Tree Fruit and Small Fruit Basic Training for UME Master
Gardeners Jon [email protected]
Slide 2
Reasons to grow fruit Flavor and quality, high store price,
versatility, health benefits Its a challenge lots to learn (part
science, art, and mystery) long lived plants that require timely
care and attention each season But please start small; start with
small fruit
Slide 3
Fruit plants grown in Maryland Tree fruit Major- apple,
European pear, peach, plum (Asian and European), sweet and tart
cherry, fig Minor- Asian persimmon, Asian pear, lemon, lime,
orange, banana, pawpaw* Small fruit (take less space, more
forgiving, can be grown organically, less expensive to maintain and
easier to dig up) Major- strawberry, blackberry*, raspberry,*
blueberry*, grape* Minor- currant, gooseberry, jostaberry, hardy
kiwi, elderberry*, beach plum*, chokeberry*, medlar, citron *Native
to mid-Atlantic
Slide 4
Will I have to spray a lot? Pest problems (commercial growers
spray): Peach (many pests) Apple (many pests) Sweet cherry Japanese
plum Grape Can grow these organically: Fig Raspberry/blackberry
Currant Strawberry Blueberry Asian pear Asian persimmon European
plum (maybe) Sour cherry
Slide 5
How do fruit plants compare to tomato plants? Perennials that
require 12-month attention Require hardening (chilling hours) to
survive winter and produce fruit Maximum yields come with the
correct balance of root, leaf, and fruit growth Important to know
when and where they produce flower buds and fruit Correct pruning
is essential to control growth and encourage fruiting
Slide 6
Plan ahead Do I have enough room? Enough time? Whats practical
for me? Start planning one year before planting Select a full-sun,
well-drained site Amend soil to achieve correct pH and increase
organic matter content
Slide 7
Picking cultivars Select well-adapted, recommended cultivars
with good disease resistance. Buy high quality plants- certified,
registered Bareroot plants will catch up to container plants Do I
need a special rootstock? Do I need more than one cultivar for
pollination?
Slide 8
Pollination Most fruit plants in MD require bees to pollinate
flowers and produce a crop Native bees (pollen bees)- bumble bees
and solitary bees; responsible for more than of pollination
European honey bees AND native bees need our help! Avoid or reduce
pesticide use and dont spray when flowers are open
Slide 9
What if my plants arrive too early? Keep roots moist and keep
plants cool Heel in plants outdoors OR Keep plants in garage or
refrigerator
Slide 10
Hydrating an apple whip in a bucket of water for 12 hours prior
to planting 3-year old bare-root apple whip has just arrived from
the nursery. Notice graft union where the scion is joined to the
rootstock.
Slide 11
Water and fertilizer Regular watering throughout the year is
essential Shallow-root small fruit plants are especially vulnerable
to drought stress Fertilize with 1 inch of compost each spring Use
fertilizers according to recommendations Be careful not to
over-fertilize
Slide 12
Weeds and mulch Avoid herbicides Keep mulch away from trunks
and crowns Organic mulch, pea gravel Grass or other living covers
can compete with fruit plants for water and nutrients
Slide 13
Wildlife issues Deer scat Vole feeding
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Pruning Control size and shape Invigorate- stimulate new
fruiting wood Improve air circulation and increase sunlight
interception
Slide 15
Strawberry Two main types for Maryland gardeners: June-bearing
and everbearing (a.k.a day-neutral) Aggregate fruits have many
stamens and pistils. King berry is largest in a cluster and has the
most seeds.
Slide 16
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Blackberry Perennial crown; biennial canes Very well adapted to
all parts of Maryland Four types: Thorny erect (excellent flavor)
Thornless trailing (rampant growers; large fruit) Thornless erect
(good choice for small spaces) Primocane-bearing, thorny erect
Slide 18
Slide 19
Prime-Jim thorny erect blackberry that bears on first-year
canes in late summer through frost.
Slide 20
Raspberry Perennial crown; biennial canes Less heat-tolerant
than blackberry, but ok for all parts of MD Types: Red, purple,
black; June bearing Red, yellow; primo-cane or fall-bearing. Cut
them back to the ground in late winter or early spring.
Slide 21
Black raspberry- new shoots (primocanes) are thinned to 6
inches apart. Red raspberry plant tied to a single wire between
posts.
Slide 22
Tip rooting New raspberry plant from tip rooting Landscape
fabric laid down to suppress weeds and raspberry suckers
Spotted wing drosophila (swd) monitoring trap made from clear
plastic container with lid and -inch holes drilled near the top to
allow flies to enter. Bait: 1 Tbsp. active dry yeast and 4 Tbsp.
sugar dissolved in 12 oz water (better than apple cider
vinegar).
Slide 28
Grapes Vitis vinifera- European wine grapes (less cold-hardy
than native grape and more prone to diseases. Vitis labrusca-
native fox grapes (seeded and seedless)
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Seedless table grape cultivars Mars Canadice Himrod
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Black rot- #1 problem in backyard grapes
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Blueberry
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Common problem Eastern garter snake trapped in bird
netting
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Underused small fruits Elderberry- Sambucus Ribes spp.-
Currant- red, black and white Gooseberry- American, European and
crosses Jostaberry
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Black chokeberry- Aronia melanocarpa
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Beach plum- Prunus maritima Native to U.S. Atlantic Coast
Slide 37
Wineberry- very invasive! Rubus phoenicolasius- China native
that displaces native plants Spreads by seed, suckers and tip
rooting Delicious fruit- but Do Not dig up and transplant into your
landscape
Slide 38
Some keys to apple success : Dwarfing rootstock- BUD 9, EMLA 9,
EMLA 26 Disease-resistant cultivars (scions); e.g. Liberty,
Goldrush, Enterprise Support with stakes and wire (vertical and
oblique cordons work well) Close attention to pruning, pest
monitoring Dont over-fertilize
Slide 39
Apple Pruning Suggested Pruning Cuts A. Suckers. B. Stubs or
broken branches. C. Downward-growing branches D. Rubbing or criss-
crossing branches E. Shaded interior branches F. Competing leaders
G. Narrow crotch H. Whorls From Clemson Univ. Extension fact
sheet
Slide 40
Apple problems and growth stages Codling moth larva; eggs are
laid on young fruits by adult females at petal fall stage. Silver
tip stagePink stage
Slide 41
Cedar apple rust- a common fungal disease that is difficult to
control. Requires Eastern red cedar as the alternate host.
Fireblight- a bacterial disease that can move through the vascular
system of apple and pear, killing branches and trees.
Slide 42
Surround is a pulverized kaolin clay product that suppresses
and repels some fruit insect pests such as codling moth, plum
curculio, and apple maggot.
Slide 43
Above: Olympic Asian pear- good alternative to apple and
European pear but can have insect pest and disease problems. Quince
rust fruiting bodies on Bradford pear fruit.
Slide 44
Brown marmorated stink bug injury
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Late instar nymphs Eggs and 1 st instar nymphs Adult
Slide 46
Peach Peach is best pruned to an open vase shape to maximize
captured sunlight and fruit production. Peach fruits need to be
hand-thinned to increase fruit size and decrease disease
problems.
Slide 47
Peach leaf curl- fungal disease; prevent with fungicide
application when buds swell in early spring. Black knot of plum and
wild cherry- fungal disease; prune out symptomatic wood to prevent
spread.
Slide 48
Bacterial spot disease Gummosis- peach trees exude sap
naturally and when stressed by insects, diseases and abiotic
factors.
Slide 49
Brown rot- a major fungal disease of stone fruits. Dried,
infected fruits are called mummies and must be removed from trees
and ground. Bagging fruit to prevent bird, squirrel, and insect
feeding.
Slide 50
Peach tree borer (PTB) larva feeding on cambium. Sap mixed with
frass (sawdust-like excrement pushed out of entrance hole by
larvae), indicates PTB presence.
Slide 51
Portable fig in whiskey barrel is moved into garage for winter
rest. Protected Baltimore City fig (tree form) with Southern
exposure.
Slide 52
Shrub form with multiple fig stems pulled to center, tied and
covered for winter protection. Same plant during growing
season.
Slide 53
Root containment and root pruning will promote fruiting. Bird
netting surrounds entire fig plant. Most birds will peck through
netting and some may get tangled.
Slide 54
Kudzu bug on fig- just passin through (very minor feeding
injury possible)
Slide 55
Thank you for participating! This Power Point is posted on the
MG state web site and will be periodically updated. Have questions?
Send questions through the website- https://extension.umd.edu/hgic
https://extension.umd.edu/hgic PLANT FRUIT!!GROW FRUIT!!
