Postage Stamp Orchard

[Victor Van Meter]

What are your thoughts on this for a small deer food plot? I, of course, would protect it until it matures with fencing, but was curious what your guys' thoughts were on its viability and attractiveness? Thanks.

https://www.eburgess.com/6977-postage-stamp-orchard

 

[H20fwler]

I like it, way better than not doing it at all. For that price it would be hard to loose and there is a lot there for a variety of wildlife.

 

[Apple Junkie]

I am not a fan of dwarf trees for wildlife purposes. Much of the tree will always be within the browse line, so I am not sure how much fruit it can possibly put off even when fully grown. If you’re really constrained to a 10’ x 20’ space, I think you’d be better off planting 2 full size apple trees on B.118 or MM.111 rootstocks. And, if you could expand the postage size to 20’ x 20’ you could easily plant 4 trees spaced 20’ apart.

Getting all these trees on a 10’ x 20’ plot would seem to be a challenge to me. But as H20 says, something is better than nothing. Just my two cents... good luck Victor.

 

[Sconnie]

I agree with Apple Junkie. I prefer a semi dwarf tree for wildlife. Less can be more!

What trees will get? They don't even list the varieties. Can they even pollinate each other?

Seems like you end up with whatever they have laying around. 1 pear, 1 red apple, 1 yellow apple, 1 peach, 1 plum, 1 cherry.

I get way too many of these Seed/Tree/Bush/Flower Companies flyers in the mail...

 

[j-bird]

I am in the camp of being a bit fearful of dwarf trees. I know some folks use them, but I would be concerned about the trees being heavily browsed. Also consider that the 10 x 20 foot size they advertise may not be big enough. It's going to depend on what else you have growing around. A 10 foot wide clearing in tall timber isn't going to get you the sunlight you need. I am all for planting fruit trees for the critters so I like that idea. I also am not sure of the various varieties they are selling and the like so you need to make certain you are willing to put the long term care into the trees as well. I personally am not, I like a plant it, protect it and walk away sort of tree and many are not that way. I am focusing on crabapples (maybe at some point some pears) and leaving it at that after NOT listening to advice and buying box store apples. I will be converting some of those apples to other varieties as well. I also have no idea on the pollination needs for the various trees as well. Lots of things to consider to ensure you get the result you are looking for based on your needs/desires. Fruit trees can be pretty intimidating, but doing your homework is the best way to ensure you are happy in the long run. $60 and tossing unknown trees into the ground leaves a lot to chance in my opinion. I would save that money and get a few semi-dwarf crabapples or pear trees to get a small orchard started. Many folks here can point you in the proper direction as to what varieties to look for and even where to potentially purchase them from. I don't mean to be negative, I just have done this enough to know that doing it right the first time will put you money, time and effort ahead in the long run.....and we as a site here can help you with that if you need it.

 

[Catscratch]

Not to be a downer, but I see issues with this approach. Different species require different care. The spray and care program for the stone fruit will probably not match the care needed for the apples. You might end up needing separate sprays for the peach, the cherry, the plum, and the apple. You might end up spraying every month all spring and summer to get these various trees to stay healthy. Do you have cedar trees and CAR? Is this apple variety resistant? Fireblight resistance for the pear? Etc...

Two crab apples and a pear with disease resistance and drop dates that do not match each other. Or, a hand full of trees that need sprayed every month to maybe make fruit that may or may not drop during season... As you can tell, I'm not much on investing a lot of time and energy into random stuff that I can't be sure of the results of.

 

[chickenlittle]

I have done some dwarf apple shot plots. May work out or not. I think you can make it work in the right location, choose the right varieties and rootstock, properly protected, and you aren't hit by drought. I would not mix species like this shows.

 

[ruskbucks]

Agree with everyone else. I would not get dwarf trees unless they were going to be in my yard and even at that it would be only because I had very limited room. I would ask the fruit tree pros on here what 4-6 trees they would go with for your area. I also don't really trust these tree packages, I just have a feeling they would throw some trees in that they have had a problem selling. That would explain the discount price.

 

[Bowsnbucks]

Agree with all of the above several posts, from Apple Junkie on down. My camp did the county apple tree sales and big box $9.99 tree sale thing in years past. They ALL turned into flops. Without knowing the rootstocks the trees are on, what varieties they actually are, disease-resistant or not .......... too many questions. As J-bird said above - do it right the first time and save yourself money, time, and frustration. My camp wasted about 15 years on some trees that were worthless - because they were CHEAP. We ended up spending $$$ a second time, labor a second time, and had 15 years of no production when we could have had possibly better hunting. Take the smart route the first time !!!

What state are you in, so guys can help you with good varieties for your area ??

 

[Victor Van Meter]

Thanks for all the input guys. You saved me time and money.
I am in SE Ohio. Any help is appreciated.

Victor

 

[Bowsnbucks]

Several really good disease-resistant varieties are: Liberty ( most peoples' go-to DR apple ), Enterprise, Goldrush, Galarina, Sundance, Priscilla & Chestnut crab. There are more good varieties, but these are usually available at nurseries that sell to habitat folks & organic orchards. A lot of guys like Honeycrisp too, but I have no experience with it and can't speak to it's disease resistance or ease of care.

If your soil is a clayish type loam - as opposed to sandy, lighter soil, MM-111 ( or EMLA - 111 ) would be a good rootstock for that kind of soil. This info was given to me from the head of Penn State's fruit tree program. That rootstock is resistant to collar rot and wooly aphids. It's well anchored and doesn't need to be staked. It'll grow a tree between 18 and 24 ft. tall according to nursery charts. B-118 is also a good rootstock for a larger tree in the same size range. We have both those rootstocks at camp and they both grow well in heavier, clayish loam for us.

If you want to plant this spring, you want to order quickly so the nurseries don't sell out of the good varieties. At this point in time, I'd look at Adams County Nursery (ACN), Stark Nursery, Saint Lawrence Nursery (SLN) - although they use Antonovka rootstock on their trees, which will grow a full-sized tree and is fine for most places. SLN has Enterprise, Goldrush, & Priscilla in their catalog. ACN has Liberty, Enterprise, Priscilla, & Galarina I believe.

 

[j-bird]

I would stick to pears and or crabapples for your first step into fruit trees, and don;t be afraid to start small and expand later. They tend to be far easier to care for. Get them in a semi-dwarf root stock as well. This gets the final tree out of the reach of the deer and more fruit production, even if it takes a little longer to fruit. I have a few dolgo and chestnut crabs coming from Turkey Creek in the spring. I will venture into pears later. Others here may have some good suggestions for pears as well. Also be prepared to spend as much on protecting the tree as you do on the tree itself. Weed barrier, wire fence, T-post and the like are again nothing but an investment. You cut corners you tend to pay for it. Look around here and you will see how others of us protect our young trees and help them get established. No cage, means the deer will either eat it to death or rub it to death....it really isn't a choice.

 

[buckdeer1]

Plant pears and protect.Unless you can plant varieties that space out fruit drop fruit trees tend to be done pretty quick and take alot of work.If they wern't neat to grow I would say they aren't really worth it for wildlife

 

[Apple Junkie]

Believe it or not, it’s actually a little late to be ordering your trees for this spring. Like J-bird, I like crabapples too, but a lot of places are already sold out of many varieties, so the sooner you can place an order the better. Here are a couple suggestions to get you started.

Turkey Creek Trees (https://www.turkeycreektrees.com.) still appears to have stock of these trees. I know and like these varieties, and they bloom around the same time.
Enterprise (M.111 rootstock)
Honeycrisp (B.118 rootstock)
Empire (B.118 rootstock)
Granny Smith (M.111 rootstock)

Stark Bros. (https://www.starkbros.com/products/fruit-trees) appears to have stock of these trees. If you order from them, be sure to order the semi-dwarf version, not the dwarfs. Again, I know and like these varieties and they complement each other, but there may be others you prefer.
Enterprise
Freedom
Wolf River
Empire

The rootstocks from Turkey Creek Trees will produce a larger, longer living tree than the semi-dwarf rootstocks from Stark Bros. The trade-off is that the Stark Bros. rootstock will likely start to produce fruit in 2 to 4 years, where the rootstocks from Turkey Creek will likely start to produce fruit in 4 to 6 years. Obviously, the larger trees produce more apples once they begin producing, but I know how impatient we all are, so I’m just giving you a heads up on what to expect. Good luck Victor, and be sure to keep us posted here on how you make out.

 

[Appleman]

If your Wildlife objectives is to produce a productive tree plot to enhance hunting opportunity and wildlife sustainability then don't waste your time and money on the "postage stamp orchard". There is great advice already said on this thread which highlights some great varieties to plant with all important emphasis on the right rootstock to choose from. Here in Northwestern Vermont, I found the rootstock B118 to be exceptional and have narrowed the field down to the following varieties to plant: Honeycrisp, Liberty, Snowsweet, Enterprise, Galarina, and Franklin.

 

[Telemark]

Appleman, what variety is that one in the photo?

 

[CedarSwamp]

If you go the Crabapple route consider Whitney, Dolgo, Chestnut, and Kerr.

I have all these and this mix would have apples dropping from late summer through early winter.

For apples I like the Zestar, Liberty (Galarina is similar to Liberty and possibly just as good), and Enterprise mix as that also gives you apples dropping all season long.

If I could only plant 5 - 6 trees I’d probably do Whitney, Liberty, Chestnut, Kerr, and Enterprise.

Glad you’re asking for advice which I didn’t do when I first started so I’ve got about 6 Granny Smith in M111 that are 15 years old and don’t produce fruit cause I’m too far North. I’m going to try to graft onto them to change the variety since M111 does well in our area so I’d hate to waste the root system already established!

You’re farther South than me so you have some other trees that may be good options for you that wouldn’t work for me.

 

[sandbur]

If you go the Crabapple route consider Whitney, Dolgo, Chestnut, and Kerr.

I have all these and this mix would have apples dropping from late summer through early winter.

Great choices right there. In a few years I might add Norland to the list. I want to see if Norland is earlier than Whitney. Colombia is good if you can find it.

 

[Bowsnbucks]

Guys above that are fans of crabs are also right. My camp has a BATCH of crabs. They are tough and less fussy to grow. The regular apples the guys listed above are all good for wildlife plantings. We have most of those as well at camp. I learned from many of the guys on here and it has paid off for us. I'm in their debt for knowledge gained.

 

[wooduck]

Wickson is a very nice crab also , little larger than a chessnut but bears every year no matter the fruit load year to year, Fair eating and a nice cider addition