greenhouse for trees?

Does anyone currently operate a greenhouse including trees? I've long nurtured the dream of having citrus and other warm-weather trees in my zone 5/6 area. Dwarf trees would be fine to an extent, but slightly larger ones would be nice too. So, to that end, has anyone tried this? I can only imagine it would be a nightmare to keep heated having such lofty dimensions.

The Ott-Kimm Conservatory is a greenhouse that has been operated as an ecosystem with no inputs for the last 35 years. It is full of fruit trees, in fact the type of greenhouse that I prefer to build is ideal for warmer climate fruit tree cultivation as well as propagation. The Conservatory is to my knowledge the longest standing example of a balanced ecosystem enclosed in a greenhouse. We are currently in various phases of construction and establishment for 4 more 1,000+ square foot Earth Powered Greenhouses in it's likeness. Each of these will also be largely for cultivating warmer climate fruit trees.



Self-fruitful Semi-dwarf Fruit Trees are what we have had the most success with. True dwarfs are often not the greatest fruit and don't produce well. Semi-dwarfs are grafts on dwarfing root stocks, so you get the propagated variety of fruit and it's productivity, but overall plant growth is restricted by the rooting stock. These also reach maturity the quickest, although their lifespan is the shortest. That the fruit trees are also Self-fruitful is even more important. This means the variety can pollinate itself. In a greenhouse environment this allows you more diversity, leading to a more resilient and healthier ecosystem. With this kind of design we can grow citrus fruit in a zone 3/4 area. When the temperature remained -20°F or below for 2 weeks (going well below that) the Conservatory cooled to 15°F. The Earth Powered Greenhouse that we just completed remained 31°F when it was -20°F outside. This is without the stored heat from a summer growing season, nor the thermal buffer that humidity provides.

That's very impressive! I can't even begin to imagine how much that must have cost to set up! When you say "no input", does that mean that you also haven't planted new plants in the meantime? What all does "no input" entail?

I'll be looking into semi dwarf trees, they seem very promising!

I am a farmer at Satara,Maharashtra,India

1. I have Plot size East 123 Mt  West 81 mtrs= Average 102 Mtrs , North 48 Mtrs South 54 mtrs =Average 51 Mtrs. This plot is with fruit trees such as Mango, Sapota , Coconut.
2. I want to cover above plot with Green  House of Size 102 x 51 =5202 sq.mtrs
3. I want to construct vertical structure on the space available between two trees of 10 layers. One Layer of 98 Mtr Length x 1.50 mts width = 147 sq.mtrs.x10 layers= 1470 sq.ft.
4. I want 10 track as above of 10 layers each =1470 x10=14700 sq.ft.
5. On each above layer I want to cultivate turmeric, ginger and vegetables.
6. I want to take turmeric ,ginger and vegetables crops in above verticle structure.
Contact Details :  Sharad Talwalkar ,Satara, Maharashtra,India whatsap no.9766397500 Email ID svtalwalkar@yahoo.com