Fruits and I'm a Little Bit Nuts

I've been debating what fruits to plant. I had thought about planting a couple of Asian pears, but I'm afraid they would add more to the high maintenance I already have. I have 4 apple and 3 cherry trees - and in this part of the world they have to be kept bug free. So, I don't think I need to add more bug worries to my list. I thought about a nectarine and finally came to the conclusion we have enough fruit trees. The list:

Apple:

• Akane
• Liberty
• Honeycrisp
• Fiesta

I bought them from Raintree Nursery last year. They are dwarf trees that are only supposed to get six feet tall. It should be easier to keep bug free that a 25 foot tree. They are planted next to the west fence where my veggie garden is. I plan to espalier them, but in a natural form not formal. I plan to use some sort of method to bag the apples so I can minimize spraying.

Cherries:

• Rainier (Sweet)
• Black Tartarian (Sweet)
• Meteor (sour/pie)

These I bought at Lowes last year on a whim. I try to plan things, but sometimes (okay a lot of the time) things just go astray. I plan to prune them heavily so I can keep them maintained. I think I will probably have no choice and will have to spray them. Hopefully, something not to horribly toxic.

The remainder:

• Plum - Santa Rosa
• Peach - Red Haven
• Apricot - Wenatchee-Moorpark

The peach came from a local nursery, Mac's Garden Center. The plum and apricot came from Lowes. I might plant another plum (Satsuma) and apricot (Tilton) - sort of in the same hole kind of thing. It's explained here: Dave Wilson Backyard Orchard Only thing is, I should have planted them all at once.

I planted 2 types of strawberries last year - Tri Star(Everbearing) and Shuksan (June bearing). These came free with my order from Raintree. :) The Shuksan are running rampant and I need to take care of when the ground thaws out. I might try adding Alpine strawberries as well.

I also want to plant blueberries and blackberries. Some serious challenge there. I think 3 blueberries, against the east fence. I had thought about putting them in half barrels, but the dang things are $30.00 a pop at Lowes. For 3 that would be $100.00 not including potting soil and plant. So I have some hydrangeas to move and the blueberries should work nicely in this spot. Will have to add some more acidifying amendments.

And then there are blackberries. The biggest requirement is that they be thornless. ABSOLUTELY, POSITIVELY, NO BLACKBERRIES THAT ARE THORNY. I'm thinking of one of the thornless upright varieties from the University of Arkansas, probably Ouachita. Theortically, you can plant them without have a support structure.

I would think that would be enough fruit for 3 people. We will see what happens.