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Fruit Tree for backyard

 
Posts: 315
Location: Northern California Mediterranean climate zone 10b
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Hello all,
I need ideas for a dwarf or semi-dwarf fruit tree for my back yard.  It's a difficult location.    I'm right at the beach, so it's extremely windy in late winter thru spring.  Sandy soil.  The BY is surrounded on 3 sides (E,W & S) by 3 story buildings, which means the best spot gets about 4-5 hours of direct sun a day in summer.  Almost none in winter.  I'm in zone 10b, which gets very little winter chilling.  

I know that peaches, nectarines, apricots and pluots don't do well here.  Neither do pomegranates or figs.  They just won't fruit.  I think it's too cold and foggy in the summer and too warm in the winter.

We have apples and pears at the community garden that do OK, but it's not as windy there.  

Ideas?
 
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No fig, huh? Crumbs. We have similar weather here and they do well, but I have no idea what cultivars we have.
How about persimmon? It might be a smidge warm for it there (we are in 9b and it's perfect for them) but they are pretty resistant to conditions like mist and wind.
Another option, maybe off the wall, is kumquat. Mine pretty much goes to sleep for the winter, they stay small, they like good drainage.
Last maybe loquat. They're also tough as nails.
 
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yeah, loquat was my first thought.
 
Laurel Finch
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Tereza Okava wrote:No fig, huh? Crumbs. We have similar weather here and they do well, but I have no idea what cultivars we have.
How about persimmon? It might be a smidge warm for it there (we are in 9b and it's perfect for them) but they are pretty resistant to conditions like mist and wind.
Another option, maybe off the wall, is kumquat. Mine pretty much goes to sleep for the winter, they stay small, they like good drainage.
Last maybe loquat. They're also tough as nails.



Loquats do well here.  Persimmon...hmmm... maybe a Japanese variety?  A lot of Japanese plants do well here.  Do they need a lot of water?  We get no rain at all for 6-8 months of the year, late spring thru early fall.  

Figs grow, but they never seem to ripen their fruit.  Just not enough heat in this place of wind and mist.  
 
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Have you tried planting a native variety for your area?

Usually, native varieties seem to do better.

I have no idea if native would be in the form of dwarf trees.
 
Laurel Finch
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Anne Miller wrote:Have you tried planting a native variety for your area?

Usually, native varieties seem to do better.

I have no idea if native would be in the form of dwarf trees.



I have been putting in a lot of native plants, especially flowers, for the bugs and hummers.  (I'm in San Francisco).  Problem is, the yard is very narrow, so I want to keep it to smaller trees.  There's an elderberry that was at death's door when I took over the garden 2 years ago.  It's still not doing very well.  I can't think of any native trees that give fruit!  I'd really like to get something to eat.  

Here's some pictures of the yard from 2 years ago, when I first started cleaning it up, and then a year ago.  Orientation is north-south the long ways.  Only the north end is open.  The tree will go where the black compost bin is in the last pic.
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https://pacificnurseries.com/12-delicious-fruit-trees-for-the-bay-area/ I found this article by a nursery in your area that goes into great detail about lots of different fruit trees for the Bay area.

Regarding figs... Have you tried any of the cold hardy varieties? I have a Desert King and its breba crop ripens early to mid summer for me though its main crop never does get ripe. I only get about 60 days over 70°F (sometimes more, sometimes less), and I've always gotten a ripe crop. Cooler summers, it ripens later. Once it didn't ripen until the end of August. Another time May and June were unusually hot and it ripened early July. It does really well not getting watered during the summer too.
 
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Golden current? I think they are native to that part of the state and are naturally on the smaller side, if not a dwarf variety. I think they are also planted for hummingbirds and monarchs.
I also remember tunas thriving in a lot of places in the Bay area, but that depends on your tolerance for prickers in your garden space.
 
Anne Miller
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I ask Mr. Google about native fruit who said that California wild plum [Prunus subcordata], Pacific Blackberries, Rubus ursinus, are a significant native fruit. Raspberries are also native to parts of California. California also has native strawberries. Fregaria vescas, known as "Alpine Strawberries" or "Woodland Strawberries".

This article mentions Wild cherry (Prunus illicifolia):

https://www.kcet.org/shows/tending-the-wild/a-guide-to-some-indigenous-foods-of-california

That article also mentions Manzanita berries (Arctostaphylos, various species) which is an evergreen hedge

Here is a nursery that specializes in Native plants and has several fruit trees to choose from:

https://nativefoodsnursery.com/categories/native-fruit-trees/

Hopefully something will strike your fancy.
 
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