north country cherry trees

[wklman]

I've got some extra room in my orchard and was wondering if any of you guys have any sweet cherry trees planted in zone 4 or colder? Also what kind they are and where you got them from? thanks ahead of time, Wade

 

[sandbur]

My neighbor up in usda zone 3 said he lost one cherry tree and had some die back on another. Neither were sweet cherries. He had the trees in place for several years.

 

[leexrayshady]

Isn't carmine jewel supposed to be the superman of cherries?

 

[wklman]

That's what I kind of thought. I think I'll order a couple of different kinds next spring and try a few out. I know they can be a bit cold sensitive and short lived but will be fun to try.

 

[leexrayshady]

What would be your intent with them wade? For yourself or birds

 

[wklman]

A little bit of both lee. Hopefully if I can get some going good I'd plant more later and maybe sell them along with the apples when I retire.

 

[2ndHand]

A little bit of both lee. Hopefully if I can get some going good I'd plant more later and maybe sell them along with the apples when I retire.

Have you tried or considered Blueberries? I have a few at my place that did well this year.

 

[wklman]

Have you tried or considered Blueberries? I have a few at my place that did well this year.

I'm not sure if I have the right soil for blueberries. I know I can grow wild raspberries though. They're thick in my woods.

 

[wklman]

I looked up the Saskatoons stu and they look to be a good bush to try as they grow on a more regular soil, are hardy and healthy for you as well. another one to put on the list.

 

[Maya]

I talked to a couple of my reps at nurseries I buy from about trying sweet cherries and they strongly discouraged me from trying them. I'm right on the border of 4-5. I have a couple Montmorency's that are doing fine.

 

[brad420]

I've got some extra room in my orchard and was wondering if any of you guys have any sweet cherry trees planted in zone 4 or colder? Also what kind they are and where you got them from? thanks ahead of time, Wade

I live near Kansas City and have tried to plant several different varieties of sweet cherries with no luck. Most all have died and the others appear to be dying. The University of Missouri Extension considers them marginal for Missouri so I suspect they will not do well for you. I have had great success with sour cherries.

 

[Riggsgwp->]

What about Nanking Cherry. It's a shrub and they are supposed to be good to eat. I have a few hundred growing at my place.

 

[sandbur]

What about Nanking Cherry. It's a shrub and they are supposed to be good to eat. I have a few hundred growing at my place.

I have half a dozen or so. I did have some die back in the winter, in the 60's and up in USDA zone 3.

 

[wklman]

What about Nanking Cherry. It's a shrub and they are supposed to be good to eat. I have a few hundred growing at my place.

I'm open to try just about any fruit tree. the more diversity the better. I've got a few plums going as well. I forget which kind but they made it threw last winter so they should be good.

 

[Riggsgwp->]

Mine are on their second year and they are doing really well. I also have had slight die back on just a handful of them but they are hardy. I've even mowed over some and they still come back. I had flowers this year but haven't seen fruit yet.

 

[West Branch]

I'm not sure if I have the right soil for blueberries. I know I can grow wild raspberries though. They're thick in my woods.

We planted 4 blueberry bushes a couple weeks ago. I bought them on clearance at Runnings so they were 7.50 per bush. Seems like a fairly cheap experiment. The day we were planting our county extension guy happened to be over and he gave us a few tips. I have them written down but not sure where I put them. Here are some of the basics that I remember:

1. Plant 50/50 with high bush and low bush varieties for small plantings and for larger plantings mix even more varieties in. Bushes produce more and larger fruit when pollinated by other varieties.

2. The planting location should be on the down wind side of some brush or something that will help catch snow to cover the bushes during the winter. Bushes will produce much better if they are covered with snow during the winter. It doesn't work to dump snow onto them because it will damage the bush.

3. The soil needs to be acidic with a ph <5.0 with high % of organic matter and also well drained. Dig a hole twice as wide and twice as deep as the root ball. Mix the soil from the hole with peat moss so it is >50% peat moss. It lowers the ph and also adds a lot of organic matter.

4. Add elemental sulfur yearly to maintain ph.

5. The bushes require pruning for max production. Long term when production is down you can burn or chop down with a mower or brush chopper and the new growth should produce well.

 

[sandbur]

I once rented a farm house on land where they had started a commercial blueberry operation. They had an irrigations et up and at least 2 varieties of blueberries. They were on the downwind side of a wind row. After three or four years they took the blueberries out. Open winters with little snow were the problem. Northern locations would probably be better where snow depths ten to be more consistent.