Growing fruit trees for shade

Can fruit trees be used as shade trees?

If you are wanting to plant trees in order to shade your garden, you will probably want something that grows fast and provides plenty of shade. You may want a tree that only provides shade in summer, yet lets the sun through in winter. With the many types of trees available, you should have no problem finding a variety that will grow at a decent pace and provide all the shade you require.

Generally trees are separated into two categories: fruit trees, which are often deciduous and evergreen trees, some of which are also fruit trees. Confused yet? And some trees live longer than others. If you are just looking for some temporary shade for your garden, you should stick to a short lived tree. Or maybe just get a shade sail. But if you plan on keeping your shade around for years, go for a fruit tree.

Can fruit trees be grown for shade? Definitely. Any large growing fruit tree will cast shade. Apple trees get large, so do plum trees, pear trees, mango and avocado trees. Other fruiting trees grow to a reasonable size too. Berries on the other hand are often on bushes, or canes, although some blueberry varieties grow on trees, though they don't get too big.

A cherry tree this large casts plenty of shade in summer.

Photo credit morgueFile

If you decide on a short lived plant for your shade, you may want to steer clear of a traditional fruit tree. You are probably looking for something with speedy growth. This means the root system will be particularly aggressive, so be sure not to place it near any septic tanks or other deep rooted plants. If the roots have plenty of area to grow, then they will shoot out extremely fast and your chosen tree or plant will take off in growth. Your placement should also be based on the tree’s relative position to the area you are wanting to shade.

Fruit trees in a good position can live for a very long time, so if using one for shade, prepare your soil well. The bigger hole you dig for the root ball, the better. Also when you dig out the soil from the hole, incorporate some compost or composted manure before you replace it. This will give the tree a boost. Also try to use organic materials and don't forget to mulch your.

When you buy your shade tree, be it a fruit tree or not, it will usually come with the root ball balled up and in a burlap bag. Or it might be growing in a container or simply bare rooted. If you get a tree in a burlap bag, you should plant it anywhere between fall and early spring. Trees grown in containers are ok to plant at almost any time of the year. If the tree just has bare roots, then the ideal planting time is anytime in winter and early spring.After you buy the tree and before you plant it, be sure to water it well.

The ideal planting process includes putting it in the ground at the proper depth, and replacing the soil without compressing it too much. Immediately after planting, give the tree its first watering before putting the layer of mulch on. You should always try to use organic mulch, and have a 2 or 3 inch layer of it at the base of your tree.

Making your own compost is easy and can be done in a tumbler like this one.

Photocredit morgueFile

When fertilizing your tree, follow the instructions on the label or apply your knowledge of your particular fruit tree, in order to figure out exactly how much to apply and when to apply it. Try for natural options such as composted manure, compost, liquid and dirt from a worm farm. Any fertilizer that you do add should be sufficiently watered in.

If you want a tree that will let sun through in winter, consider an apple tree, pear tree or cherry tree. These trees all lose their leaves in winter, allowing the sun to shine through, and will provide beautiful blossoms in the spring as a bonus.

Espalier your new fruit tree

Shaping trees for different situations

Through the use of pruning techniques, it is possible to shape your new tree to a certain style. There are seven main tree shapes that all have their own benefits for certain situations. During the growth of the tree, simply cut off the unneeded branches, tie the wanted branches into the proper shape, and you will be able to shape it however you want. However, for some of the more advanced shapes, more advanced pruning techniques are required. There are many books written on this subject.

Usually, if you’re trying to get your tree to a certain shape, all the tying and pruning should occur in the fall. This will encourage the shape to hold, and will not impact fruit production. Each of the different shapes are very useful in certain situations and most of them are quite beautiful too.

Standard trees don't really need any explanation. These are the varieties that are most common, and probably what you picture when you think of any tree. No specific shaping is required to get the shape to take this form. Just let it go and prune it as you would normally, and unless you have a strangely deformed tree then it should end up being a standard tree.

It is possible to turn a standard tree into a bush tree through pruning. The branches take the same shape, but the stem or trunk of the tree is noticeably shorter. This can be beneficial if you want to grow trees, but don’t want to block the view. Or perhaps you want to make harvesting the fruit easier.

Pruning a fruit tree to create a bush-sized adult tree.

Cordons are a type of tree that you may not be too familiar with. It consists of one stem with no branches. It is planted at an angle so that it arches up over the ground. Through the course of its growth, all branches are removed. These are beneficial because they take up very small amounts of space and more can be fitted into small spaces.

Espalier trees grow with a single vertical stem in the center, and several horizontal branches on each side. These allow for long rows of trees, while still producing large amounts of fruit. If you operate an orchard, you probably use this shape to fit as many trees as possible into the area you have.

This mature tree has been espaliered.

Fan trees use the same theory as espalier trees. However, the shape is slightly different. The same central vertical stem is used, but the connected branches are not horizontal; they grow in the same pattern as a standard tree, only they are two dimensional rather than three dimensional. They are also used to save space, and are used instead of espalier trees for certain types of trees that do better with sloped branches.

The benefits of an espaliered apple tree

Another type of espalier is the step-over espalier. They are like a normal espalier, but with just one horizontal branch very close to the ground. They are particularly interesting because they still produce delicious fruit while providing a border for whatever you want.Step-over trees can be used to fence a garden garden or create other areas withing a garden . A fence that bears fruit, who wouldn't love that?

As you can see, each of these shapes has its own benefits and negative aspects as well. If any of these sounds like they would be a good fit for your new fruit tree, you can ask at your local garden center for advice on reading material that will help you achieve your goals. Most of the time, getting the tree into the desired shape is a very easy process and just requires some guidance at the beginning.

Growing good sized fruit on your new tree

How to encourage large fruit

One thing that usually shocks new tree growers is the fact that the fruit produced by their tree is often much smaller than the ones they’re used to seeing at the store or farmer's market. Is something wrong with my tree? you may wonder.

However, small fruit are a natural occurrence in a young tree. But while smaller fruits might be what nature originally intended, you can encourage your tree to give you larger fruit, without the use of any added chemicals. You just need to know a few small tricks.

Fruit thinning
Usually in the early stages of a fruit tree's growing, experienced gardeners do something called 'fruit thinning'. The theory behind this is that with less fruit to put it's energy towards, the tree will be able to more efficiently put growth into what fruit there is. When there are hundreds of immature fruit on one tree competing for the available nutrients and energy, you will most likely end up with some of the immature fruit falling off anyway before maturity, and what is left to grow will not be as large as you may have hoped.

To take care of this problem, simply pick at least a third of the fruit extremely early in the growing season. The remaining fruit should grow to a reasonable size. If it's your tree's first year, you may even want to pick all the fruit off and allow the tree to put all it's energy into growth, rather than production.

On some trees, the fruit has a tendency to grow in clusters, my lemon tree is one example. During the fruit thinning process, you would aim to remove some of the fruit in a cluster, allowing the remaining fruit more physical room. I have found that sometimes the fruit in a tight cluster will push each other further and further apart as they grow and this can cause some of the fruit to come off the branch. It also stresses the branch that they're all hanging on. Having loads of fruit starting to grow on a young tree is not always a good thing.

A more mature tree will often naturally produce larger fruit.

Photo credit morgeFile

Conditions out of your control
Sometimes, small fruit are caused by conditions out of the gardener’s control. If the weather conditions are less than ideal, this can affect the size of the fruit and if there are any fruit at all. If the weather is particularly cloudy very early in the season, or conversely, particularly hot, then fewer carbohydrates will be available to your plants. A lack of water or certain nutrients, or excessive pests and diseases can also damage the growth of flowers and fruit. If you notice these things going on early in the season, you can take steps to try and correct the.

Experiment
The best way to find out how to gain larger fruit sizes is to experiment. You can test different thinning techniques and particular combinations of nutrition, anything you can think of to produce larger fruit. You might even head down to your local nursery and ask them for advice. They will be able to give you advice based on your region and your specific tree, and recommend any products they think may be beneficial. So don’t settle with small fruits. Go out there and find out what exactly you need to do to improve the size.

More about birds......

Some information on netting your tree 

If you have a problem with birds on your fruit tree, you may have tried some of the solutions in the previous post. The plastic animals, scarecrows, wind chimes, and highly reflective tape can do the job, particularly with smaller, more timid birds. The problem is, we don't want to scare all birds completely out of our yards, we just want to keep them off the fruit tree.

The birds get braver
The other thing is, birds have a natural tendency to get bolder as time goes by. While at first a scarecrow or plastic owl may be enough to keep the little peckers cowering away, unless you change up your scaring strategy fairly often, you'll look out one day and see them sitting on your scarecrow's shoulder. And having a delicious breakfast of cherrys. Or maybe it's peaches. Apples? Whatever fruit is on your tree, there will be  a bird who is partial to it. Those feathered little fiends! It's not that you don't love birds, you do, but when they're tucking into your lovingly-grown fruit, it's hard to feel charitable towards them.

Try some bird netting
Many gardening stores market a particular type of bird netting. You can buy it by the yard or the meter and it's basically a giant net that you can throw over the entire tree. The holes are about one half of an inch wide. or 1.3 cms. It can be quite a nuisance to install, but it should definitely keep the little birdies off your tree.

The problem with bird netting
One problem with this type of netting is if you have quite small birds in your area, you may find they can actually become caught in the netting and become very distressed and even choke themselves. No one wants to see birds caught in their tree netting when they go and check on their beloved fruit crop.
Another problem is if you have larger birds, or very bold birds, they can land on the netting, which presses the netting to the tree and may allow the bird access to it through the netting

Apple tree with bird netting.

Photo credit Andrew Wiggins

Something else you may consider using though, is a fabric called 'tulle'. It is very fine netting with holes too small for any bird to fit its beak or head into. It is easy to source, any fabric or crafting shop should sell it and it's relatively cheap. Buying enough to cover one tree will probably end up costing less than half of what it cost for the actual bird netting. Birds landing on it will not be able to access the fruit through the net.

It is harder to put in place than the bird netting though and you may need to get creative with a needle and sew a few bits together to make a larger piece. But the netting is so fine, no birds can get caught in it. It will, however, keep bees out too, which you don't want, so leave the netting open at the bottom. Tulle is a much  cheaper alternative to bird netting, and safer for the little wee guys. It may not be practical if you have a very large tree or several that need netting though, so ask at your local garden center if they have any other alternatives when it comes to the size of the holes in the bird netting.

Maybe you could plant two fruit trees, one for yourself and one for the birds?

Keep the birds off your fruit tree

Bird problems!

If you are lucky enough to have a fruiting tree in your yard, I am sure you get much enjoyment from it. There is something very satisfying about eating fruit that's growing in your own back yard. Looking out the window and seeing a magnificent tree covered in fruit is also a great pleasure. And people walking by your front gate will think what a fabulous gardener you are because, wow, look at that tree!

Who's eating from my fruit tree?
But along with the joys a fruiting tree can bring, there are a couple of things that can very quickly turn your wonder into annoyance and even despair. Fruit trees seem to attract more unwanted creatures than any other plant in the world. Do you have a nocturnal visitor noshing on your apples? Or is it the birds that are feasting on your prized crop? We can't really blame them, but it can also bring a gardener to tears, to see the hard work eaten up by a furry or winged fiend.

Feathered fiends
One of the main problems of course is birds. It's incredible how quickly a flock of birds can descend and decimate a tree. Here in Australia, we have cockatoos that love to do this, they can destroy an orchard of apples in next to no time. It can seem almost impossible to get rid of these pesky birds. Or it may not be a flock but just individual feathered visitors, sitting undetected in the branches and pecking away all day. However, there are several different ways you can deter the birds from your beloved fruit tree..

A flock of cockatoos can decimate an apple tree in minutes.

Photo credit morgueFile

An owl during the day?
One method of repelling birds is to place a plastic owl within the vicinity of the tree. On the edge of your roof overlooking the tree can effective. If you find any animal that usually eats birds and purchase a plastic version of it, this can be enough to deter certain birds from seeing your tree as lunch. You can try, owls hawks, cats, or scarecrows (ok, maybe they don’t actually eat birds....).
Ask at your local gardening store if there is a particular bird scarer they recommend.

Other plastic 'predators'
If you get a plastic animal of some sort,it may cure the bird problem for a while. But take care to move your 'animal' around from time to time so the birds don't wise up. However, some birds are really brave (or really stupid, they don't call them birdbrains for nothing) and will continue to ransack your tree.

Noisy or reflective objects
So something else to try is any reflective surface or noisy object. You can purchase reflective tape designed especially for scaring birds. Old cds hung on strings from the branches of your tree will spin in the breeze and catch the light. Wind chimes are a perfect combination of movement and noise, provided there is wind of some sort of course.

Net your tree
A last resort, which may be needed for larger, more incorrigible birds like cockatoos is of course netting your tree. A nuisance yes, but that may be what's required to save your crop. This is easy to do when the tree is small, not so easy when the tree is large. You may be able to hire someone to do this job for you every summer before the fruit sets.

This banana palm is growing in a cage to protect it from birds.

Photo credit morgueFile

Those with more space and /or more trees, may even consider building a cage for their trees. The upside of this, is that if you have chickens, you can let them into the cage also, and they clean up all the fallen fruit for you, whilst keeping the pesky birds out.

There's nothing like food from the garden, so it's worth figuring out a solution to your bird problem.

Training your new fruit tree

Training branches to go in the right direction

Tree training
Many people associate pruning with changing the structure of your tree to fit a different shape or style. Altering the structure of the tree in this way is known as 'tree training'. This is a way to develop an alternate form for your tree but pruning is also used to prevent diseases, prevent lopsidedness, and encourage healthier fruit growth on your tree.

Pruning for balance
Pruning is useful to keep your tree looking balanced. If you have an abundance of branches on one side of the tree, then you can prune carefully to get rid of some of the larger branches which weigh down the tree on that side. Think about it more in terms of maintaining rather than altering. While pruning is useful occasionally, most of the time you can use training as a healthier and more efficient alternative.

Training trees has been around in one form or another for a long time. Through tying down branches or propping them up from the ground, one can direct the growth of the tree to take whatever shape they want. This is usually started when the tree is young, to encourage it to develop fully in the form you want. Espaliered trees are an example of this.

This is a good example of tree training, note the lack of branches in the center of the arbor and the way the trees growth has been encouraged to create a tunnel effect.

Photo credit morgueFile

Training is partly about pruning but more so about redirecting branches. Rather than just cut off all the branches that aren't going in the right way, you try to redirect them. You can equate this to putting braces on your teeth to get them to grow straight  for your fruit tree. Eventually the branches naturally grow that way you've been training them.

What form to take
It can be difficult to decide how exactly to train your tree. There are different forms and shapes to choose from and different reasons for doing it. Some training methods allow a high density of trees in an orchard, and some are meant to provide maximum access to the center of the tree. Depending on where your tree is, you may want to train it to fit in a particular space.

To train a tree, you will need some sort of outside brace to push or pull a branch. Alternately, if you want to push 2 branches closer together or further apart, you can place something in between them or lash them together with rope. Successfully training your branches just takes a little imagination in deciding what to tie things to and what to push things off of. You may even attach branches to a wall, spreading them out in  fan shape, called an Espaliered tree.

Have a look at this demonstration of how to espalier a fruit tree.

Does your tree need training?
Have a think about whether your new fruit tree could benefit from a little training as it grows. Whether you decide to give your tree a completely new form, or to just optimize the branch placement for easier access  and healthier fruit, there is probably some way that tree training can benefit you.

Caring for your fruit tree

How to care for your new fruit tree

If you have just recently planted your first fruit tree, it's probably  safe to assume you are not yet an expert on the subject. A lot of fruit trees die in their first year due to poor poor knowledge on behalf of the gardener. So it is vital that you understand how to care for your new fruit tree in such a way that will ensure it's
longevity and productivity.

Fruiting in the first year
During the first stages of the tree’s life, the roots, trunk, and branches may not yet have fully developed to full strength. If your tree starts producing fruit in it's first year, the weight is sometimes enough to snap off an entire branch. If this is the case, you can provide external support for your branches, but you may also want to consider removing some or most of the immature fruit before this becomes a problem. If your tree is fruiting heavily while so young, this diverts energy the tree could be putting put into growth. So another reason to remove immature fruit on your young tree is to encourage more growth of the tree itself.

A very heavily fruiting, mature mandarin tree.

Photo credit morgueFile

Nutrition for fruit trees
Proper nutrition for your tree will optimize any results you're hoping to see, and will also help your tree develop into a healthy, strong specimen. Exactly what your tree needs will depend on the area, climate, and type of tree you have, and a good place to get information on this is at your local nursery. You can tell them about the conditions your tree is living in, how healthy it is looking, and they should be able to help you find what you need to improve the outlook for your tree.

Too much water?
Many people think that the best way to ensure a tree’s health is to provide large amounts of water, but this is probably not the case. Giving the tree too much water can do more harm than good, as it can wash the nutrition your tree needs out of the soil. And if your tree is in an area without good drainage, having wet roots all the time will case them to rot. A deep watering twice a week in summer is probably all it needs and quite possibly no extra watering will be needed at all.

Mulch
It is a good idea to provide you tree with some mulch, this helps it conserve water in the heat and can keep weeds down around the trunk. Be careful not to mulch right up to the trunk though as this can cause the trunk to rot; keep an area clear right around the trunk. Sugar cane mulch or straw are very good mulches to use for fruit trees.

Liquid fertilizer
I am a fan of organic fertilizers, so I recommend making our own weed or compost tea, using the liquid from a worm farm....dilute it though as this is rather potent, or using a fish emulsion. Giving your tree a dose of fish emulsion when it is first planted can help your tree settle in to it's new home.

Mature fruiting apple tree.

Photo credit morgueFile.

Older fruiting trees
If your tree has started fruiting, never leave any of the fruit on the ground to rot. Once dropped fruit begins to rot, it provides a perfect home for unwanted insects or diseases that can then start to annoy your tree. If you are picking the fruit, remove it carefully, be sure not to tear the branches.

If you follow these simple tips, you can be sure that your tree will enjoy a healthy, productive life.

Remember to ask your local plant nursery staff  if you have any unusual tree problems.

How to prune young fruit trees

Pruning young fruit trees

If you are just new to the world of growing fruit trees, you've have no doubt heard the term 'pruning' tossed around. Well, many gardeners will tell you that they have never pruned a tree. Pruning is not absolutely essential to the health of a tree...usually, though with proper pruning your fruit tree will become more productive.

Why do we prune fruit trees?
Pruning is the removal of dead or unneeded branches to encourage the growth of flowers and fruit. A tree may end up devoting energy to areas that don’t need it, leaving less energy and nutrients for fruit bearing. Judicious removal of some branches may see an improvement in the trees performance  in regards to it's fruiting capacity. Pruning also keeps the tree in shape by maintaining balance. This prevents the fruit tree from becoming weighed down on one side.

Always use sharp secateurs for pruning. Photo credit morgueFile.

When should I start pruning my fruit tree?
Many gardeners don’t even think about pruning their trees until they start to bear fruit. This is a mistake, and you should never neglect  a tree just because it hasn't yet begun to produce. During the entire process of growth, you should prune the tree in a way that it is even and uniform. Then, when it does start to produce fruit, the results will be significantly greater. It is very easy to tell the difference between a tree that has been pruned regularly during its growth, and one that has been neglected. Generally the shape of the tree is much more balanced looking if it has been pruned.

Look for any dead branches
The first thing to look for when you start pruning is any branches which are dead or diseased. These are quite easy to recognize. Usually they don’t bear any fruit, and might be misshapen or discolored. Sometimes a branch can be dead or diseased without making it too obvious. If this is the case, wait until the tree is flowering and it will become obvious by not growing anything.

Look for branches that are crowded
The second thing to look for when pruning, are any branches that are too crowded. Crowding, particularly in the center of the tree can create the right conditions for pests and disease. Take out a few of the smaller branches to allow one or two larger branches more room in the center. Fruit trees are often encouraged to grow via pruning into a vase shape  A 'V' shape, narrow at the bottom, opening wide at the top.

Formative pruning vs regulatory pruning
There are other situations and types of branches that require pruning, but these are the very basics. These can alter depending on how old your tree is. For example, for the first 3 years of a tree’s growth it requires pruning that follows 'formative' guidelines. This means pruning for the vase shape and pruning off side shoots etc. After the tree is well established, you will need to use 'regulatory' pruning to keep the tree healthy and to a manageable size.

Watch this four minute video on pruning and shaping a new fruit tree.

Very easy to understand and follow.

Get to know your tree
Exactly how and when you prune will depend somewhat on how your tree fruits. Some trees fruit on 2nd year growth, so if your prune off all the wrong shoots and branches, you will have no fruit that year.

.

Get to know your tree and what it requires for healthy growth.

Does my tree need staking?

How to stake your tree

Does it need staking?
When a tree is young, one of the most important things you need to provide for it in addition to water and nutrients is support. If you don’t guide a young somehow, it may end up growing in a certain direction and it may be damaged by high winds, which could cause the trunk to snap.

Staking should also prevent the movement of the root ball being moved around, because this is not a great thing for a young tree to go through. Your tree needs to send down it's roots, and if it has too much movement that will not happen very easily.

This apple seedling will need staking when it gets a bit taller; it's trunk will be very thin for a while as it grows, and will need support.

How to do it
The most popular method of keeping young trees upright is to put long stakes into the ground on either side, and tie loops around the tree. Each loop should be fairly loose to allow for further expansion of the trunk. Many of people just have a stake on one side of the tree, but this is not good practice because it only offers support if the tree is being pushed in a certain direction. Though if the spot you have chosen to plant has a prevailing wind, one stake may be sufficient because the tree won't be buffeted from all angles.

Large trees may not need staking
If you're planting a larger tree it may not need staking. The trunk does need some movement, as this will strengthen it.

Take care
When staking your tree, be careful what you use to tie around the truck. Old stockings are good as they are soft, stretchy and non-abrasive. Gardening stores will have special tapes and ties for staking trees and other garden plants. Make sure you do not tie too tightly around the truck as this can damage your tree.

What to use for a stake
Any strong, straight stick can be used as a stake. Garden centers will sell strong stakes for this purpose but many gardens and sheds may contain some stakes as well. Old fence palings are useful, see what else you can scrounge. If your stakes are pointed on one end they will be easier to drive into the ground.

When to remove a stake
When your tree has been staked long enough to stand on its own, you should carefully remove the stakes from the ground. Make sure your tree is strong enough to withstand buffeting winds and it's trunk is strong enough to hold the whole tree upright.

Where should I plant my tree?

Where's the best spot  for my tree?

Where should I plant it?

When growing a fruit tree, choosing where to put it is the most important factor.
One thing to consider is the proximity of the tree to a building, power lines, nature strips or sidewalks, sewerage or water pipes and any other thing that the tree might disrupt once it grows larger and sends down roots. Once your tree is in the ground, the chances of successfully unearthing it and changing its spot without damaging it are very slim.

How big will it grow?
Be sure you know which size fruit tree you have (dwarf, semi dwarf, or standard) and how big it will end up being once it is an adult. Dwarf trees need an area with an eight-foot diameter to grow. Semi-dwarf fruit trees can grow up to fifteen feet wide. Standard fruit trees can grow as wide as thirty feet. To keep the size of your fruit tree at whatever level is best for you, you can prune them to keep them smaller and accessible..

Give it the right amount of sun 

Another thing that you have to consider when planting a fruit tree it whether or not it is getting all of the sunlight it needs to survive. You also have to be sure it doesn't get too much sunlight, especially while it's young. If your tree doesn't get just the right amount of sun, it will not perform at it's best; it may not fruit and may lose it's leaves.
Check that you do not plant it where the sunlight will be blocked by something at a different point in the season.

Location, location, location

An important thing to keep in mind when choosing a spot for your tree is whether your spot will be convenient for watering, harvesting, and pruning. If you place your fruit tree close to your house or a fence, be sure to keep it well pruned so it does not become a nuisance and unsightly. If your tree grows over your fence the fruit could drop into your neighbor's yard, which might seem like a nice thing but would probably irritate a fair amount of people. And make sure you plant your tree where it will be easy to water. 

 Soil
One of the most important things of all to keep in mind when planting a fruit tree is whether or not the soil in your yard is suitable for your tree. Some trees prefer acidic soil and natives have needs that may be different to fruit trees, so you may choose to plant a fruit tree away from any native trees. Make sure the soil is not boggy and waterlogged, most trees won't do well with sort of soil. Check the drainage.

These blueberry bushes are growing in pots because that is the easiest way to give them the acidic soil they enjoy.

If your soil is less than optimal, consider conditioning it with compost and animal manure. For fruit trees that like acidic soil, blueberries for example, plant them in an area by themselves, or keep them in large pots, where you can give them the soil conditions they prefer. Talk to the staff at your local nursery if you don't know what soil your tree requires. 

 Now, get digging!

How to plant your fruit tree

Planting your new fruit tree at home

First, get your tree home safely
When you have decided on which kind of fruit tree you would like, and where you would like to put it, you can finally plant it. If you purchase your tree from a nursery, be especially careful when you are taking it
home. If it's a tall tree already, make sure you have enough clearance once you have it in the tray of your ute, or truck, or trailer. You don't want your tree to be damaged by driving under something too low for it. Bare rooted trees can be placed in the trunk or boot of the car, they come with their roots wrapped up and no leaves, so just slide the root end in and you leave the bare branches hanging out. Drive, carefully, home.

Check the size of the root ball
When you have arrived with your tree safely at home, look at the bottom of it and see how big the root ball is. It may seem like a lot of work now, but you want to dig a hole that is ideally twice as wide as the ball, and just a little less deep. Making the hole slightly bigger than the root ball allows room for the soil that you dug out to be put back in. Otherwise you would be stuck with a giant heap of unwanted dirt, and nowhere to put it. After you have dug the hole, line the hole with some compost or some aged cow poop, so that the tree will grow better. After you have done this, plop your fruit tree into the hole, and gently spread the roots out evenly so that the tree will be strong and stable. And, er, make sure it's in straight.

Re-fill around your tree
When all of this business is done, take the soil that you dug up and fill in the hole completely. Kids love this part. Unless you want big piles of dirt everywhere,  be sure you use all of the dirt even is it is a couple inches
higher than the rest of your yard. This is because it will compress when watered. Before you firm up the soil, make sure that the tree is completely vertical (important for visual pleasure ) and will not fall over. After you have checked (again!) that the tree is perfectly vertical you can gently firm up the soil.

Does your tree need staking?
If the tree's trunk is not yet completely sturdy and can be bent, you need to tie the tree to a stake with a bit of rope or tape. If using rope, be sure not to tie it tightly to the tree, as you don't want it to cut into the trunk. Once the tree is sturdy enough to withstand all types of weather, you can pull the stake out. When all of this is done you should mulch around the base of the tree, leaving a clear space around the actual trunk. If you live in an area where wildlife can access your yard, put a fence around your tree, because some animals
will eat the bark off of young trees and chew on the tender young leaves.

Water it in well
Give the tree a really good water. You can add some fish emulsion to the water, this helps the roots to settle in well. The liquid, or 'worm juice' out of a worm farm will have the same effect.

Any fruit yet?
Once you have successfully planted your fruit tree it should hopefully start to bear fruit after it is three to five years old. Once your tree starts to carry a lot of fruit you should periodically pick some of the immature fruit so that the branches aren't weighed down too much. If the fruit gets too thick, the branches can actually snap off. On some years your tree might not bear as much fruit as others, but this should not worry you. Healthy trees often take years on “vacation” where they produce little or no fruit. Weather conditions can also have an effect, with too little or too much rain or heat having an impact on fruit production.

Two young blueberry bushes ready to go in the ground.

Taking care of pests
After you've planted your tree you might start to have some problems with pests. To help keep these pests away, always rake away old leaves, brush, or any other decaying matter that could be holding bugs that could be harmful to your tree. Gall wasps will ultimately not kill your tree, though they will disfigure it with branches growing at odd angles. Careful pruning can help this problem. Scale will need to be taken care of but a good spray with white oil will help this problem.

Prune carefully
To make sure that your tree always stays healthy, careful pruning is a must. When to prune will depend on what tree you have. Deep water your tree once or twice a week during dry times, and be sure not to hit your tree with a lawn mower or a weed eater because it could severely damage the growth process. Judicious use of compost or specialist fertilizers should help the produce a fine crop of fruit and as the tree grows, so will your knowledge of how to care for it.

Now get planting!

Planting my very first fruit tree

The first fruit tree I ever planted

Almost everyone’s first tree experience has some embarrassing moments. Nobody can be an expert right away, right? We all make mistakes that sometimes haunt us for years afterwards (not necessarily just gardening mistakes either!) Some of us make worse mistakes than others, though. I think that if there was an award for being the most naïve person to ever attempt growing a tree, I would win.

When I decided to plant a tree of my own, I had the perfect spot in mind. There was a gap in a garden bed up close to the side of the garage. It was probably the least pretty area of what laughingly gets called the front lawn, and I thought I could put something useful in there. Maybe if I had a good looking tree there, the resale value of my house would go up (we were hoping to sell in a couple of years). I envisioned a gorgeous, lush tree covered in bright yellow lemons in about six months. Boy was I wrong.

I decided on a meyer lemon tree. Despite the risk of lemons all over the 'lawn', I thought it would be a great treat in summer to drink bucket loads of delicious home grown lemonade. Just the thought of this was enough to send me quickly driving local nursery and buying the first half way decent lemon tree I spotted. I didn't know enough about trees to look at the roots or any of the signs that it could be an unhealthy tree. I spent the required amount of money, placed the tree on the front seat of my ancient car (it wasn't a very big tree) and headed for home.

I dug the hole right where I wanted the tree. Actually, I told my husband where I wanted the hole dug and HE dug it. Ahem.This took a bit more time than he/I anticipated. Holes are an easy thing to underestimate, it turns out. It’s easy to say that a hole will only take twenty minutes or so, but once you actually start digging it usually progresses a lot slower than you would like. By the time the hole actually got big enough to fit the ball of roots, he certainly didn't feel like digging another few feet around the perimeter as I was suggesting, thanks to a very basic tree planting guide. He'd had enough and so, I was ready to place the tree. With the help of my three year old son, I lifted extracted the tree from it's over size pot and plopped it into the hole. Then, it was time to fill in the hole, which is something the three year old enjoyed,

I couldn't have been happier once that last shovel of dirt went in. I stood back to admire my work. That was when my small son said something that brought reality crushing down, and still stands true today. “Mom, that tree is wonky!” "Oh, really?" I said. "Uh huh" he answered. I convinced myself it was a visual trick created by the uneven edges of the garden bed, and told myself...and my son...that after a good watering and a few days to settle in the tree would be standing straight and upright

So, thinking this was a problem that the tree would naturally outgrow, that, and the weird lumps on some of the branches, I decided to leave it for a while to see what would happen. Every day I went out to check on the progress of the tree; to see if it had was looking straighter than it was the day before, or was providing me with any lemons. Nope, it appeared that it had not improved at all. Not wanting to bother with the effort of digging it up and re-seating it in the hole, I decided to just forget about it. I didn't often go to that particular garden area anyway, so I almost completely pushed the tree from my mind. I decided that if any problem ever came about from leaving the tree 'wonky', I would blame subsidence from the drought we were currently experiencing. The lumps on the branches I thought would disappear once the tree got a few more leaves. Yup, for someone who thought they would have a natural green thumb, it was a pretty good way of advertising how much I didn't know about gardening.

After a couple years of completely ignoring that the tree ever existed, I was sitting inside one day and my son, now five years old, and his younger brother, had been down the side of the house close to the 'lawn' where the wonky lemon tree lived. "There's yellow things all over the tree!" they came inside shouting.
Huh?
I was thinking wasps so I raced out. But the tree, still wonky, was covered in ripe lemons.

This years crop, just ripening up.

On closer inspection the lumps on the branches were still there too, I now know they are caused by gall wasps and can cause the branches to grow in odd directions. A wonky tree, and, one with branches growing out at all angles. Not what I'd envisaged when it came to re-sale value.

Now, I'm not sure what was more embarrassing, that my sons didn't appear to know what a lemon was or that the tree, despite my lack of green thumb and obvious neglect, had come through for me and produced the lemons I had dreamed of.

Tree guilt, anyone?

Want to grow your very own fruit tree?

What to think about when buying a fruit tree

Although the process of growing and caring for a tree is generally not terribly challenging, sometimes the most difficult part of the process is choosing which kind of tree you want. You have to take a few things into account, size of tree, fruit, and any other attributes. The different sizes include: dwarf, semi-dwarf, standard and some trees now come in columnar shapes. Your choice will affect everything about your growing experience, including the amount of work you have to put in and the amount of rewards (fruit) you will reap.

Dwarf trees are ideal if you only have a limited amount of open space in your garden or courtyard. They can take up as much as an eight-foot diameter plot of land, but many will do well with less, and some can be grown in large pots.
Although the dwarf fruit trees are smaller than the others, their fruit is just the same size as that of a standard tree and their short stature makes them easier to prune and harvest. Dwarf fruit trees aren't known for living quite as long as larger fruit trees, though, so keep that in mind. They should begin to bear fruit after three to five years, so if you are going to buy a dwarf fruit tree from a nursery, always ask to find out how old it is.

A small navel orange planted in my front yard. 

Semi-dwarf trees are medium sized, and when they are full grown they can take up a fifteen-foot diameter. Semi-dwarf fruit tree's height can range from as low as ten feet to as high as sixteen feet. To keep them from getting to large you need to prune them at least once a year. Occasionally, a semi-dwarf fruit tree will take a season off and produce little or no fruit, but mostly they produce hundreds of fruit every year if treated well and kept in their ideal conditions. Many people enjoy owning semi dwarf fruit trees because they produce more fruit than a dwarf tree, but they are easier to harvest and maintain than a standard fruit tree because of their size.

Standard sized fruit trees take up much more area than any of the smaller tree varieties, and because of this they are harder to manage and to harvest all of the fruit. If you do not prune them at least once a year they can grow as large as thirty feet. If you are just looking for a good tree to provide you with plenty of delicious fruit and to keep your yard shady, a standard sized tree would be the perfect tree for you. Standard sized fruit trees can take a very long time to reach their full height, but they usually begin to bear fruit after only three to five years.

As a child, I remember picking plums from a neighbors almighty plum trees. They were an elderly couple and unable to get up into the branches, so my parents would bring ladders and all of us six kids would be scrambling up and down these tall ladders collecting the out of reach plums.

Now, the best variety of fruit tree to buy would be one that sets fruit and does well in your area, because a local fruit tree takes less work and will be well suited to the local conditions. Although fruit trees bearing other, more exotic kinds of fruit may seem more exciting, they may not grow as well in your area. That’s not to say it’s impossible. You can definitely try to grow a more exotic tree, it is possible to make an area of micro-climate in a pocket of your yard or garden that would suit a particular tree, but it will take much more time and effort.

Another factor to take into consideration is what kind of soil you have, because some trees do better in damp soil while others are better suited for drier soil. Some prefer more acidic soils and some will enjoy sandier conditions. Some trees have a high chill factor needed before they will set fruit, so if you are in an area with mild winter temperatures, you may want to avoid an apple tree. You may, however, have much more success planting a mango or avocado tree, which enjoy the heat.

So, before choosing which type of fruit tree you would like, consult your local nursery or gardening store to find out which trees would do well in your area. Have a look around your neighborhood to see what other people are growing.

Picking an apple off a columnar apple tree, known as a Ballerina apple.

Other things that you should look out for when purchasing a fruit tree at a nursery or market is how sturdy it is, are all of the branches looking strong, none of them weakened or partially torn from rough handling? How straight does the tree stand, is it droopy and sad looking or vibrant and healthy?

Check the foliage, if it has any (some trees are sold bare rooted in the winter, so will have no leaves), check for pests and scale on the leaves and trunk.

Making a well considered decision can mean the difference between a successful tree that brings you pleasure to look at (and fruit) or a tree that never does well in the place you put it. Do your research, and aim for the former!