I have a small fruit garden, which means more to me than a big orchard. But, at certain times of the year, it is as delightful to look at as a lily garden or a rose garden.
What can be more beautiful than a shapely fruit tree in blossom with all the fullness of its fragrance?
Satisfaction From Fruit Trees
Many worthwhile plants grow in my garden, but nothing gives me greater pleasure or a warmer feeling of satisfaction than the fruit trees. Even when the blossoms have gone, and the trees have lost their beauty, it is fun to watch the fruits form and start to grow.
Then it is equally thrilling to watch them develop and increase in size with the colors becoming more pronounced, day by day. And, finally, what a gratifying sight it is to see the tree loaded down with fully-matured, beautiful fruit.
Aside from eye appeal, these trees produce the superior taste and quality fruit. These fruits cannot be compared to those bought in supermarkets or fruit shops. When you grow your own, you can select varieties solely for quality.
On the other hand, the commercial grower has to think of the early ripening, size, and yield of every variety he grows. There is much more to a small fruit garden than the mere raising of a few apples, peaches, and pears.
Fondness For Fruit
When you have reached a certain mature age, you suddenly discover that time is no longer important. So start to grow fruit now and in a few years, you will enjoy something that will last the rest of your life.
As a boy, I always was extremely fond of fruit but never pictured myself as having an orchard. To me, it was a thing of mystery and something that required miraculous skill, which, I am now happy to say, is not so.
A Story About A Southern Gentleman
Years ago, in a Saturday Evening Post story, I read about a southern gentleman whose only apparent excuse for living was that he enjoyed lying in a hammock with a mint julep on one side and a big basket of peaches on the other.
It was his pleasure to pick up a peach and take a bite from the sunny side.
That story gave me the idea of what a fruit orchard could be, and in a way, that is what my fruit garden means to me. Fortunately, the peaches we grow today ripen all over, not just on the sunny side.
While I don’t subscribe to the idea that a julep is necessary to enjoy a peach, I do say that ripe cherries and apricots with cocktails are hard to fry.
Selecting Varieties To Grow Is Vitally Important
Having tried many over the years, I offer the following selections, which have been thoroughly tested.
The problems of location, soil type, and frost date are variable. So are the matters of taste and the prime uses of the various fruits.
Some gardeners have already chosen their favorite varieties to grow. Others have definite notions about the kinds they wish to raise.
However, those I have listed have proven themselves for me and are better than the kinds’ generally offered in markets.
With these thoughts in mind, what kinds of fruit are worth growing, and what months should they bear? The following chart shows the bearing seasons in Ipswich, Mass.
The varieties suggested in the following list were selected for quality only, not for size. They are not exhibition pieces, and you might be disappointed in their size but not in their quality.
- Apple Varieties
- Yellow Delicious
- Courtland
- Roxbury Russet
Yellow Delicious Apple
The Yellow Delicious is a yellow apple of pleasant taste. It may not appeal to those who like the McIntosh or Baldwin flavor, but it does have an appeal of its own. Courtland has distinctly white flesh of excellent flavor, which does not lose its color when cut.
This quality makes it useful and attractive for salads. Although the Russet is almost extinct as a commercial apple, there is nothing to compare with it for baked apples.
Perhaps one of the reasons why baked apples are not popular is because the best variety is not selected in most restaurants. At any rate, baked Russet apples with heavy cream are a joy, and for this use alone, I think they are worth growing.
There are 14 lives in the selections made. It is said that dwarf trees can be planted 10’ feet apart, but I have found that it is far better to plant them 15’ feet apart. Thus, an area 36’ feet wide and 60’ feet long is required for the trees and an additional 15’ feet for one row of grapes.
Winter Damage
One of the difficulties in starting a fruit garden is the winter damage caused by rabbits. A 4-foot chicken wire fence keeps the rabbits out of my small orchard.
Young fruit trees do not have sturdy roots, and I have found it worthwhile to support all young trees with two stakes (2” x 2” inches) driven firmly into the ground on opposite sides of the trees.
The tree is tied to the stakes with wide strips of rubber canvas which hold it securely.
If you take the trouble to dig a hole 3’ feet wide for each tree and put in about 4” inches of compost, you will be astounded at how the trees grow.
The branches grow as much as 6’ feet in one year. Two years after setting out, you have a healthy young tree.
Spraying Program
Last, but of prime importance, comes spraying. It always bothered me to read about different types of sprays, such as dormant, pre-blossom, and all the rest. So, to simplify matters, I used a favorite dormant spray on April 1.
Starting about April 20, spraying is done once a week (except when the trees are in full bloom) until July 12.
However, apples, pears, and quinces are given two more weekly applications. By July 26, my spray program is completed.
With this schedule, there is no danger of any spray remaining on the fruit when it is ready to pick.
This procedure has kept my trees free of pests and diseases. The formula I use consists of the following:
- 3 tablespoons Methoxychlor
- 2 tablespoons Malathion
- 3 tablespoons Captan
- This mixture is added to each gallon of water.
A sprayer of 15 gallons capacity with an electric motor serves admirably. This machine does the job in 30 minutes. Since the pump has a pressure of 100 pounds, the spray reaches practically every leaf.
This type is easier than a machine with a gasoline motor which sometimes causes trouble. A 210-volt line is run underground from the house to the garden. I have found a log garden hose that covers the area easily.
Other Varieties
The other varieties are:
- Plum Varieties
- Newark
- Early Transparent Gage
- Golden Transparent Gage
Plums
These are small yellow varieties that are extremely sweet and of delicious flavor. Perhaps the term “sugarplum” describes them best.
The fruit is so tender that they cannot stand transportation, so that pre-eludes their use for the commercial markets. Also, they are suitable for preserving and for “sun-made” jams.
Plums are not grown on dwarf stock, so the trees grow considerably and must be set at least 15′ feet apart.
Yellow Freestone Varieties
These are all yellow freestone varieties of superb quality, good size, and beautiful color. Of the three, Elberta, our favorite, is the variety we use for preserving.
Peaches can be frozen or preserved, but the latter method is the one we use. When you open a jar, the fragrance is like that of a fresh peach.
Thinning A Peach Tree
In a good year, there are so many fruits on the peach trees that it is necessary to thin them until no fruit grows within 3” inches of another. This is almost a sacrilege, but thinning is necessary if you want the best results.
It may seem a wasteful practice, but you cannot expect fruits to properly develop when they grow so close that sometimes three are touching each other.
As the peaches grow, the weight becomes enormous, and the branches must be supported. The easiest way for us to do this is to use forked sticks.
Seedless Varieties
You might say that these are old and commonplace. Why not grow some of the modern ones and some of the seedless varieties? For flavor, these are still tops, at least as grown on our soil.
Fredonia is the earliest and has much the same flavor as Concord. Delaware is a small grape, juicy and sweet.
Pears, except for Seckel, have always been a great disappointment to me. I have tried wide varieties, but they all seem rather tasteless or sugary-sweet.
However, Seckel pears are in a class by themselves and have their own charm. They are also excellent for making pickled pears.
44659 by Albert C. Burrage