Fruit Trees for Upper Midwest Patrick O’Malley Commercial Horticulture Field Specialist Iowa State University Extension [email protected] IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY Extension & Outreach

Establishing a Fruit Enterprise Keys to Success 

Determine if there is a potential market for the crop.  Determine if your site is suitable for the crop. - Climatic conditions (crop & cultivar selection) - Topography (production potential) - Soil conditions (production potential)  

Develop a sound business / marketing plan. Select cultivars to plant.  



Adaptation to your conditions Adaptation to your marketing plans

Develop a good management program. - Cultural practices - Pest, Disease & Weed control - Fertility

Market Potential  

Population in your community and the surrounding area. Competition in the surrounding area.    



Wholesale opportunities in the surrounding area.     



Other growers Farmer Markets Roadside venders Grocery stores

Grocery stores Restaurants Institutional Processors (wineries, bakeries, other?) Packing distribution / receiving centers

Transportation infrastructure.  



Proximity to paved surfaces Proximity to population centers Proximity to sites of interest

PM 1788

PM 453

ISU Ext. Publications

PM 1282a

PM 1282

Climatic Factors 

Temperature  1.

Low Winter - Most important factor for perennial plants. a. Determines what species we can grow. b. What cultivars within the species are adapted.

Tree Fruit Adaptation USDA Zone Hardiness Map





4B

4b



4B



5A



5a

5b 5B

From ISU Ext. Pm-453



  

Apple 4b, 5a, 5b Euro. Pear 4b, 5a, 5b Asian Pear 5a, 5b Euro. Plum 4b, 5a, 5b J x A Plum 4b, 5a, 5b Sour cherry 4b, 5a, 5b Sweet cherry 5a, 5b Apricot 4b, 5a, 5b Peach 5a, 5b

Pollination Requirements Sour Cherries - Self Fruitful, European Plums, Peaches, Nectarines, Most Apricots, Serviceberries.

Apples, Pears, Most Sweet - Self Unfruitful Cherries, Bush Cherries, Hybrid Plums, Pawpaw, Mulberries, Persimmons,

Relative Tolerance to Wet Soils Pawpaws > Pears > Apples >> Plums > Apricots > Peaches > Cherries

Dig Soil Test Holes Test Holes: • 3 feet deep • Fill with water • Check after 72 hrs • If water is still present: - Find another site - Take corrective measures

Apple Cultivars

 Appropriate

for climatic zone  Disease resistance  Growth habit  Appearance  Most Important - TASTE !

Dwarf Apple on P22 Rootstock

Apples Potential for new enterprises:   

Assess competition. Select high quality cultivars. Plant on rootstocks tolerant to fire blight.  



Develop a niche market. 



Organic: Scab immune cultivars.

Develop value-added markets to go along with fresh. 



Full dwarf: G.16, G.11, G.41, B.9 Semi-dwarf: G.30, G.935, G.202

Cider, hard cider, baked products

Develop attractions to draw customers to your farm. 

Dining facility, entertainment, festivals

European & Japanese x American hybrid Plums Hybrids require cross pollination Black knot and brown rot

European Pears: Susceptibility to fire blight. Must be harvested & ripened off the tree. High potential to grow organic.

Asian Pear

Asian Pears: Very susceptible to fire blight. Set very heavy crops & must be thinned by hand.

Peaches: Do not produce crops every year. - 18 F is maximum hardiness of the fruit buds.

Cherries sweet or sour

Apricots:

Bloom early & are very prone to spring frosts. Limited cultivars available.

Juneberry Amelanchier sp. (Serviceberry)

Juneberry Amelanchier sp. ‘Theissan’ Large Fruit

Pawpaw Asimina triloba

Pawpaw fruit on tree in the wild.

Nanking Cherry Prunus tomentosa

Persimmons Diosporyos virginiana

Mulberries Morus alba (x rubra)

Site Considerations Climate

Topography

• Winter • Elevation Temperatures • Degree of • Spring Frosts Slope • Length of Growing • Direction of Season Slope • Growing Degree Days • Precipitation

Soils • Drainage • Moisture Holding Capacity • pH • Fertility • Organic Matter

Slope & Elevation Under radiation freeze conditions

Cold air is heavier and settles into low areas.

Frost Pocket

Plant at least 50 ft above the valley floor.

Direction of the Slope can influence growing conditions Growing Condition

N

S

Available Sunlight

Lowest

Highest

Int. + Int. +

Accumulation of Heat Units

Lowest

Highest

Int. -

Int. +

Lowest

Highest

Int. -

Int. +

Risk of a Spring Frost

Lowest

Highest

Int. -

Int. +

Risk of Fluctuating Winter Temperatures

Lowest

Highest

Int. -

Int. +

Need for Water

E

W

Direction of the Slope can be used to your advantage  Sequence

harvest - Within a variety - Between varieties  When the length of the growing season is marginal, plant the latest maturing varieties on the south-facing slope.

ISU Soil Testing Laboratory Test Series Codes 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Regular series (pH, lime, P, K) ………..$8.00 Regular series + O. M. ………………..$11.00 Regular series + Zinc ………………….$12.00 Regular series + O.M. + Zinc …………$15.00 pH and lime only ………………………...$5.00

Mg An additional test. Must be requested………. $0.50 $ 15.50

Fruit Trees for Upper Midwest Patrick O’Malley Commercial Horticulture Field Specialist Iowa State University Extension [email protected] IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY Extension & Outreach

Nuts for Iowa Walnut Butternut, Carpathian (English), Japanese Hickory Shagbark, Shellbark, Pecan Hazelnut American, Hybids Chestnut Chinese Hybrids, American