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I think if we get a lot of input from everyone here, this could be a super valuable resource for figuring out which fruit trees and berries will grow best in your area.

You are in the right spot if you are in a Oceanic/Mediterranean Climate Zone 9- more average temperatures, not too hot in the summer or cold in the winter, usually has rainy winters and dry summers.(source)

If you think you are not in the right spot or you want to check your climate zone and hardiness zone for sure, click on the main thread to find out and get additional information Fruit Trees and Berries that Grow Best in Your Area Naturally and it will have a link to your specific climate zone and hardiness zone for you to post!


Familiar places in this area...

Victoria, Canada


(source)

This list won't be perfect, as there are so many different factors that affect a fruit tree's growth, but it should be a good help by seeing which trees do well for others in a similar area who have had success with a particular variety. By growing trees that are already slightly adapted to your area, saving the seeds, and growing new fruit trees, you could help create many more new varieties that are very adapted to your specific area!

Hardiness zones are one important factor and show the average annual minimum temperature for a location. You can click on https://garden.org/nga/zipzone/index.php?zip=27822&q=find_zone&submit=Go+%3E to find your exact hardiness zone, and there are also links to lots of other good information.


(source)

Fruit tree nurseries usually list hardiness zones for their fruit trees, but I've often found they tend to exaggerate the growing zones and are often unreliable.

They often leave out one very important aspect... climate zones.

What is a climate zone you may ask?

A climate zone takes other important things into consideration, such as humidity and rainfall. There are many different subsets and climate zones, but I believe this website does a great job of simplifying it into a few main climate zones of A-D below, and I'm adding Oceanic/Mediterranean due to their unique climate...

A) Tropical- hot and humid, average temperatures are greater than 64°F (18°C) year-round and there is more than 59 inches of precipitation each year

B) Dry- dry (not humid) and little precipitation

C) Temperate- warm and humid summers with thunderstorms and mild winters

D) Continental- warm to cool summers and very cold winters. In the winter, this zone can experience snowstorms, strong winds, and very cold temperatures—sometimes falling below -22°F (-30°C)!

E) Oceanic/Mediterranean- more average temperatures, not too hot in the summer or cold in the winter, usually has rainy winters and dry summers (source)



If you live in the US, you should be able to tell your general climate zone based on the map below and the descriptions above of what it should be like there.

I couldn't find a great general map for Canada and other countries, but you should be able to generally tell from the descriptions above. If you want to find out your exact climate zone, you can check out a cool map here World Climate Zones to find your zone with links at the bottom of the page based on the color, that you can click on with detailed information of your climate zone.


(source)

This should be a huge help to others with that same climate and hardiness zone to help them decide what to plant!

If you could post your general location in your state or country with your reply, that would be an awesome help!

The trees should be able to grow well naturally without extensive disease or pest control.
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pollinator
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Location: NW California, 1500-1800ft,
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What doesn’t grow well here? If you find yourself in this climate, well done, you have made a good decision. We get enough winter chill for almost any fruit, but rare killing freezes. Dry summers and early autumns allow for fruit ripening with little mold pressure. Many trees grow very well, and the fastest growing and highest biomass places on earth are in this region. My area in NW CA has been reclassified zone 10 in the last ten years, but it’s historically zone 9 with many microclimates from zone 7-10 within twenty miles, and we get enough chill for any temperate fruit. I also spent most of the first 30yrs of my life in western Washington and Oregon. We can get prolific apples, pears and plums as well as mulberries, blueberries and caneberries. Kiwis can be massively productive. Wine grapes of many varietals thrive in drier areas, Pinot noir in milder climates, and Muscat and many great eating grapes produce well closer to the coast. Meyer Lemons do well according to locals, and I have a healthy enough Mexican lime. Bananas can survive in protected spot but do not fruit. Peaches can be difficult without being in a hot spot. Protecting your soil and storing water in it goes hand in hand with utilizing the prolific organic matter available in this climate. Mulching any bare soil, and/or burying wordy debris in hugelkulture or catchment basins are keys to turning what could be problematic eroding and leaching heavy winter rain into a solution for long dry summers. Mushrooms also thrive in this climate and are a great winter protein source that can be symbiotic with fruit trees and vines.
 
steward
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Ben Zumeta wrote:What doesn’t grow well here? If you find yourself in this climate, well done, you have made a good decision. We get enough winter chill for almost any fruit, but rare killing freezes. Dry summers and early autumns allow for fruit ripening with little mold pressure. Many trees grow very well, and the fastest growing and highest biomass places on earth are in this region.



Yeah, I have to admit I'm a little jealous of your climate! I'm thankful for mine though!

I guess there's positives and negatives to each climate!

My area in NW CA has been reclassified zone 10 in the last ten years, but it’s historically zone 9 with many microclimates from zone 7-10 within twenty miles, and we get enough chill for any temperate fruit. I also spent most of the first 30yrs of my life in western Washington and Oregon. We can get prolific apples, pears and plums as well as mulberries, blueberries and caneberries. Kiwis can be massively productive. Wine grapes of many varietals thrive in drier areas, Pinot noir in milder climates, and Muscat and many great eating grapes produce well closer to the coast. Meyer Lemons do well according to locals, and I have a healthy enough Mexican lime. Bananas can survive in protected spot but do not fruit. Peaches can be difficult without being in a hot spot. Protecting your soil and storing water in it goes hand in hand with utilizing the prolific organic matter available in this climate. Mulching any bare soil, and/or burying wordy debris in hugelkulture or catchment basins are keys to turning what could be problematic eroding and leaching heavy winter rain into a solution for long dry summers. Mushrooms also thrive in this climate and are a great winter protein source that can be symbiotic with fruit trees and vines.



Awesome! Great plants!

I like how you identified your main growing challenge, and recommended a natural solution!

 
Posts: 106
Location: Fairplay, Northern California
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I’m in USDA zone 9a, on the western slope of California’s Sierra Nevadas, at 2300 ft.  I’m also in climate zone B, dry.

Wild blackberries grow here invasively, so any blackberry varieties do well, as do Raspberries.

Apples, peaches, plums, persimmon, and figs do very well.  Cherries seem to be problematic but mostly because of pests and disease, not because of innate cultural habits.  Apricots are reputed to be a little iffy (no personal experience) but are suited to the hot, dry summers.

Mine is a fine grape growing region, with many vineyards and wineries

 
Steve Thorn
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Jane Reed wrote:I’m in USDA zone 9a, on the western slope of California’s Sierra Nevadas, at 2300 ft.  I’m also in climate zone B, dry.

Wild blackberries grow here invasively, so any blackberry varieties do well, as do Raspberries.

Apples, peaches, plums, persimmon, and figs do very well.  Cherries seem to be problematic but mostly because of pests and disease, not because of innate cultural habits.  Apricots are reputed to be a little iffy (no personal experience) but are suited to the hot, dry summers.

Mine is a fine grape growing region, with many vineyards and wineries.



Based on the information in your post, and your location info of Fair Play, CA, it looks like your official Koppen climate classification is Hot-Summer Mediterranean, so you're in the perfect thread for your climate!

Great info Jane! I bet that's a beautiful area with all the vineyards!

Our area has been growing in muscadine grape vineyards recently due to them thriving in our area with almost no pest or disease problems here.
 
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Im from malta ,central mediterranian
 
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I am growing a rose apple successfully:
"They taste almost like rose petals. The fruit is crisp and crunchy, and the seed rattles around inside the fruit. In the hollow center there are 1 to 4 brown, rough-coated, more or less round seeds."

Really tastes like roses
 
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