by Jungle Jim, Scenic Nursery
Anyone who has tasted the difference between store bought and tree ripened fruit knows why people would like to grow their own fruit. Would you enjoy picking your own fruit off your own tree? Needing no ladder? With 6 different kinds of fruit in a 3x10' area? Doing the pruning in ten minutes a few times a year? Using all the fruit? With more fruit than your family can eat so you can still share? Does this sound too good to be true? It's not!
People who have seen conventional home orchards have seen the amount of work, space and time required for the amount of fruit the average family wants. In Modesto, everyone knows how to prune fruit trees because they see them all over the county. They expect trees to get 15-20 feet tall and expect trees to take 150-200 square feet of yard space.
We need to remember that growing fruit at home is different than in a commercial orchard. In commercial orchards the last few peaches or nectarines off a tree are all profit. At home, the extra is just more fruit to throw away. Most orchards have all the needed equipment, such as 14 foot ladders, pruning equipment, spray equipment, and picking containers. Yet many commercial orchards are now using close-planting and short-growing techniques to reduce labor costs and save money. If you drive around you can see this in some of the new orchards.
The techniques that farmers are using can be adapted to what I call "Home Fruit Bush Training." Because you can only eat so much fruit at once you don't need a whole tree of fruit ripening at one time. Home Fruit Bushes are planted close and kept short. This means you can choose and plant more varieties in less area and you can choose varieties that ripen from May until September. By keeping trees short you can prune, thin, and pick the fruit from the ground with no ladder needed. By keeping them small you don't need any of the complicated pruning techniques that large trees need to create enough light in the middle of the tree. By keeping them small you also reduce the amount of fruit that comes off at any one time, allowing you to enjoy all the fruit produced.
The "Fruit Bush Technique" does not depend on dwarf trees. It depends on summer pruning instead. This allows you to choose the best rootstock for your soil and care conditions.
Sit down and dream of the fresh peaches, nectarines, plums, pluots and apricots that can be available all summer long just by stepping outside into your own garden. By selecting varieties that ripen at different times it is easy to start having tree-ripe fruit in May continuing through the end of September. Think of the luscious, fresh, tasty fruit you can enjoy!
HOW TO DO IT: A 5-Step Guide:
Step 1: Choose your flavor. The first thing to do is choose what flavors you would like to have coming from your personal "fruit bushes." Start by deciding if you want cherries, apricots, peaches, nectarines, plums, pluots, apples and/or pears. Look at a ripening chart to get a selection of flavors and ripening dates. Decide how many of each kind and what varieties you want.
Step 2: Pick your spot. Pick your spot or spots for planting. Remember, you can get up to 5 different flavors in a 6x6' spot or 3x8' spot. Any open area can hold a few "fruit bushes". Fruit bushes like sun, but remember, many spots that seem too shady actually allow enough sun. As soon as the fruit bush gets higher than a fence they are in the sun all day.
Step 3: Plant and prune. Plant your trees and just chop them back to 2 or 3' tall. As the trees grow the first year, prune during the summer to keep them bushy. Remember: "Keep it Simple". You don't need to worry about making mistakes as long as you keep them under control. If you can prune a regular hedge or bush, you can easily prune a "fruit bush".
Step 4: Summer prune. The key to easy maintenance is pruning during the growing season. Generally, the first pruning is done when fruit is about the size of a marble. Prune to maintain shape and then thin the fruit. The second pruning is done after picking the fruit. During the rest of the growing season all you do is shorten any branches that are growing where you don't want them.
Step 5: Pick and enjoy your fruit. If you have chosen well you can have fruit from May through October or November. And by adding citrus to your garden you can have fruit year-round. Citrus trees take a little more room, but they will extend your fruit season from November through May.
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