Gloria's query - my answer

Now is the time to think about fruit trees you might want to add to your garden. Order now, plant in January or February.


Kazi,

I'm finally placing my order from Bay Laurel for a few bare root trees to plant this winter. I'm only adding 4 this winter. I'm looking at the "low chill varieties" section of their web site. Can you give me some feedback on varieties based on your experience?

Apple---I've heard Anna does well here. What do you grow & like?

Plum---Tempted by "Mariposa" for obvious reasons. Do you have a favorite?

Peach---?

Nectarine---?

I'm going to throw in a Kiwi for good measure too. And lots of different blueberries to try in containers.

Thanks in advance!

G


ok Gloria here are my ideas

As far as apples- Anna needs a pollinator so you would have to get 2 kinds. I love my Fuji best of my 3 apples -which seems kind of average but it does well. Next time I plant I will refer to Kevin Hauser's great site (below) and his list of the best SoCal apples- I've heard him speak and he's inspiring. In my notes from his class Rubinette was his favorite, along with Hawaii. The top 10 of that day included Dorsett, Williams Pride, Gala, Stump, Anna, Fuji, Wealthy, Winesap, Arkansas Black and Wickson Crab. He is a believer in ignoring chill hours when it comes to apples and he has tried literally hundreds of varieties in his Riverside garden.

http://www.kuffelcreek.com/growingapples.htm

Peach is easy- Red Baron on Nemaguard rootstock (NOT Citation) . Stunning tree- great fruit- my favorite SoCal peach so far.

Mariposa sounds great. I love red fleshed plums in general. I would like to plant Mariposa, but haven't tried it. Plums are good on Citation rootstock. Mariposa sounds like a good choice. I have Santa Rosa, Late Santa Rosa, Flavor King Pluot and Elephant Heart. The Elephant Heart and the Flavor King are not very low chill and their fruit set is inconsistent from year to year but they are also my favorites.


As for the nectarines. I am not a fan of the new super sweet low acid ones. I like my fruit with an evident sweet/acid balance, otherwise I find it insipid. I have tried about 4 nectarines over the years and not been happy with any of them. Meanwhile, I managed to steer my friends correctly. I have 3 friends with the old SoCal standby Panamint and I have enjoyed the fruit and the preserves from their trees- on Nemaguard. That will be my next nectarine.


If you want some more opinions go here:

http://www.davewilson.com/br40/br40_taste_files/taste_index.html

Dave Wilson is the wholesale grower that grows most of the trees that Bay Laurel sells and I believe they are the sole distributers for Zaiger genetics- the hybridizers that brought us pluots and many other new fruits. Dave Wilson's taste test results are always informative. A lot of the winners fall into the low acid catagory, but even though that's not my thing, it's fun to look at the results.

fun....I love looking at the Bay Laurel site

http://www.baylaurelnursery.com/

best, Kazi