By John Hoffman, U.C. Master Gardener
Every experienced gardener knows that spring is the time to plant. So why, on this end-of-January day, am I saying, “It’s time to plant”?
I am referring to deciduous fruit trees. I know you can buy them in nursery containers, ready for planting, at any time of year. But when you buy them now, you can buy them bare rooted—which is to say, unpotted. You can inspect the root system and select only those with strong, healthy roots.If the roots are kinked or girdling, you will be able to see that and reject that specimen. You will also find a larger selection of fruit-tree varieties in nurseries now.
These bare-root trees were dug up when they were fully dormant in January. All the dirt was washed off the roots. They were then rushed to the retail nurseries where the roots were covered, or “heeled in,” usually with wet sawdust, to prevent them from drying out. They are sold in this condition until they start to bud out, usually before the end of February.
Almost every garden has room for one or two fruit trees. In a home landscape, they can serve double duty as shade trees. I have a persimmon tree for shade on my patio that provides brilliant fall color, both in its leaves and fruit. I also shade my yard with large, spreading ‘Hartley’ English walnut trees and harvest their nuts off my lawn in October.
Everybody enjoys home-grown, tree-ripened, pesticide-free fruit.
My friend Bill Pramuk, the arborist who writes a semi-monthly column for the Napa Register, says that if you are growing apples for home use, the only pest control you need is a sharp knife. With that tool, you can cut the worm out of the apple before you eat it. Forget the chemicals.
I have been growing fruit for home use—for apple pies and peach cobblers, jams and jellies, and for canning—ever ever since I married my farm girl, Margaret, in 1940. That’s when I planted some pear and peach trees on our quarter-acre mini farm in San Anselmo.
When we moved to our
