Welcome to Permies, Jonathan! I think if you can build them an enclosure to protect from
deer and ensure they get water through their first season, it is possible. Brand-new fruit trees (like planted as a one-year whip) will seldom make it if they don't get an inch of water a week, or if deer can eat freely off them. But for the first couple of years they don't really need much more than that.
I would also suggest that you dig your holes before you need to plant and fill them with water to make sure the soil will drain in your location. If the hole empties of water in 24 hours, the site
should be fine.
As far as varieties that will survive intermittent care, that's pretty much a regional question and I'm not in your area, so you'll do better to get advice from a good nursery in your region. Look up Edible Acres or St. Lawrence Nursery, maybe. To get a harvest, you'll need types that are very disease resistant. For apples, the types with the best reputation in that regard come from breeding programs at Nova Scotia and a Purdue-Rutgers-Illinois partnership. Look for variety names with "Nova" in them (Nova Spy) or the letters PRI (Williams Pride, Enterprise). Pears also stand up to some neglect if you get a fireblight-resistant type. You might also consider some less common fruits, many of which have fewer varieties than grocery store varieties, like mulberry, American persimmon, or elderberry. Good luck!
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