Recommendations for Multiple Planting


In The Backyard Orchard Culture Style

Tom Spellman

The couple at the fruit tasting seemed intrigued, and I continued…

Consider multiple planting to extend ripening as long as possible.

Try three or four compatible varieties together in one hole for extended harvest.

You do not want to plant standard and semi-dwarf rootstocks together in the same hole! Choose one or the other.

You want all trees in a multiple planting to have similar requirements for irrigation, fertilizer and maintenance.

You want all trees in a multiple planting to grow at a similar rate so one does not dominate the planting and shade out its neighbors. You prune as often as needed to accomplish this.

Tom's Recommendations

The following is a list of varieties that will grow compatibly together and will produce a crop through an extended season. These are varieties and combinations that are personal favorites of mine. It doesn't mean that these are the only combinations you should consider, this is just a starting point. Varieties that are your personal favorites should always be taken into consideration. Of course, always check to be sure your selections will thrive and produce quality fruit in your particular geographic area.

Apples

Dorsett Golden — July through August
Fuji — August through October
Granny Smith — October through January

Gala — August through September
Pettingill — September through October
Pink Lady — October through December

Apricots & Aprium®

Royal Rosa Apricot — early May to June
Flavor Delight Aprium® — late May to mid June
Blenheim Apricot — mid June to early July

Tomcot — late May to mid June
Nugget — mid June to early July
Canadian White Blenheim — late June to mid July
Earli Autumn — late July to late August

Cherries

Craig’s Crimson — Early May to June
Royal Rainier — mid May to mid June
Lapins — June to late June

Nectarines - White

Arctic Star — mid June,
Arctic Glo — late June early July
Arctic Rose — mid to late July
Arctic Queen — early to mid August

Nectarines - Yellow

Desert Delight — early to late June
Double Delight — early to mid July
Panamint — late July to early August
Zee Glo — mid to late August

Peaches - White

Tropic Snow — early June to July
Donut — late June to mid July
Babcock — early to late July

Peaches - Yellow

May Pride — May
Eva’s Pride — June
Mid Pride — July
August Pride — August

Peaches - Double Flowering / Fruiting

Double Jewel — mid June to early July
Red Baron — late June to mid July
Saturn — mid July to early August

Pluot®

Flavorosa — late May through June
Flavor Queen — late July to late August
Flavor King — mid August to early September
Flavor Grenade — late August to November

Plums - Japanese

Methley — June
Shiro — late June to mid July
Catalina — mid July to mid August
Golden Nectar — mid August to early September

Beauty - June
Santa Rosa — early to mid July
Burgundy — July to late August
Emerald Beaut — late August to mid October

Pears - European

Hood — mid July to mid August
Flordahome — late July through August
Seckel — mid August to mid September
Kieffer — September through mid October

Pears - Asian

Shinseiki — mid July to mid August
Hosui — August
Shinko — September

Pears - Chinese

Tsu Li and Ya Li — August through September

Persimmons

Fuyu, Hachiya, Chocolate and Coffee Cake (Nishimura Wase) — September through December

Blueberries

Misty, O’Neal, and Sharpblue — Blueberries will ripen periodically throughout the spring and summer. Although considered self-fruitful, planting three or more varieties together will insure bumper crops.

Figs

Black Mission, Janice Seed-less Kadota and Panache — These three figs planted together will give you a purple, a variegated and a yellow-green fruit with a prolonged harvest from July to first frost.

Note

Dave Wilson Nursery does not sell citrus trees. The following multi-planting recommendations are for information only.

  • Citrus

  • Mandarins

    • Satsuma — November to March

    • Honey — February to May

    • Gold Nugget — April through summer

    • Oranges

      • Cara Cara — December to May

      • Moro Blood — February to May

      • Midnight Valencia — April through summer

    • Lemon Lime

      • Eureka Lemon — ever-bearing

      • Pomona Sweet Lemon — fall through spring

      • Bearss Seedless Lime — fall through winter

      • Meyer Lemon — ever-bearing

      • Thornless Mexican Lime — fall winter

      • Palestine Sweet Lime — fall through spring

    • Grapefruit & Pummelos

      • Oro Blanco Hybrid — November through March

      • Chandler Pummelo — January through May

      • Rio Red Ruby Grapefruit — April through September

    • Specialty

      • Kaffir Lime — fruits from November through March, Foliage year round

      • Limequat — ever-bearing

      • Kumquat — ever-bearing

  • Avocados

    • Pinkerton — December to May

    • Hass — March to October

    • Jim Bacon — September to January

12 months of Avocados with only three trees. I also planted a Reed in my 4-in-1 Avocado combinations for that extra guacamole we love in the summer.

When looking for compact Avocados, consider Holiday (fall and winter) and Littlecado (spring through summer).