Backyard Fruit Trees

All fruit trees require a daily amount of at least six hours of direct sun. Plant in an area that has well-drained soil.

Fruit trees can be planted from spring to autumn, but for the best selection, plant in early spring. Combine Parkwood® 3-in-1 Planting Mix with compost after you’ve dug your hole and use Parkwood® Transplanter as per directions on the bottle.

 

After planting, make sure you mulch around the tree. This will help keep the soil cool and reduce moisture loss. To help fruit trees establish strong roots, water thoroughly two to three times a week based on temperature and rainfall and adjust accordingly.

Fruit trees require an ongoing spray program to control insects and disease if you wish to produce a healthy crop.

Alternating applications of Insecticidal Soap and Garden Sulphur will help keep problems away. Dormant spraying combines horticulture oil and lime Sulphur to kill overwintering insects (such as scale and mites), insect eggs, and diseases on individual hardy landscape plants.

Make sure you have the proper amount of space to grow fruit trees. Some varieties require two different plants to cross-pollinate. For instance, to grow pears, you need two different varieties of pear trees. An apple tree will not act as a cross pollinator for a pear tree.

We have over 90 types of fruit trees, including dwarf, semi-dwarf and regular varieties of your favourite fruit.

If you’re growing in a small space, these are the fruits to plant as they are self-pollinating and do not need a second plant nearby to produce fruit.

Another option for small spaces is to plant a 4-in-1 apple tree. On a single trunk, four different varieties are grafted together which will ensure ready cross-pollination. May include Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, Jonathan, McIntosh, or Gala.

Sour cherries do not need a second tree planted nearby, but sweet cherries do.

If you are looking for a unique self-pollinating fruit to bake and make jellies with, you’ll enjoy growing currants and gooseberries They prefer well-drained, fertile soil. Amend the soil with manure or compost and Parkwood® 3-in-1 Planting Mix.

Currants and gooseberries flower and produce fruit on last year’s wood so avoid any spring pruning. After a few years when older wood becomes less productive, thin out branches to encourage new growth when fruiting has finished in late autumn for the season.

Having a cross-pollinator nearby is vital for fruit production on these fruits.

To grow Japanese Plums, you have to plant two different varieties of Japanese Plums. You can’t cross a Japanese Plum with a European Plum. While most European Plums are self-pollinating, they benefit from having another European Plum in the vicinity.

Apples can be cross-pollinated by crab apple trees. The fruit on crab apples is smaller and more tart compared to other apples. One of our favourite characteristics is the showy display of flowers they produce in spring that attracts pollinators.

When pruning fruit trees, only cut diseased branches, dead wood, and any branches that are crossing. Pruning will help fruit trees grow openly and allow sunlight and air to reach the plant equally.