FRUIT TREES: PLANTING
AND VARIETIES |
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MG
Manual Reference
Ch. 11, pp. 9 - 18 |
[ Planting
and Varieties: planting | varieties
]
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Successful planting depends on several factors such as
correct handling of nursery stock, condition of tree, site
preparation, time of planting and after planting care. The best
time to plant bare root fruit trees is during the dormant period.
In general, trees should be planted as early as possible or about
30 days prior to expected bud break or average bud break in the
geographical area. In zones 1 and 2 this would coincide with
January 15th to 30th and in zones 3 and 4 this would be about
March 1st to 31st. Planting after these dates decreases the
chances of tree survival and/or may result in poor growth the
first year. |
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The most important factor in handling trees is the
prevention of root drying. Do not let the roots dry for more than
5 minutes. If drying occurs soak roots in water for 12-24 hours
before planting. Sometimes this procedure will revitalize the
tree. When trees are purchased from a nursery or mail order always
check the condition of the roots and packing material. If either
is dry, soak roots and wet packing material and place tree(s) in a
cool environment. A refrigerator would be excellent but tree can
be heeled in. Heeling in is accomplished by covering the roots
with moist soil in a cool environment which is usually outdoors.
This protection system should be used if there will be a delay in
planting after purchase or acquisition of stock. |
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To plant the tree first put the tree root in a bucket
of water. Dig a hole slightly wider and deeper than the spread
and length of the root system. Make sure the sides of the hole
are not glazed over as this will result in a root bound tree.
Break out soil with a shovel. Trim diseased, dead, broken, or
extra long roots. Place the tree in hole and spread roots. Fill
the planting hole with water. Add soil. This removes air from
roots and ensures viability. Keep adding water and soil until
the tree is planted. Trees should be planted at the same depth
as they were grown in the nursery. Make sure the bud union is
about 2-3 inches above the soil line. Do not place fertilizer
in the planting hole. This can be added later. No special mix
or treatment is needed when planting fruit trees. Backfill with
soil that came from initial hole.
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After tree is planted prune top 1/3 to 1/2, but no
shorter than 30 ????. This will stimulate good strong
growth and lateral branching the first year. Container grown
nursery stock can be transplanted any time of the year. Follow the
above general directions on site preparation, fertilization and
pruning. Always check the roots. They can become distorted or root
bound growing in containers for a long period of time. It is
suggested that some root pruning be done to ensure new root growth
and subsequent strong top growth. Anytime roots are pruned top
growth must be pruned to compensate for root loss. |
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Variety selection is based not only on location (zones)
but on personal preference regarding use (fresh or processing),
production, fruit size, taste and time of harvest. Selecting more
than one variety of a kind of fruit can result in having fresh
fruit over a 2 or 3 month period. This is called succession of
ripening. Table 3 provides a list of varieties for the various
fruit tree zones in Arizona. These are based on climate and
chilling requirements. |
Figure 2. Common parts of a fruit tree--scion
(variety), interstem, and rootstock. |
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Most fruit trees represent the merging of two plant
parts: the scion (variety) and rootstock (Figure 2). The scion is
the fruiting variety that is budded or grafted on the rootstock.
Rootstocks are selected based on certain characteristics such as
dwarfing, nematode insect resistance, soil type, cold hardiness
and disease resistance. Sometimes an interstem may be grafted
between the rootstock and the scion for additional dwarfing. This
is not common and more expensive. |
A tree grown from seed is not true to type. This means
that a seed that is planted from a desired fruit will not grow a
tree that will produce the same fruit. A tree that grows from a
seed is termed a seedling and will bear fruit that is generally
small in size and of poor quality. However, seedlings are
frequently used as rootstocks and have to be grafted to a known
variety in order to produce fruit of a known size and quality. |
Table 3. Fruit Varieties Suggested for Home Plantings
in Arizona
Kind |
Variety |
Adapted
Regions |
Maturity |
Remarks |
Apple |
Anna |
1, 2 |
Early Season |
Excellent
flavor when ripe. Breaks down rapidly. Needs fruit thinning.
Self-fruitful. |
|
Dorsett Golden |
1, 2 |
Early Season |
Yellow,
flavorful, firm. Self-fruitful |
|
Lodi |
3, 4 |
Early Season |
Large fruit
with tart flavor. Needs cross pollenation. |
|
Gravenstein |
3, 4 |
Early Season |
Medium to
large fruit. Needs cross pollenation. |
|
Summered |
3, 4 |
Early Season |
Medium to
large fruit with red blush |
|
Jerseymac |
3, 4 |
Early Season |
Fruit has
semi-solid red blush; creamy. White flesh - needs thinning. |
|
Jonagold |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Large golden
apple with red stripes. Stores well. Need cross pollenation. |
|
Gala |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Medium size
fruit. Red blush over yellow color with aromatic flavor. |
|
Red Delicious |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Large red
fruit with sweet taste. Need cross pollenation. |
|
Empire |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Medium dark
red fruit with white creamy flesh. |
|
Jonathon |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Red and pale
yellow medium size fruit. Firm, tart, crisp flavor. |
|
Golden
Delicious |
3, 4 |
Late Season |
Yellow large
fruit. Excellent pollenizer. |
|
Firm Gold |
3, 4 |
Late Season |
Yellow large
fruited type of golden delicious. |
|
Granny Smith |
3, 4 |
Late Season |
Large green
fruit with tart flavor. Fruit set better with pollenizer. |
|
Braeburn |
3, 4 |
Late Season |
Medium to
large size fruit with crisp firm flesh. Fruit set better with
pollenizer |
|
Fuji |
3, 4 |
Late Season |
Dull red,
medium sized fruit. Very sweet with excellent aroma and cream
colored flesh |
|
Arkansas Black |
3, 4 |
Late Season |
Deep red
colored fruit. Flesh is hard and crisp - needs pollenizer. |
Apricots |
Katy |
1, 2 |
Early Season |
Excellent size
and fruit quality. Freestone. |
|
Gold Kist |
1, 2 Early
Season |
Early Season |
Freestone,
excellent quality. |
|
Castlebrite |
1, 2 |
Early Season |
Freestone,
excellent flavor. |
|
Wenatchee |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Large size
with yellow skin and flesh. |
|
Tilton |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Medium size
fruit with excellent flavor. |
|
Royal |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Medium size
fruit with excellent flavor and sweetness |
|
Moorpark |
3, 4 |
Late Season |
Large fruit
and great flavor. Fruit may ripen unevenly. |
Cherries
(sour) |
Montmorency |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Large bright
red fruit which is tart (pie use). |
|
North Star |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Red fruit,
tart, genetic dwarf. |
Cherry
(sweet) |
Bing |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Large black
fruit. Excellent quality. Needs pollenizer. Use Van, Stella, or
Hedelfingen |
|
Rainier |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Fruit has
light yellow skin. Needs pollenizer. Use Van, Stella or Bing. |
|
Van |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Dark fruit,
good quality. Excellent pollenizer. Use Bing or Rainier |
|
Lambert |
3, 4 |
Late Season |
Fruit dark
red, heart shaped; smaller than Bing. Pollenize with Rainier or
Van. |
|
Stella |
3, 4 |
Late Season |
Black, heart
shaped fruit. Self fertile. Good pollenizer. |
Figs |
Mission |
1, 2, 3 |
Early Season |
Best all
around fig. Two crops. Black skin and strawberry pulp. |
|
Kadota |
1, 2, 3 |
Mid-Season |
Yellow skin
and amber pulp. |
Nectarines |
Red Gold |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Large, yellow
flesh fruit. Self-fruitful, freestone. |
|
Sun Glo |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Large, deep
yellow flesh, freestone. |
Olives |
Manzanillo |
1, 2 |
Late Season |
Major
processing variety. Medium size fruit. |
|
Sevillano |
1, 2 |
Late Season |
Very large
fruit. Good pollenizer for Manzanillo |
Peach |
Flordaprince |
1, 2 |
Early Season |
Large to
medium size red blush fruit. Semi-clingstone. Needs thinning to
make size. |
|
Earligrande |
1, 2 |
Early Season |
Large yellow
fruit with a distinctive point. Excellent flavor. |
|
August Pride |
1, 2 |
Early Season |
Large, sweet,
aromatic, rich flavor. |
|
Babcock |
1, 2 |
Early Season |
White fleshed
freestone. Sweet, juicy and aromatic. Low in acid. |
|
Midpride |
1, 2 |
Mid-Season |
Yellow
freestone. Excellent quality. |
|
Tropic Sweet |
1, 2 |
Early Season |
Yellow fleshed
large freestone |
|
Tropic Snow |
1, 2 |
Early Season |
Skin is white
with red blush. White sweet flesh. Freestone. |
|
Ranger |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Large yellow
fruit. Freestone wither excellent flavor. |
|
Red Globe |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Large yellow
fruit with red markings. Freestone |
|
Redhaven |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Medium size
fruit. Sets heavy crops and requires heavy thinning. |
|
Fay Elberta |
3, 4 |
Mid-Late |
Large size,
good flavor, little red blush, good producer. |
|
Reliance |
4 |
late Season |
Winter hardy.
Flesh is soft, juicy and yellow. Freestone. |
|
Rio Oso Gem |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Large fruit
with red skin. Freestone. |
|
Redskin |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Yellow flesh
with red blush. Heavy producer. Freestone |
|
Belle of
Georgia |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
White flesh,
soft and juicy. Very productive. |
|
Cresthaven |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Yellow, juicy
freestone. Firm and flavorful. |
Pears |
Bartlett |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Large fruit
with golden yellow color. Green at picking. Needs pollenizer for
bet production. |
|
Seckel |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Small reddish
brown fruit. Dessert quality. |
|
Surecrop |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Small reddish
brown fruit. Dessert quality. |
|
Red Sensation |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Red Bartlett. |
|
Bosc |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Medium to
large fruit - long tapering neck, darkly russeted. Stores well. |
|
Orient |
1, 2 |
Early Season |
Very large
fruit with white flesh. |
|
Floridahome |
1, 2 |
Early Season |
Medium size
fruit with thin green skin. Flesh is white and juicy. Harvest
fruit green. Needs pollenizer. Hood is best pollenizer. |
|
Hood |
1, 2 |
Early Season |
Good
pollenizer for Floridahome. |
|
LeConte |
1, 2 |
Early Season |
High quality,
low chill pear. Needs cross pollination. |
|
Keiffer |
1, 2 |
Early Season |
Fair quality,
hard fruit containing grit cells. Needs pollenizer. |
Pears
(Asian) |
Shinseiki |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Medium to
large fruit with yellow skin. Flesh is creamy white and firm. |
|
20th Century |
1, 3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Medium to
large fruit with greenish yellow skin. |
|
Hosui |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Fruit has
golden rusted skin. Flesh is firm, juicy and mild. |
Persimmon |
Hachiya |
3 |
Mid-Season |
Astringent
until soft. |
|
Fuyer |
3 |
Mid-Season |
Nonastringent
and sweet. |
Plum
(European) |
Green Guage |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Medium size
greenish fruit. Practically self-fruitful. Greater yields with
cross pollination |
|
Stanley |
3, 4 |
Late Season |
Large, purple
fruit that is juicy and sweet. Self fruitful. |
Plum
(Japanese) |
Santa Rosa |
1, 2, 3, 4 |
Early Season |
Large purple
fruit. Yellow flesh. Self-fruitful. |
|
Satsuma |
1, 2, 3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Medium dark
red, juicy, tart fruit. Self-fruitful. |
|
Ozark Premier |
3, 4 |
Mid-Season |
Very large red
fruit. Self-fruitful. |
Pomegranate |
Wonderful |
1, 2, 3 |
Late Season |
Red skin
color. Self-fruitful. |
Quince |
Smyrna |
1, 2, 3 |
Late Season |
Large fruit. |
|
Pineapple |
1, 2, 3 |
Mid-Season |
Tart, good
quality. |
|
Orange |
1, 2, 3 |
Mid-Season |
Tart, good
quality. |
|
Champion |
3, 4 |
Late Season |
Cold hardy. |
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Rootstocks are propagated by seeds or cuttings. Those
propagated by seeds are called seedling rootstocks and those
propagated by cuttings are called clonal rootstocks. Those
propagated (reproduced) by cuttings are genetically identical
while plants propagated by seeds are genetically different. The
most classic situation for clonal rootstocks is the apple
semidwarf and dwarfs. Another fruit plant that is graphed to
clonal rootstocks is grape. Fruit plants that have not been
grafted but were developed from cuttings are often called "own
roots" trees or plants. Examples of fruit plants grown on "own
roots" are grapes, figs, olives and various types of berries. |
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Dwarf trees are very popular for use in the home
grounds. They take less room and are adapted to container growing.
Dwarf trees produce fruit of the same size, color and quality as
larger standard tree. Dwarf trees are developed through the use of
dwarfing rootstocks or genetic manipulation. Genetic dwarfs
usually have very short internodes and dense foliage but have to
be pruned, fertilized and cared for in the same manner as a
standard size tree. |
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Advantages of dwarf trees:
Fruit much sooner after planting.
Bear less fruit per tree. Allows for planting more
varieties without producing a large quantity of a particular
variety.
Can reach all parts of tree from ground without using a
ladder
Trees are easier to train and prune on an annual basis |
Figure 3. Size controlling rootstocks for apple trees |
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Apples are dwarfed by grafting the desired variety onto
special clonal rootstocks. The most popular dwarfing rootstocks
for apple were developed in England and are designated as either
EM or M (for East Malling) or MM (for Malling Merton). The most
popular stocks and their size control characteristics are shown in
figure 3. Additional information on the general characteristics is
shown in Table 4. The following are some important facts about the
use of rootstocks for size control include. Trees must be pruned
annually or size control may be lost. Loss of fruit by frost or
pests will increase growth therefore summer pruning should be
performed. The M9 and M26 rootstocks must utilize some type of
support system i.e. stake, post, fence, etc. The rootstocks M7,
MM106 and MM111 are the best for Arizona conditions for the
homeowner. |
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