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Are you considering growing your own fruit in your garden? If yes, that’s fantastic! There is no greater reward in gardening that being able to literally see the ‘fruits of your labour’, as the saying goes. However take caution – fruit gardening is more complex than growing regular plants, especially if you want the quality of the fruit to be top-notch. Below are some helpful tips for starting and maintaining your own fruit garden.

Consider the climate

The first thing to consider is the climate you live in, as well as your elevation level. This determines the best type of fruit to grow in your garden. Plum trees and apples grow well in high elevation areas, whereas pears and peaches need far more humidity and lower elevation. Always research the ideal climate for the fruit you want to grow, and compare it to the climate you live in.

Fruit combinations

In growing fruit trees, you want to grow more than one simultaneously. This, firstly, makes your garden look more attractive, but trees (and plants, in general) are dependent on cross-pollination, so having more trees around makes it easier for yours to grow.

Fruit tree maintenance – pruning, mulching and insecticides

Growing fruit trees requires good maintenance. The first thing you want to do is grow your plants where there is mulch so as to minimise the threat weeds have on them.

A secondary concern is protecting your fruit plants from pests, by using environmentally-friendly and organic insecticides.

Finally, you will to prune your fruit trees. You want to invest in good shears and perform the pruning during dormant seasons when your plants aren’t bearing fruit. This ensures you do not damage the trees, and gives your plant enough time to adjust to its new form.

Bags of patience

Finally, growing fruit trees is ill-advised if you want to see results instantly. It takes years before your trees begin to bear fruit, so be patient, care for your trees, and let nature do its thing. What we can assure, you, however, is that when you do get to enjoy the fruits of your labour, the reward is much greater than stumbling to your grocer and just picking out something someone else made.

Tags: fruit, gardening