Fruits in the Home Garden

Dan NortmanExtension Agent, Agriculture and

Natural ResourcesVirginia Cooperative Extension

York/ Poquoson

Introduction

• Challenging– Perennial– Patience– Requires intensive maintenance

• Pruining

Introduction

• Rewarding!

Types of Fruit

• Tree Fruit– Stone

• Cherry, peach, plum (fruit with a pit)

– Pome• Apple, pear (fruit with a complex ovary)

– Other• Figs, pomegranates and Pawpaw

• Small Fruits– Grapes, brambles and bush fruit

Tree Fruit-General Considerations

• Site Selection– Frost avoidance– Drainage

• Variety Selection– Pollination– Pest resistance/avoidance

Rosaceous Tree Fruit

Tree fruit

• Rootstocks– Size control- dwarf, semi dwarf

• In 15 years, are you going to want to climb a ladder to harvest fruit?

– Precocity– Stability

• Choosing a variety– Use– Disease resistance– Harvest period– Pollination

What happens when you plant an apple (or peach or cherry) seed?

Genetically diverse!

• Each seed contains different genetic material

• The apples produced by each subsequent tree will be nothing like the “mother” apple

• Our modern apple varieties are a product of chance

+

Grafting

• Whips, or scion wood from desired varieties are grafted to healthy rootstock

Tree fruit

• Planting– Fall/ Early Spring– Plant as you would most other trees

• Ground cover– Trees use a lot of N– Overfert= vegetative growth– Plant clover in tree rows

Buy Whips!

• More vigorous

• Healthier

• No difference in 5 years

Tree Size

• Dwarf/ semidwarf• Highly recommended• Scion wood grafted to

dwarfing rootstocks• Many advantages

– Keeps trees smallish longer

– Better, earlier crops– Ease of harvesting

• Will still get big, just much more slowly

Mulching• Two considerations

– Weed control, soil fertility– Soil fertility- new trees

• 10-10-10 @ 2, 6 and 10 weeks after planting

– Soil fertility- established trees • Hay- 1 year• Straw- 2 years• With clover, should provide good nutrition• Soil sample every three years• Supplement with low nutrient fertilizer if needed

– Trees produce more with a little stress

Pollination

• Apple– Crabapple trees– Fuji, Gala, Golden Delicious

• Peaches– Self-fertile

• Cherries– Need another cherry tree

Buds, flowers, fruit set

• Carbon to nitrogen ratios are important in bud set and flower/ fruit production

• Good times– High N– Moderate C– Few flowers/ fruit

• What causes reduction in “C”?– Bending of limbs– Beating of trees– Nails in the trunk– Defoliation by insects

• Over time, these practices can hurt the tree.– Now, we manage with thoughtful fertilization

Thinning

• Too many blooms set– Peach and apple

• Thin immediately after fruit set

• Minimize tree damage

• Peach- 6-8 inches apart

• Apple- 6-10 inches apart

Why Thin?

• Maintain tree structure and vigor

• Increase return bloom

• Increase fruit size

• Reduce biennial

bearing

Fruit size based on fruit load

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

0 20 40 60 80 100

Fruit left on tree

Fru

it s

ize

(cc)

Pruning

• Prune in late winter, before stuff starts moving

• Can do some summer pruning if needed, but bleach pruners between cutting

• Vase vs. Central leader– Vase looks “prettier”– Central leader will allow for heavier crops

Pruning

• Prune in late winter, before stuff starts moving

• Can do some summer pruning if needed, but bleach pruners between cutting

Pruning will be dependent on 1) Age2) Shape of tree3) Condition4) Vigor

Pruning Apple

• Start “normal”– Suckers– Water Sprouts– Whorls– Dead and dying

Heading back• Used for:

– Forcing lateral growth on whips– Invigorating production

Thinning Cuts

• Thin to improve light penetration • Remove slow growing branches of low

quality– “Thin-wood”– >4 years– Small, spindly, unproductive– Where?

• Oldest wood in center of tree and lowest branches• New growth off of old wood

Cutting back to a lateral

• Helps maintain size

• Choose a strong lateral– As large as the

piece that is cut– Prevents side

branching

Other types of pruning

• Detail Pruning– Eyeing up the tree

• Cutting to shape the tree• Reduces need for thinning later

• Correction of weak crotches– Prune to increase survival of branches with poor

crotch angles

• “Mold and hold”– Recommended in texts, but not really used anymore

Goals

• Promote laterals

• Establish a leader

• Maintain that leader

• Promote strong crotch angles early on

• Promote scaffold tiers

Pruning Cherry• Similar to apple at

establishment• Avoiding heading back

cuts on laterals• Appreciate the tree’s

natural spreading growth– But watch for weak

crotch angles• Avoid parallel growing

limbs from the leader• Tolerate the numerous

lateral shoots off the scaffold limbs

Pruning Peach

• Promote open vase form

• 1st year- prune like apple

• 2nd year- light pruning to promote vase shape

• 3rd year- maintain shape, remove excess branches

Apple Care and Variety Selection

Ginger Gold

• Chance seedling in Nelson county

• Great Eating apple• Early maturity- early

august• Can pollinate other

apples• Susceptible to powdery

mildew and fire blight

Gala

• 1934 cross of Kidd’s Orange Red and Golden delicious

• Sweet flavor, good for cooking

• Earl fall harvest

• Very scab susceptible!

Honeycrisp

• Recent cross of Macoun and Honeygold

• $crisp

• Early fall harvest

• Color decreases the warmer it is grown

Red Delicious

• Found in 1872

• Most widely planted apple

• Not self fertile

• Scab susceptible

• Natural resistance to powdery mildew and fire blight

Pink Lady

• Cross of Golden Delicious and Lady Williams

• Great eating apple

• Early November harvest

• Can pollinate other trees

Goldrush

• Developed by Purdue in the 1970’s

• Golden delicious like flavor with more complex spiciness and crisper

• Fire blight and powdery mildew resistant

Liberty

• NYSES developed in mid 50’s

• “Dessert apple”• Applesauce• Scab, rust, fire blight

and powdery mildew resistant

• Plum curculio susceptible!!!

Cherry Varieties

• Tart (sour) cherries– Montmorency– Balaton

• Sweet – Bing– Ranier

Montmorency

• Most common pie cherry

• Tart

• Soft, yellow flesh

• High bearing, beautiful trees

Balaton

• Newer tart cherry variety

• Sweeter than montmorency

• Darker, firmer flesh• Very balanced• Great for eating• Occasionally show

up fresh

Bing

• Very common sweet cherry

• Firm fleshed• Dark red, almost

purple to light pink depending on sun exposure

• Very sweet• Prone to cracking if

rain near harvest

Ranier

• Newer variety

• Large, almost plum sized fruit

• Sweet- tart unique flavor

• Growing in popularity

Peach Varieties• Choose variety based on use

• Canning– Cling, yellow, firm flesh, good acidity

• Fresh eating– Freestone, sweet & acidic

• Donut (UFO), red fleshed, white fleshed

Other Tree Fruit

• Fig

• Persimmon

• PawPaw

Figs

• “Fruit” is a fleshy hollow receptacle with flowers on the interior

• Very specific pollination by fig wasps

• But, common figs do not need pollination

Fig Culture

• Like deep clay loam soils– Will grow in sand, bu nematodes

• Roots well from woody cuttings

• Bears two crops each year– 1st on wood from previous season– 2nd on new wood

• N only when tree shows need– Otherwise frost susceptible

Pruning figs

• Young trees– Little, except to

thin

• Mature trees– Pruned in top to

promote vigorous growth

– Pruned to prevent dense growth in interior of tree

Persimmon

• American persimmons grow wild

• Small, seedy pasty fruit• Astringent until it becomes

too soft to harvest• Enjoyed regionally• Japanese Persimmon

– Much larger fruit– Fairly easy to grow except

for pollination issues• Plant 2 varieties

Paw Paw

• Native fruit• Produces a fetid flower• Somewhere between a

banana and a mango in flavor

• Unique pollination– Recommended to plant two

varieties

• Host to Zebra swallowtail

Pomegranates

• Can grow here, but may not ever or always flower and produce fruit

• Can experience dieback in severe winters

• Harvest when calyx tendril are brown and fruit sounds ‘hollow’

• Set fruit may not ripen in our climate

Small Fruits

• Near vegetable and flower gardens – Synergistic effect with beneficials

• Soil- similar to tree fruit, except blueberries prefer acidic (4.5 pH) soils

• Look at pp. 378 & 379 for specific variety and planting considerations

Strawberries

• Blooms susceptible to frost– Plant in a high area, to avoid damage

• Do not plant where Solanaceous crops have been

• Spread by runners, book has details on training

• You should get 2-3 years of production with vigorous plants

Blueberries• Love acidic soils• Lowbush vs. Highbush vs. Rabbiteye

– Highbush• Northern- Cold tolerant• Southern- Heat tolerant

• Can tolerate mild frosts• Most are self fertile• Mulch! • Pruning is not required, but will increase

production

Brambles

• Raspberries, blackberries

• Tough to grow here, need at LEAST 3 ft of well drained, loamy soil

• Avoid previous Solanaceous grounds

• Needs a lot of humus– Mulch with sawdust, particularly hardwood

sawdusts• Will need to compensate with extra nitrogen

Grapes

• Grow best in well drained soils

• Consider disease resistance when choosing varieties

• Muscadine grapes are popular here

• Other varieties can do ok here– Heat is tough– Lack of chilling reduces brix

• Require severe pruning and a trellis

Currants and Gooseberries

• Great for shadier parts of the yard

• Pretty easy to grow– Not a lot of problems, in comparison

• It’s good to apply a low nutrient fertilizer every year

• If soil is sandy, a complete fertilizer is preferred

Apple Pests• Diseases

– Scab– Cedar Apple Rust– Fire Blight

• Insects– Plum curculio– Codling moth– Rosy apple aphid

• Vertebrates– Deer – Voles

Apple Scab

• Thrives in humidity

• Resistant varieties

• Several fungicides in Home Grounds and animals– Softest- sulfur– Mostly preventative– Also, remove fallen

leaves

Scab Resistant Varieties

–Goldrush

–Liberty

–Redfree

–Pristine

–Enterprise

–Freedom

Cedar Apple Rust

• Nearby cedars and junipers– Try thinning nearby, if

feasible

• Can apply fungicide after infection

• Doesn’t affect fruit quality like scab does

Fire blight

• Attacks the tree– Bacterial

• Spread mechanically– Pruning, touching, hail

• Will kill a weak tree

• Spray after hailstorm

• Remove trees with bad infection

Plum curculio

• Boll weevil of tree fruit• C-shaped scars• Many insecticides

– Softest- pyrethrins, kaolin clay, DE

Codling Moth

• Literal worm in the apple• Many options

– Softest- pheremone disruption

Rosy Apple Aphid

• Large colonies

• Some damage, can damage fruit

• Usually foliar

• Beneficial insects

Vertebrates

• Deer – Shotgun?– Flashy tape– Fences– Perfumy soaps

• Voles/ Groundhogs– Space for predators

• Hawk perches, etc.

Cherry Pests

• Diseases

– Cherry leaf spot

• Insects

– Cherry fruit fly

Cherry Leaf Spot

• Cherries not as hardy as apple

• Want to keep leaves on tree until Sep.

• Severe defoliation– Reduce winter

hardiness

• Fungicides in Home Grounds PMG

Cherry Fruit Fly

• Larva is a maggot in the fruit – Can look perfect, but

big surprise– Canned cherries and

EPA tolerances

• Plenty of insecticides– Easy to kill

Strawberry Pests

• Diseases– Verticillium wilt– Red stele– Gray mold– Leaf Scorch

• Insects– European red mites

Strawberry Disease• Root disease:

Verticillium wilt, red stele, black root rot– Hard to get out of

soil– Solanaceous– Spread by surface

water, equipment– PMG says- too

complicated for homeowners

• Gray mold– Rots fruit– Needs to be

anticipatory• Leaf Scorch

– Causes blemishes on leaf

– Decreases vigor and return fruiting

– Several resistant varieties

European red mites

• A problem on all Rosaceae, but especially strawberries

• IPM is critical

• Beneficial mites and insects

• Avoid sulfur spray

Blueberry Pests

• Diseases– Mummy berry

• Cranberry fruitworm

• Blueberry maggot

Mummy Berry

• Ruins fruit

• Decreases plant vigor

• First sign is usually reddish berries

• Overwinters on fallen fruit

Cranberry Fruitworm

• Small worm that lives inside berry

• Potential for 50-75% loss

• Cultural control– Remove debris and

weeds– Remove infested

berries

• Companion plantings

Blueberry Maggot

• Fruit starting to ripen• Easy to control

– Light pesticides– Kaolin clay

Bramble Stalk Borers

• Causes death of at least part of the stalk

• Recognized by wilty stalk ends

Grape Pests

• Diseases– Downy mildew– Powdery mildew

• Insects– Grape berry moth

Downy & Powdery Mildew

• Causes defoliation

• Affects fruit quality

• Reduces plant vigor

Grape Berry Moth

• Bores into fruit

• Can lead to very high levels of damage

• Can spoil clusters

Scared Yet?

• It can be very fun, and rewarding

• Perennials take more effort

• Start with a couple of apple trees

• Always have flower beds nearby– Beneficials

• Practice IPM– Don’t spray anything unless you have to

• And if all else fails……

Ferment it!

• Scabby chewed up apples make great cider

• If the fruit is damaged, you’ll never know if you make it into wine

• Dan Nortman

• York/ Poquoson VCE

• 757-890-4940

• dnortman@vt.edu