What fruit tree to plant?

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mshelenlu Larkfield-Wikiup, CA Jun 25, 2014

Hello! I have room for one more dwarf fruit tree in my yard... I currently have a fuji apple, double delight nectarine and a slow growing mandarin orange (i think- it was left from previous homeowners and hasn't fruited anything decent enough for me to ID it).
I live in northern CA - warm summers- not scorchers and cool nights. I am leaning towards an apricot tree. Any thoughts?

PS yard is small and tree needs to go into a raised bed.

Thanks!

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Diana_K Contra Costa County, CA(Zone 9b) Jun 25, 2014

Well, the first question is what fruit would you eat?
You are in the middle of an area that can grow all sorts of fruit, and I'll bet somewhere in the neighborhood is a pollinator for just about anything you want, so no need to get 2 of anything.

There are semi dwarf forms of pretty much all the fruit trees, and most of these get 8-12' high and wide.
Apricot
Cherry
Plum
Almond
Pear
and a lot more.

There are some dwarf, genetic dwarf or grown on dwarfing rootstock of a few items. 6' is about the usual max size, and slow growing so it will be several years before it even gets that size.
If you really need these extreme dwarfs look into:

Columnar apples
Genetic dwarf peach (I see you already have a nectarine)
or...
Blueberry (bushes, not trees)
perhaps other edibles.

Probably not available in that small size, but you sure could look:
Pomegranate
Asian Pear

Post #9877816
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mshelenlu Larkfield-Wikiup, CA Jun 25, 2014

Hi Diana, I love my fruit and will eat just about anything. I think I would like something not too messy (cherries I hear are, as well as plums) and also a tree that is easier to maintain. I am hoping the apricot will not be too tough for a first year gardener.

I hear there are multi grafts that grow a multitude of different fruits. Ever heard?

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Diana_K Contra Costa County, CA(Zone 9b) Jun 26, 2014

There sure are. Look around at all the local nurseries and you may find one.
Some are grafts of the same fruit, like several varieties of apple on one tree. Some a grafts with closely related plants, like peach and nectarine.

Sometimes they are called 'Fruit Cocktail' trees.
They might be available as semi dwarf.

Pruning is a bit tricky with these. If one variety is faster growing then it will get all the energy, and grow too big, too fast and shade the rest of the varieties. The key is to keep all parts in balance.

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