Tree Fruit and Small Fruit - PowerPoint Presentation

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Tree Fruit and Small Fruit

Basic Training for UME Master GardenersJon Traunfeld jont@umd.eduSlide2

Reasons to grow fruit

Flavor and quality, high store price, versatility, health benefitsIt’s a challengelots 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 fruitSlide3

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-AtlanticSlide4

Will I have to spray a lot?

Pest problems (commercial growers spray):Peach (many pests)

Apple (many pests)Sweet cherryJapanese plumGrape

Can grow these organically:

FigRaspberry/blackberryCurrantStrawberryBlueberry

Asian pearAsian persimmonEuropean plum (maybe)Sour cherrySlide5

How do fruit plants compare to tomato plants?

Perennials that require 12-month attentionRequire “hardening” (chilling hours) to survive winter and produce fruitMaximum yields come with the correct balance of root, leaf, and fruit growth

Important to know when and where they produce flower buds and fruitCorrect pruning is essential to control growth and encourage fruitingSlide6

Plan ahead

Do I have enough room? Enough time? What’s practical for me?Start planning one year before plantingSelect a full-sun, well-drained site Amend soil to achieve correct pH and increase organic matter contentSlide7

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?Slide8

Pollination

Most fruit plants in MD require bees to pollinate flowers and produce a cropNative bees (pollen bees)- bumble bees and solitary bees; responsible for more than ½ of pollinationEuropean honey bees AND native bees need our help!Avoid or reduce pesticide use and don’t spray when flowers are openSlide9

What if my plants arrive too early?

Keep roots moist and keep plants cool“Heel in” plants outdoors ORKeep plants in garage or refrigeratorSlide10

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.Slide11

Water and fertilizer

Regular watering throughout the year is essentialShallow-root small fruit plants are especially vulnerable to drought stressFertilize with 1 inch of compost each springUse fertilizers according to recommendationsBe careful not to over-fertilize Slide12

Weeds and mulch

Avoid herbicidesKeep mulch away from trunks and crownsOrganic mulch, pea gravelGrass or other living covers can compete with fruit plants for water and nutrientsSlide13

Wildlife “issues”

Deer scat

Vole feedingSlide14

Pruning

Control size and shape

Invigorate- stimulate new fruiting woodImprove air circulation and increase sunlight interceptionSlide15

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.Slide16
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Blackberry

Perennial crown; biennial canesVery well adapted to all parts of MarylandFour types:Thorny erect (excellent flavor)

Thornless trailing (rampant growers; large fruit)Thornless erect (good choice for small spaces)Primocane-bearing, thorny erectSlide18
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‘Prime-Jim’ thorny erect blackberry that bears on first-year canes in late summer through frost.Slide20

Raspberry

Perennial crown; biennial canesLess heat-tolerant than blackberry, but ok for all parts of MD Types:Red, purple, black; June bearingRed, yellow; primo-cane or “

fall-bearing.” Cut them back to the ground in late winter or early spring. Slide21

Black raspberry- new shoots (primocanes) are thinned to 6 inches apart.

Red raspberry plant tied to a single wire between posts. Slide22

Tip rooting

New raspberry plant from tip rooting

Landscape fabric laid down to suppress weeds and raspberry suckersSlide23

Bramble problems

Orange rust- fungal disease

Cane borer

Botrytis (gray mold)Slide24
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Spotted wing drosophilaSlide26
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Spotted wing drosophila (swd) monitoring trap made from clear plastic container with lid and ¼-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). Slide28

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)Slide29

Seedless table grape cultivars

‘Mars’

‘Canadice’

‘

Himrod’

Slide30

Black rot- #1 problem in backyard grapesSlide31

BlueberrySlide32
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Common problem… Eastern garter snake trapped in bird nettingSlide34

Underused small fruits

Elderberry- SambucusRibes spp.-Currant- red, black and white

Gooseberry- American, European and crossesJostaberrySlide35

Black chokeberry-

Aronia melanocarpaSlide36

Beach plum-

Prunus maritima

Native to U.S. Atlantic CoastSlide37

Wineberry- very invasive!

Rubus phoenicolasius- China native that displaces native plantsSpreads by seed, suckers and tip rootingDelicious fruit- but Do Not dig up and transplant into your landscapeSlide38

Some keys to apple success

:Dwarfing rootstock- BUD 9, EMLA 9, EMLA 26Disease-resistant cultivars (scions); e.g. ‘Liberty’, ‘Goldrush’, ‘Enterprise’Support with stakes and wire (vertical and oblique cordons work well)Close attention to pruning, pest monitoringDon’t over-fertilizeSlide39

Apple Pruning

Suggested Pruning Cuts

A. Suckers.

B. Stubs or broken branches.

C. Downward-growing branches

D. Rubbing or criss-crossing branchesE. Shaded interior branchesF. Competing leadersG. Narrow crotchH. Whorls

From Clemson Univ. Extension fact sheetSlide40

Apple problems and growth stages

Codling moth larva; eggs are laid on young fruits by adult females at p

etal fall stage

.

Silver tip stage

Pink stageSlide41

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.Slide42

Surround is a pulverized kaolin clay product that suppresses and repels some fruit insect pests such as codling moth, plum curculio, and apple maggot.Slide43

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.Slide44

Brown marmorated stink bug injurySlide45

Late instar nymphs

Eggs and 1

st

instar nymphs

AdultSlide46

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.Slide47

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.Slide48

Bacterial spot disease

Gummosis- peach trees exude sap naturally and when stressed by insects, diseases and abiotic factors. Slide49

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.Slide50

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.Slide51

“Portable” fig in ½ whiskey barrel is moved into garage for winter rest.

Protected Baltimore City fig (tree form) with Southern exposure.Slide52

Shrub form with multiple fig stems pulled to center, tied and covered for winter protection.

Same plant during growing season.Slide53

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.Slide54

Kudzu bug on fig- just

passin’ through (very minor feeding injury possible)Slide55

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

PLANT FRUIT!! GROW FRUIT!!