Home Orchard: How to Choose a Fruit Tree

Many trees come in size variations to suit each gardener's needs. (ustun ibisoglu/Shutterstock)

Choosing a fruit tree is a major commitment. It has aspects of picking a spouse: Go slowly, and select wisely. It’s also similar to adding onto the structure of a home following this advice: Plan on paper, avoid changes in concrete—or in this case, soil.

There are many factors to consider, including the minimum winter chill temperature required to bear fruit in the following season, how much fruit it will give (there are cases of too much!), how tall the tree will become, how much pruning/maintenance it needs, disease susceptibility, pollination (is it self-fruitful or does it need a friend), and more. Stoke the fireplace, grab a hot chocolate, and let’s settle in and start choosing a fruit tree—or two.

Chilly Goodness

Before getting one’s heart set on a particular type of fruit tree, it’s important to know its chilling requirements. This is different from cold hardiness, which is the lowest temperature that a plant can survive. Always check your zip code at the USDA’s handy agricultural zone online map first.

Upon determining that the desired tree(s)—a first choice and a few backups are a good idea at this point—will survive, the next step is to make sure that they'll thrive. Deciduous trees, which lose their leaves at the end of the growing season, need a certain number of hours when the temperature is below 45 degrees Fahrenheit but above 32 degrees F to break dormancy and set fruit in spring. This accumulation of chill units (CU) normally occurs between November and March. Temperatures below freezing don’t count, nor do temps above 60 degrees F.

AgroClimate has a handy calculator by zip code to understand your local climate, while One Green World has an average chill hours chart for the most common fruit trees. There are a few exceptions to this rule, such as tropical citrus (oranges, lemons, limes, and grapefruit), avocado, and mangoes, that don’t go dormant.

Fig trees are one of the easiest to grow as they are heat- and disease-resistant and don’t require pruning. (korkeng/Shutterstock)

Size, Yield, and More

Like human beings, trees come in all shapes and sizes. A good example are the ever-popular apple trees, which come in three variations: standard, which can reach up to 30 feet; semi-dwarf, which will top out at about 15 feet; and dwarf, which range from 6 to 10 feet. While a standard tree can be kept at 10 feet, it will require a lot of pruning, and the associated stress on the tree will affect yield. Which raises the question: How much fruit is enough? The bigger the tree, the more it will provide.

But that doesn’t mean bigger is automatically better. A small tree might provide just enough for a husband and wife and some donations. If you want more fruit but have a smaller backyard, two semi-dwarf trees or three dwarfs might be better than a single standard tree. As a rule, dwarf trees bear fruit earlier (two to four years) than semi-dwarf or standard trees (five to eight years).

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Some trees are self-fertile, while those that produce fruits with a core typically require a mate. When planning on more than one type of fruit tree on a property, try to stagger their fruiting times so as not to be overwhelmed. There’s only so much eating, canning, freezing, juicing, drying, and/or donating that can be done at one time. Another consideration is the hardiness of the produce; apples and pears do well in cold storage, while peaches and plums have a much shorter lifespan.

Plum trees are known for producing an overabundance. (nnattalli/Shutterstock)

Healthy Specimens

While many trees need proper maintenance and applications of fungicides (which kill fungus and disease) and fungistatics (which inhibit fungal growth) when necessary to help save a tree from diseases such as scab, canker, cedar apple rust, rot, powdery mildew, or more, planting a new fruit tree is a golden opportunity to choose a disease-resistant varietal. In the apple category alone, there are many to choose from, such as the Gold Rush, Liberty, Freedom, Enterprise, Pristine, Galarina, Nova Spy, Ruby Rush, Smeralda, and Winecrisp, to name just a few.

Beyond an Apple a Day

Fig trees are one of the easiest to grow, as they’re heat- and disease-resistant and don’t require pruning. Plus, even trees that are grown in containers will provide full-size fruit.

Cherry trees are also relatively disease-free and don’t require pruning, but they do need lots of water.

Pears are almost disease-free but are susceptible to fire blight. They don’t like to be transplanted, so choose their site carefully.

Plums produce in overabundance, but be sure to thin branches and fruit or they may stop producing.

Those lucky enough to live in USDA Agricultural Zones eight through 11 will find oranges, lemons, grapefruit, tangerines, and kumquats all easy to grow. Bon appetit!

Barefoot Selections

Planting bare-root trees in January, February, or early March gives them an important head start so they’re well-rooted before the summer heat.

Frugal and Sturdy

Bare-root trees are often less expensive and can withstand changes to the soil texture better than their potted or balled-and-burlapped (B&B) cousins. They also don’t suffer the transplant shock of B&B trees, which have a significant portion of their roots cut off when they’re dug up.

Ready to Root

While container-grown trees don’t suffer from the root shock of B&Bs, they can become root-bound. With bare-root plants, you can see the quality of the roots, and it’s simple to plant them at the proper level, with the top root just below the surface of the soil for optimal growth.

When to Plant

Bare roots must be kept moist until planting, which is normally a narrow timeframe as advised by the grower. They can be transplanted anytime as long as the ground isn’t frozen or waterlogged and ice or high winds aren’t forecast.