\ Today, it’s all about Fruit trees: The ones you need to grow – Paltux

Today, it’s all about Fruit trees: The ones you need to grow

When you were a kid, did you ever take the seeds from an apple and try planting them in your backyard, hoping that one day an apple tree would begin to shoot up?

Now that you are a little older, you may still have that passion to have a yard that produces all different sorts of fruits?

This may especially be the case if you’ve been blessed with baking and canning skills that your mother or grandmother passed onto you, and you don’t want them to go to waste.  

As a Master Canning and Preserver, I highly recommend this canning book: USDA Canning Guide
Fruit Trees: The Ones You Need to Grow 
If you are considering purchasing one or a  few fruit trees for your lawn or garden, it’s good to know a little about each one before heading to a nursery. Some fruit trees are dependent upon one another and won’t thrive if there’s just one.

So let’s take a look at a few fruit trees that are not only fairly simple to grow, but will provide you with mouth-watering fruit and desserts for many years to come. 
Fruit Trees Peach
If you live in a warmer region, say between the hardiness zones of 5 and 8 or 9, and winter temperatures don’t plummet to -20 degrees Fahrenheit, then you should really consider growing peaches.

Not only do these trees provide an alluring fragrance around harvest time, but you’ll be busy in the kitchen making homemade jams, peach pies, cobblers, and muffins too. 

You’ll need to plant your peach tree where it will get plenty of sunlight, and also where the soil is well-draining. Standard peach trees should be spread apart by at least 15 to 20 feet, while the dwarf peach trees should be around 10 to 12 feet apart. It’s best to prune your peach tree in late winter, to prepare it for the growing season up ahead.  

When you go to purchase your peach tree, check the tag to see if it’s able to self-pollinate or if you’ll need to buy two. It will take around 3 to 4 seasons before they begin to bear fruit.    
Plum
One of the easiest fruit trees to care for, the plum tree, is an excellent option to get started with. They do well in all kinds of different regions, but they do need one or two others to pollinate.

When you head to the nursery to pick out a plum tree, make sure that you choose one that’s right for your climate. 

Plum trees need to be planted where there’s direct sunlight and well-drained soil. It’s best to plant them at the highest point of your garden so that when it frosts, it doesn’t settle around the base of the tree and cause damage. 

The standard plum trees should be planted about 20 to 25 feet apart, and the dwarf varieties should be about 15 to 20 feet apart. You’ll also want to thin the branches that are too small to bear the weight of any fruit. 

You’ll need to water a newly planted plum tree weekly, all the way until October so that it can manage its first winter with the new roots.

Around early spring, you’ll want to prune your young plum tree, and once it’s more mature, around the middle of summer each year. 
Apples
Apple trees provide you and your family with an annual harvest of delicious crisp fruit. Think of all those homemade apple pies you could be making with them.

Be sure to pick out your apple variety carefully, based on the size of your garden and the taste that they’ll bring. Depending on the type of apple you choose, it can take between 2 to 10 years before it starts to grow fruit.  

It’s best to plant at least two varieties so that they can pollinate each other. Without another apple tree nearby, it may have difficulty bearing fruit.

If you want to choose a tree that gives you a little variation, try the dwarf family apple that has 3 different varieties that produce on the same tree. How cool!   
Cherries
Cherry trees not only produce delicious tart fruit, but also give you an extra bonus with beautiful flowers in the spring. Both the sour and sweet cherry trees are pretty easy to grow, it just depends on what you plan on making with your cherries.

Most people enjoy a sweet cherry tree by eating its fruit raw, while the sour is used for baking and making jams. 

You’ll want to keep in mind that the sweet cherry tree is similar to the apple, and it needs another cherry tree close by for pollination. There is a dwarf sweet cherry tree that does not require a second tree to produce its fruit if you have limited space in your yard.

Most cherry trees take around 4 years before any fruit is produced. You may need to apply netting around your tree to keep birds from eating all your fruit.  

Plant your cherry tree around the late fall or early spring. Make sure you pick out a spot that gets plenty of sunlight. Cherry trees enjoy moist soil, so adding mulch around the base of the tree will help.



Standard sweet cherry trees need to be planted about 35 to 40 feet apart, and the dwarfs only around 10 to 15 feet apart. 

Standard sour cherry trees need to be spread out about 20 to 25 feet apart, while the dwarf sour cherry trees should be around 8 to 19 feet apart.

It’s best to fertilize them in the spring, right up until the first fruit appears, and then again after the harvest. Then it’s best to prune sometime during late winter, just before spring starts.  
Pear
Just like with the cherry and apple trees, pear trees require two or three to pollinate. They don’t produce any fruit until around year three, but after that, you’ll be enjoying these fruit trees for many years to come.

It’s best to choose any fire blight resistant varieties so that your pear trees don’t suffer from the disease. 

Most pear trees should be planted around 20 feet apart from each other, while the dwarf pear trees need around 15 feet spread apart. You’ll need to provide your trees with a small amount of ammonium nitrate each year. (Around ½ a cup the first four years and then 2 cups every year after that.)

It’s also important to prune your pear trees annually so that they are able to produce the most fruit. 
Please Check Out What To Plant Each Month: What To Plant In January What To Plant In February What To Plant In March What To Plant In April What To Plant In May What To Plant In June What To Plant In July What To Plant In August What To Plant In September What To Plant In October Garden Gloves
These are my favorite garden gloves: DIGZ Garden Gloves They come in different sizes, that’s what I love the most. These are the best rose bush gloves: DIGZ Rose Bush Garden Gloves I have to get the large size for my hands. These are awesome!
Final Word  
Even if you don’t consider yourself to be blessed with a green thumb, these types of fruit trees will do most of the work on their own and you’ll be left reaping the rewards. Have you ever grown fruit trees in your yard in the past? Did you have the benefit of several growing seasons of delicious fruit? I’d love to hear about it. Isn’t it great to know about fruit trees: the ones you need to grow? May God bless this world, Linda

Copyright Images: Apple Tree Deposit photos_5530935_s-2019, Cherry Tree Deposit photos_83963668_s-2019, Pear Tree Depositphotos_1542670_s-2019, Plum Tree Depositphotos_11418923_s-2019, Peach Tree Depositphotos_12087313_s-2019, Apples in Basket Depositphotos_14134540_s-2019

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