Fruit

Fruit Trees

How to Grow: Paw Paw

Learn about growing this unusual tree in your yard with its tropical-like fruit. Listen to podcast: Okay, just call me a sucker for fruit. I drink fruit smoothies for breakfast and drool over durians and dragon fruits in Asian Markets. To no surprise, my wife Wendy and I are planting a fruit orchard at our new home. Yes, we'll have pears, plums, cherries and peaches. But what I'm really excited about is growing paw paws. With a name like paw paw how can you not like this fruit! Paw paw is a temperate climate relative of tropical fruits...

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Fruit

How to Grow: Peaches

Learn about the best varieties and how to grow peaches in the North. Listen to Podcast: podcast transcript How to Grow: Peaches Peaches (Prunus persica) take a little more work and care than other tree fruits, but boy are they worth it. I remember when I first ate a tree ripened peach on a warm summer day. The juices flowed down my chin and my face was covered with a smile. Less hardy than apples and pears, there are some good varieties that grow well in our region — even in colder areas. Peach trees are generally hardy to USDA 5, but some...

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Fruit

How to Grow: Pears

Learn about pears, including how to plant and grow this fruit. Listen to Podcast: podcast transcript How to Grow: Pears The soft, sweet flesh of a home grown pear is almost a meal in itself. Of course, I’ll eat them with cheese or in salads, too, but eating pears fresh is the way to go. Unlike other fruit trees, pears like to grow tall, straight in a pyramidical shape. The ones that grow best in our region are European pears. These are hardier than peaches, but not as hardy as apples. Asian pears will only survive in warmer areas (USDA...

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Fruit Trees

How to Grow: Persimmon

Learn about growing persimmon trees including information on varieties for the North. Listen to podcast: On a recent trip to California I found a mango variety that's hardy to zone 4! I couldn't believe it. Oh, and what day is today? April fools! Although we still can't grow mangoes in Vermont, we can grow other exotic fruits, such as persimmon. A fully ripe, soft persimmon rivals a good mango for flavor. Varieties fall into astringent and non astringent, Asian and American categories. Most persimmons you find in the grocery store are...

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FruitPodcast

How to Grow: Plums

Learn how to plant and grow plums for a northern climate. Listen to Podcast: podcast transcript There are so many varieties of plums (Prunus)  available it's hard to grow just one. I've grown the American plums in my USDA zone 4 garden mostly because of their hardiness. European plums are less hardy, but are self fruitful. Japanese varieties can grow only in warmer parts of our region. There are also tart tasting, native plums and plums crossed with other stone fruits, such as apricots and peaches. These are called pluots. Most plums grow...

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FruitPodcast Shrubs

How to Grow: Pruning Blueberries

Learn how to prune old and young blueberry bushes. I was on a roll in early March pruning my fruits. Then it snowed, got cold and I retreated to the cozy fire. But my blueberries still need pruning and once the snow melts, I'll be back at it. Blueberries are one of the easiest fruits to prune because young plants don't need much pruning. The goal in the early years is strong growth and setting up strong fruiting canes for the future. If any branches are dead, broken, diseased or rubbing against each other, they should be removed. Around...

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FruitInsects

How to Grow: Raspberry Cane Borer

  July is raspberry season. But you might have noticed some damage on your raspberry canes. Two common problems you'll see this time of year are raspberry cane blight and raspberry tip borer. Although neither problem will wipe out your raspberry crop, they both will reduce your yields. If you see random fruiting canes dying back, check for areas of purple or black on the stems. They may have a fungal blight. This blight starts on the first year canes and overwinters. During the second season, as the canes start to fruit, the blight...

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Fruit Trees

How to Grow: Serviceberry

Learn how to grow serviceberry trees including information on varieties for the best fruit. Listen to podcast: podcast transcript Amelanchier spp   Other Name Juneberry   Sun Requirements Full sun, part sun, part shade   Bloom Period and Seasonal Color Early spring with white flowers, summer with blue fruits and good orange and red fall foliage color   Mature Height x Spread 15 to 30 feet x 8 to 15 feet   Added Benefits Native, edible, attracts beneficials, fall color, deer resistant   Serviceberry is one of my favorite, under...

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FruitGroundcovers

How to Grow: Strawberries

Learn about the best varieties and how to grow strawberries in your garden. Listen to Podcast: podcast transcript How to Grow: Strawberries I know it’s summer when I can go harvest strawberries (Fragaria). The sweet, juicy red fruits signal the beginning of the fruit season in my garden. I’m always amazed at how fast they grow and ripen. From small plants popped in the ground the previous year, comes a full bed loaded with green fruits that ripen to red almost overnight with warm weather.   When you see the price of fresh strawberries...

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Annuals FruitPerennials Shrubs Trees

How to Grow: The Right Plant in the Right Place

Probably the simplest way to start with foodscaping in your yard is to substitute plants. Look at the ornamental flowers, shrubs and trees in your yard and consider similarly sized and shaped alternatives that are edible as well. With the advent of so many new plants that blur the line between edible and ornamental, it’s not so hard anymore to find the right substitute for your yard. This process may start simply because a plant has died, died back significantly or outgrown its location and has to be removed. When looking for a substitute...

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