Fruit in the Garden

Peter Johnston-Berresford
pjohnstonberresford@oldscollege.ca
403-556-8380
 Why plant fruit?

z The economy!
z Guaranteed freshness
z You know who the producer is
z Element of design or down-to-earth
practicality
z Mix and match fruit to suit your resources
– small and/or large…much more choice
than you think
 Why plant fruit?

z Easier than you think.

z The birds? Nature…habitat. Do the right
thing.
z Your health…antioxidants, fibre, diet.
z Native Canadian plants…re-vegetate using
the ‘right’ stuff.
z Need to remember to plant hardy, top
quality stock that you want to succeed.
 The essentials
z How’s your soil?...long term, eh!?
z Is the plant self fertile or do you need a
different type for cross pollination?
z Late frost?
z Pick the plant to fit the location
z How much light?
z Support?
z Vigour?
z Drought?
z Size?
z Pests (diseases, insects, weeds)
 The essentials
z Best quality stock to begin with
z Tools you need – installation and
maintenance over time
z Amount of effort and care
z Row spacing (within and between row)
z Irrigation requirements…best management
practices!
z Seasonal stuff…pruning, mulching,
planting, thinning, ‘working’…
z Sanitation…HACCP
Hardiness zones

•Monthly ave. daily min.

temperature coldest month.
•Ave. frost free period in
days.
•Rainfall June-November
•Monthly ave. daily max.
temperature warmest
month.
•A winter factor
•Ave. max. depth of snow
•Max. Wind gust in 30 years.
•Macro-micro environments
Planting

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Planting

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Planting

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 Post-planting care
z Water ~ 1” per week until well established.
z Mulch yearly – well rotted compost
z Fertility – feed the soil, not the plant.
z Prune out unwanted scaffold material –
crossed, diseased or broken branches.
z Weed control.
 Apples
Malus spp.

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http://www.nhmade.com/MemberImages/Generic%20Apples%20250.jpg
 Apples
z Many very hardy, disease resistant,
different flowering/fruiting period, dwarfing
to standard, pruned to fit, must be cross-
pollinated with another Malus, most grafted
(Vee-3, Ottawa-3)
z ‘Norland’: large red, early fruiting, fresh
eating, stores well
z ‘Harcourt’: green+red, fresh eating, v.gd.
flavour, sweet
z ‘Goodland’: fresh-to-cook, stores 20+ weeks,
very sweet
z ‘McIntosh’, ‘Wealthy’, ‘Rescue’, ‘Prairie Sun’
 Fruit tree grafts
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http://forums.mycotopia.net/

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Pears
Pyrus sp.

http://www.worldcommunitycookbook.org/season/guide/photos/pears.jpg
 Pear
z Usually hardy, small and green!, grafted,
mostly good for canning, cross pollination
required, all 15 -20 tall, 10-15’ wide.
z ‘Thomas’: best eating, small, round like an
apple, green
z ‘Ure’: (sweet) eating, similar to Bartlett,
good for storage, standard hardy pear.
z ‘John’: extremely hardy, green, ripens to
yellow in storage, store for up to a year!
z Siberian pear…tough, more tree than pear,
small numerous fruit, canning.
 Saskatoonberry
Amelanchier alnifolia

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https://www.veseys.com/ca/en/images/products/large/2798.jpg
 Saskatoonberry
z Varying fruiting period, wide flavour profile,
fruit size, height, easy to grow, all
Canadian native!
z ‘Smokey’: big! 12’, commercial cv., mild
flavour
z ‘Thiessen’: u-pick favourite, 17mm (1/2”
plus) fruit, late flower, uneven ripening
z ‘Northline’: less big! 8-10’, great flavour,
commercial cv., large yields
z ‘Nelson’: shorty! 5-6’, late flower, tangy,
smaller fruit.
 Hascap – honeyberry
Lonicera caerulea edulis

http://mozz.world.coocan.jp/pages/MediaSaijiki/hascap.JPG

http://albertafruittrees.tripod.com/
 Hascap – honeyberry
z Needs another type to cross with – 5:1,
better than average drainage, hard to
get…lots of demand
z ‘Blue (Smart) Belle’: -50 C, small/short, f-to-f,
drought tolerant, backyard
z ‘Berry (Smart)Blue’: same as above, but more
vigorous, drought tolerant, tough, pest
resistant, f-to-f, backyard
z ‘Svetlana’: new, UofS release, smaller, tough,
f-to-f, very pest resistant, backyard favourite
z ‘Cinderella’: smallest plant, largest fruit,
blueberry flavour, backyard, f-to-j
 Grape
Vitis spp.

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 Grape
z Fresh eating and/or wine…check, ground
cover or trellised, vining bush, hardy, large
colour/size range, variable ripening, well
drained soil, own-rooted (mostly).
z ‘Delisle’: tough esp. if you’re cold!, small
berry, wine, mid-August ripe
z ‘Valiant’: old-timer, j-to-j, end August ripe
z ‘Prairie Star’: white wine, disease resistant,
mid-September ripe
z ‘King of the North’: j-to-w, early September
z ‘Frontenac’, Marquette, Swensen Red (t),
Edelweis (t)
 Currant
Ribes rubrum

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 Currant
z Hard as nails, not soil fussy, some disease
issues, minor insect problems, moisture, fruit
on 2-3 year old wood, rhizome, suckers, layer.
z ‘Red Lake’: large yields, red berry, clusters,
compact (3’ x 3’), tea-to-sauce, tough, soil
indifferent
z ‘White Lake’: white berries, similar to above, less
vigorous, hardy, wider
z ‘Boskoop’: black berry, very hardy, best flavour,
aromatic, (3’ x 3’), fresh
z ‘Ben Nevis’: Ben series – all good, high yield,
commercial, variable harvest, upright, compact.
 Gooseberry
Ribes hertellum

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http://www.motherearthnews.com/
 Gooseberry
z Minor disease resistance, many coloured
cvs., variation is fruit size, tart, branches
often thorny, not fussy, gd. Fall colour,
fruits on last year’s wood and older.
z ‘Pixwell’:less thorny, green to pink fruit, 4’ x
4’ , upright
z ‘Hinnonma(e)cki’: sp. cross, hardy, vigorous,
very thorny, gd for preserves, 4’ x 4’
z R. oxycanthoides: native, dwarfing, disturbed
sites,
 Blueberry
Vaccinium spp.

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 Blueberry
z Moisture loving, organic/acid soils (pH 4-
5.5), mix of lowbush, half-high, highbush,
sp., fruit on last year’s wood, weakly
rhizomatous, better x pollinated,self fertile.
z ‘Superior’: new UofMinn, late maturing,
bountiful, 5’ x 5’, hardy, lighter blue,
med.size berry
z ‘Northblue’: standard, hardy, acidic/tart,
larger berry, 3’ x 4’,
z ‘Chippewa’: sweet, med. producer, 4.5’ x 4’
z ‘Polaris’: med. producer, mostly hardy, sweet
fruit, 4’ x 4’
 Raspberry
Rubus idaeus, R. occidentalis (nigrum)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Raspberries_(Rubus_Idaeus).jpg

topnews.in/healthcare/sites/default/files/black-raspberry.jpg

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 Raspberry
z Primocane & floricane fruiting, hardy,
bountiful, upright to arching, variable fruit
size and colour, (non) root-suckers,
flavourful, variable ripening.
z ‘Boyne’(r/fl): industry standard, good
productivity, good flavour, sweet
z ‘Royalty’ (p/fl): purple, late, v.gd.
Productivity,
z ‘Honeyqueen’ (y/fl): yellow, loose fruit, fresh
z ‘Fallgold’ (y/pr): hardy, good productivity,
best flavour, medium size.
z ‘Redwing’ (r/pr): hardy, good flavour & prod.
 Strawberry
Fragaria ananassa

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http://www.naturehills.com/images/productImages/EverbearingStrawberries_1.jpg
 Strawberry
z Popular, many hardy cvs. with some winter
protection, snow both a benefit and a
hindrance, o/m soil, hilled, straw
underneath to protect berries, pollinators,
problems!
z First flower – biggest fruit, all others
smaller.
z June bearing – in July, 4 weeks.
z Ever-bearing – June-July, then August again
z Day-neutral – longer, but heaviest in August-
September
 Strawberries
z June-bearing: bear flowers on last year’s
stems: ‘Kent’, ‘Bounty’, ‘Hinoye’, ‘Glooscap’
z Ever-bearing: soft fruit, lower yields:
‘Ogallala’
z Day-neutral: bear fruit on current year
stems: ‘Tristar’, ‘Fern’, ‘Seascape’.
Labeling
Labelling
Labelling
Labelling
 Breeders and resources

z University of Saskatchewan:
http://www.fruit.usask.ca/

z University of Minnesota:
http://fruit.cfans.umn.edu/breedingprogram.htm

z Cornell University:
http://www.hort.cornell.edu/extension/commercial/fruit/index.html
Thank-you!
z In Memory of A Friend:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TkcLwEwt-1s
z Common Vision:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xAZ5v4hW9Fo
z Bears:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjgq2psa4hc&feature=rel
ated
z Norah Jones:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCwyspDtl6k&feature=re
lated
z Khntsori Zarin Dag: Under the apple tree:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LZIkN4WyhHc&feature=r
elated
z Under the apple tree:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYILCHW-
Zro&feature=related