative Extension
WALNUT Juglans regia Most English walnut varieties are
winter hardy but they break dormancy relatively early in spring when
probability of frosts is high. And new growth carrying the
inconspicuous
female flowers can be killed by below freezing temperatures. Therefore,
late flowering (late leafing out) cultivars, plus good cold air
is essential to get nuts.
Proven late leafing
are 'Hansen', and& 'Somers'. Walnuts need well drained soil, and
soil moisture in summer. Walnuts are very large trees, and should be
at least 7.5M/25 feet from the house to avoid leaves in the guttering,
excessive shading, and damage to paving from roots. To get the maximum
number of nuts fruit well you usually need two different cultivars,
most single trees will still bear acceptably in the home garden.&
A grafted tree will start bearing nuts in about the fifth year.Cultivars
page (description of varieties for home production, plus links to web
with variety notes)
BERRY This bramble is a cross between a black Loganberry and a
Youngberry.
It is not very cold hardy, and will winter kill in the colder parts of
the temperate zoneThe berries are black, long and narrow, firm and
with wild blackberry overtones at full maturity. The plants are highly
productive, vigorous and thorny. Culture is as for blackberry.
PEACHPrunus
persica-the peach is less hardy than apples and pears, and blooms
to a month earlier than the apple. This means that its blossom
frequently
gets hit by frost. It is possible to grow peaches by fan training them
against a wall and providing frost protection with plastic covered
but it is not really worth the effort involved. Better to buy them at
local supermarket, unless you are in a favored microclimate. Even then,
late spring frosts can damage the crop in some years.If you really want
to grow your own peaches, you should be aware that, late frost aside,
peach does best where there is a hot and dry summer climate. In humid
areas they are subject to fungal diseases, chiefly leaf curl, which
defoliation, and brown rot, which rots the fruit just at or before
A single copper spray at leaf drop largely takes care of leaf curl, but
preventing brown rot requires some fairly staunch fungicides applied
few weeks of the season, and applied thoroughly. Removing infected
also helps keep the infective spore load down. Peaches really need
reasonably
free draining soil. Most peach varieties are self fruitful. However, if
you are planting 'J. H. Hale', 'Stark Honeydew Hale', or 'Stark Hale
Giant', you need to plant another variety to assure adequate
pollination.
The dwarf peaches make spraying more feasible, and make it easier to
spring blosson from frost, but the fruit quality doesn't really match
mainstream cultivars. There are definite strong landscape values from
highly ornamental pink spring blossoms, so long as it is not frosted,
there are some cultivars that have exceptional connoisseur eating
which, because they are too soft, or too small etc, will never appear
the supermarkets. Peaches come into bearing quickly, within 3 years of
planting. Peaches do, however, need extensive pruning every year,
especially
where they are being wall trained. They do best in dry summer areas,
are relatively short lived in cooler and wet or humid summer areas.
The peach fruits quickly
from seed, and there have been vast numbers of varieties developed over
the years. It is a relatively short lived tree, for a variety of
except in dry climates. Therefore a vast number of cultivars have also
been abandoned or superceded over the years. Seek out a knowledgeable
specialist
nursery person or a authoratative book for advice on cultivars.
JJJJ Brief
notes on the fruit and tree characteristics of 17 cultivars of
clingstone
peach for USA, with particular reference to Californian climatic
conditions,
so you may need to espalier these varieties against a wall and cover
against frost damage. From Sierra Gold Nurseries, California, website.
Includes a photo of the 'Andross' cultivar.
JJJJ Brief
notes on the fruit and tree characteristics of 35 cultivars of
peach for USA, including some older and less well known favorites, with
particular reference to Californian climatic conditions-note the caveat
above. From Sierra Gold Nurseries, California, website. Includes a
of the 'Sierra Lady' cultivar.
very good, detailed page on everything abpout peach culture in North
with particular reference to cultivar chilling requirements. Brief
on 27 cultivars. Written for commercial orcharding, but the principles
remain the same for us home gardeners. From the North Carolina
Cooperative
Extension Service, NC State University.
communis Most pears aren't as hardy as apples, so they can't be
in the most hard winter parts of the temperate zone. The most winter
varieties are Anjou and Clapp's Favorite. Pears are relatively tolerant
of poor drainage. Pears do well even in drier, hot inland climatic
conditions.
In some countries, particularly USA, dry summer weather is essential to
control the spread of fireblight, a bactarial disease whose spread is
by humid weather. Oregon 18 and Old Home are highly resistant to
fireblight.
In contrast, most of the common dessert pear cultivars (Bartlett,
Bosc, Beurr& d'Anjou, Doyenn& du Comice, Packham's
and Winter Nelis) and rootstocks (Quince A and C) are highly
susceptible.
Fireblight is present in New Zealand, but is not a problem, for
poorly understood. Fireblight is effectively not present in Australia.
Pears grafted on dwarfing rootstocks such as quince rootstock reach
2-3M/6-10ft. Grafted onto pear seedlings they can grow anything from
ft 4inches-26ft& 6inches. Unlike apples, which are ripe when they
look ripe, pears are difficult to pick at exactly the ripe stage:
too soon they are poor quality, picked too late and they go soft in the
middle. Most high quality cultivars are available commercially at the
supermarkets,
and given the need to spray, the space could probably be used more
profitably
by an apple tree.
The pear is very amenable
to training into cordons and espaliers and other such architectural
forms, and when well done makes a magnificent spring show of white
Pears are self infertile,
and must have another suitable variety as a pollinator. Plant
in pairs, you might say.
Beurre Bosc is
pollenized
by William Bon Chretian and Winter Nelis. It has excellent connoisseur
Doyen du Comice is
pollenized by William Bon Chretian and Winter Nelis plus Beurre Bosc. A
good cultivar for areas with cool summers and mild (low chill) winters.
A premier connoisseur pear when grown in conditions that suit it.
Louise bon de Jersey
is pollenized by Conference
Packham's Triumph
is pollenized by William bon C
Bartlett/William bon
pollenized by Buerre Bosc, Clapp's Favorite, and Winter NA good
for areas with cool summers