Select the right fruit tree for your climate

By Audrey Post
MS. GROW-IT-ALL

Q: I would like to add fruit trees – apples, pears, etc. -- in my yard, and I was told back in the spring that I should wait until fall to plant them. Now that it’s fall, what varieties should I plant?

A: Fall is indeed the best time to plant trees here in North Florida. With our mild winters and the growing list of hybrids developed for our climate, it’s possible to grow fruit trees historically limited to more northern climes.

Although fruit trees require a lot of maintenance to keep them producing – mainly annual pruning and vigilance in checking for pests and diseases – they do make lovely additions to the home landscape. But don’t expect to grow fruit that looks or tastes like the specimens in the grocery store. Homegrown fruits here tend to be smaller but have a better flavor.

The key is to plant the right low-chill variety for the climate. A certain number of hours below 45 degrees – chilling hours – are needed to produce fruit. The varieties that produce in North Florida have been bred to produce on fewer chilling hours than varieties that grow up north. Most of North Florida gets between 540 and 700 chilling hours, with the western Panhandle tending to get more hours than the Big Bend.

The two most common apples grown here are Anna and Ein Shemer, both Israeli hybrids introduced into the Florida market in the late 1960s.Anna, a red blush, is more tart than Ein Shemer, which is yellow and sweet. Dorsett Golden, which legend says is the result of a Mrs. Dorsett tossing away the seeds of a Golden Delicious apple at her home in the Bahamas, and the seeds taking root and producing a fruiting tree, also is popular here. TropicSweet, a hybrid bred from Anna, is a newer release that offers blush fruit that is sweet.

All four produce tasty fruit that are smaller than the apples you find in the grocery store, most of which have been commercially grown up north. Most apple trees don’t self-pollinate, so plant two varieties that bloom at the same time. Traditionally, gardeners have planted Anna with Dorsett Golden because they bloom at the same time. Dorsett Golden will also pollinate TropicSweet.

If you want to plant pears, Flordahome and Florida Bosc produce soft pears suitable for eating fresh. The variety called Pineapple produces hard pears, the kind more suitable for preserves and chutneys.

Most local nurseries have knowledgeable employees who will help you choose the right tree for your yard. Use caution when buying fruit trees at big-box stores, which often buy in bulk and sell the same tree in Tallahassee that they sell in Toledo. If that tree does survive here, it won’t bear fruit. Know your cultivars before you shop.

Make sure your newly planted trees get enough water the first year, at least 3 or 4 inches per week, and fertilize in January and again in June.

Prepare tender plants for freezing weather

By Audrey Post
MS. GROW-IT-ALL

Q: After waiting too long last year to bring my porch plants inside the house, and consequently losing some of them, I am determined to do it right this year. But I’ve read that bringing them back inside too abruptly can be harmful, too. Plus, I’m worried about bringing bugs in the house. What’s the best way to achieve an orderly transfer back indoors?

A: Many potted plants, such as African violets and tropicals including orchids and bromeliads, are tender – meaning they’re sensitive to cold – and should be protected from temperatures below 40 degrees. It doesn't need to get down to freezing to damage them. Other houseplants, such as philodendrons and spider plants, can take a little cold but not a hard freeze.

What's the difference between a frost and a hard freeze? A couple of pre-dawn hours at 30 to 32 degrees is a frost, and most plants that aren’t “tender” get over it. But if it gets down to 28 for a couple of hours or more, your plants will feel it.

Moving plants into a heated home on a chilly night, especially if they've had a progression of nights outside where the temperature has gradually dropped, could cause a shock to their systems and seriously damage them.

So what to do to prepare for our North Florida version of winter? If you’re planning to move plants indoors, first move them to a shaded, protected spot for the next week or so. By protected, I mean out of the wind and rain. If a frost comes in the next couple of weeks, you’ll more than likely be able to cover the plants there instead of taking them indoors.

What you do after that depends on how much work you’re willing to do. You can move the plants from the shady, protected spot in your yard to your house a garage, unheated basement or garden shed after a couple of weeks, cut back on the water and monitor them through the cooler months.

Or you can move them inside the house. The process of moving them in stages is sort of the reverse of taking seedlings out during the warmth of the day in early spring, then bringing them back in at night.

If you’re worried about bugs, give the plants a strong blast from the garden hose. Check the leaves, undersides as well as tops, and pick off any remaining pests. If you want something a little more reassuring, you can mix a mild solution of insecticidal soap and spray it on – a 99-cent spray bottle from the discount store works well – and move the plants inside.

But unless your plants are really tender, you might want to consider leaving them outdoors in a protected location. It will enable you to cover them easily when freezing weather threatens, or move them to the garage, shed or basement if the forecast is really severe.

Wait until crinum's foliage dies to prune it

By Audrey Post
MS. GROW-IT-ALL

Q: My crinum lilies are looking a little ratty. Most have finished blooming. Can I cut the browning foliage back or will it hurt the plant’s performance next year?

A: It’s the time of year when lots of summer-blooming perennials start to look a little rough. While it’s OK to cut back some spent plants, you should leave your crinum lilies alone. As long as foliage still has some green, photosynthesis is still happening and the plant is storing food for the winter and for next year. If you cut off those less-than-perfect strappy leaves, the size and bloom could be affected next year. Just like daffodils, you want to let crinums die back naturally.

If the foliage has turned completely brown and crumbles when you touch it, it’s finished. Go ahead and pull it out. You won’t even need to cut it.

If your plant isn’t quite to that stage yet and its appearance really disturbs you, set a big pot in front of it full of fall mums. Or you could divert the eye with a stunning display of fall color in another part of the yard. Area nurseries are full of fall bloomers and end-of-season summer perennials.

Q: I have a very large grapefruit tree, at least 10 feet tall, that until two years ago was kept in a pot. It has lots of thorny branches. Is this typical of grapefruit? I have a Satsuma tree that will get some thorny limbs and my neighbor told me to cut them off. The Satsuma has finally begun to bear after five years. The grapefruit has not flowered or set fruit. I live in Killearn Acres and the tree is in full sun with afternoon shade. It faces east. Should I cut off the thorny branches? How old do grapefruit trees have to be to set fruit?

A: Some citrus trees have thorns, some don’t. Many of the more modern hybrids have been bred not to have thorns, but I’ve never known of thorns to make any difference in whether a citrus tree bears. Two of my citrus trees have thorns; the rest don’t. They all bear.

Do you know what variety your grapefruit tree is? Some are slower to bear, and your tree might not be ready yet, especially since it was in a pot a long time. It could be putting its energy into getting its roots established.

I know of a grapefruit tree in Killearn that is loaded right now with ripening fruit, but it’s at least 30 feet tall and has been there for years.

I suggest you get the soil around the tree tested to see whether it’s deficient in any major or minor elements, and fertilize next February.

Footnote on Leyland cypress canker: After reading last week's column on Leyland cypress canker, Stan Rosenthal, Leon County's extension agent for forestry, noted that foliage blight can present similar symptoms to canker. "The difference has more to do with the pattern of the browning of the foliage," he said, "but both can be avoided by not over-planting any one variety."