Fruity Delights

You don’t need a big backyard to grow your own fruit!

Deciduous fruit trees like apples, pears, peaches, nectarines, plums and cherries are a delicious delight in summer. The best time to plant them is during winter, when the trees are leafless and dormant, and the widest range is available. Dwarf varieties of fruit trees are more compact than traditional types but still produce full size fruit. They also require less pruning and are perfect for small backyards and pots.

 

Plant selection

When growing your own fruit trees, it’s important to know which types require a suitable pollinating partner. Most apples and pears require a second variety that flowers at the same time to promote pollination and fruit set. On the other hand, most stone fruit, like peaches and nectarines, are self-fertile. The plant label will provide helpful information on whether the tree requires a pollinator. Also check that the variety is suited to your climate.

How to grow

Deciduous fruit trees will be available in winter as potted or ‘bare-rooted’ trees. Bare-rooted plants are usually sold in plastic bags with moist sawdust or potting mix around the roots. Before planting, remove the plastic bag and soak the roots in a bucket of water for a few hours.



For in-ground planting of both potted and bare-rooted trees, choose a well-drained position that receives at least six hours of sunlight daily. Dig the planting hole to the same depth and twice as wide as the root system. Mix some blood and bone or composted chicken manure into the soil dug from the hole. Place the root ball in the hole and backfill around the roots with enriched soil. For bare-rooted trees, gently spread out the roots out in the hole before backfilling.



When growing dwarf fruit trees in pots, choose a well-drained pot at least 50 cm wide and use a premium potting mix.



After planting, water in well with a seaweed solution. This settles the soil or potting mix around the roots and seaweed helps reduce transplant shock and promotes new root growth.



While stone fruit trees are still leafless, spray with lime sulfur to prevent the disease leaf curl. From spring to autumn, feed trees with a specially formulated citrus and fruit fertiliser to promote healthy growth and lots of flowers and fruit. 

Where to buy

These deciduous free trees can bepurchased from all garden centres and online via PlantNet Australia. Visit plantnet.com.au or call (07) 3491 9905.

New Varieties

• New Dwarf ‘Summer Crunch’ pears from PlantNet include sweet and juicy ‘SunGold’ and red skinned ‘Red Princess’, which was bred in the Goulburn Valley in Victoria. Summer Crunch pears grow to around 2.5m tall and will pollinate each other, so it’s perfect to grow two different varieties from this range.

• Columnar fruit trees have been specially developed to have upright, narrow growth. Columnar apples like ‘Cumulus’ and ‘Harmony’ from PlantNet only grow 60cm wide and around 3m tall and will pollinate each other. Columnar trees are ideal for growing in pots and confined spaces.

• For stone fruit lovers, PlantNet’s ‘Super Dwarf Sunset’ peaches and nectarines (pictured) grow to a petite 1.5 m tall and have attractive burgundy-red leaves from spring to autumn and tasty full-sized fruit in summer.