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Juicy, Ripe, Nutritious, and Grown in Your Own Backyard
Bring the mouth-watering deliciousness of fresh fruit into your garden. Whether you're interested in planting a blueberry patch or a small apple orchard, adding a nut tree to your yard or incorporating raspberry brambles into your landscape, The Fruit Gardener's Bible is your complete resource. Covering everything from pollination to pruning, Lewis Hill and Leonard Perry guide you through every step of planting and harvesting fruit.
List of contents
Part One: Getting Started with Fruits and Nuts
Chapter 1: Fruits and Nuts in the Home Garden
Including Fruits in Your Yard
Learning to Grow Good Fruit
Chapter 2: What to Grow and Where
Choosing Hardy Fruits
How Much Room Do You Need?
Selecting Plants
Chapter 3: Seasonal Care of Fruits and Nuts
Winter Care
Spring Care
Summer Care
Harvest Time
What to Do with All Your Fruit
Part Two: The Small Fruits: Berries, Bushes, and Brambles
Chapter 4: Strawberries
June-Bearing or Day-Neutral?
Two Ways to Grow
Preparing the Soil
Planting and Care
Harvesting Strawberries
Chapter 5: Raspberries and Blackberries
Getting to Know the Brambles
Plant and Site Selection
Planting and Care
Harvesting Bramble Fruits
Chapter 6: Blueberries
Different Types for Different Regions
Meeting Soil Requirements
Planting and Care
Harvesting Blueberries
Chapter 7: Ribes, Elderberries, and Other Bush Fruits
Getting to Know the Bush Fruits
Planting and Care
Harvesting Bush Fruits
Unusual Bush Fruits
Chapter 8: Grapes for Every Region
Getting to Know Grapes
Choices for Hot and Cold Climates
Grapes Need Support
Planting and Care
Harvesting Grapes
Unusual Vine Fruits
Part Three: Tree Fruits & Nuts
Chapter 9: Apples and Crab Apples
Apples for Every Climate
Standard, Semidwarf, or Dwarf?
Planting and Care
Harvesting and Storing Apples
Choosing Apple Cultivars
Crab Apples for Eating
Chapter 10: Pears
Two Distinct Types of Pears
Planting and Care
Harvesting Pears
Unusual Tree Fruit: Quince
Chapter 11: Peaches, Nectarines, and Apricots
Choosy about Climate
Selecting Plants
Planting and Care
Harvesting
Choosing Cultivars
Chapter 12: Plants for Every Region
Lots of Colors, Shapes, and Uses
Climate Considerations
Pollination Matters
Planting and Care
Harvesting Plums
Pluots and Plumcots
Wild Plums
Chapter 13: Cherries, Sweet and Sour
Sweet, Sour, and Bush Cherries
Picky about Pollination
Planting and Care
Harvesting Cherries
Gallery of Unusual Tree Fruits
Chapter 14: Nuts
Getting to Know the Nuts
Planting and Care
Harvesting Nuts
Part Four: Growing Healthy Fruits, Nuts, and Berries
Chapter 15: Improving Your Soil
What Is Soil?
Preparing Soil for Fruiting Plants
Mulches Are Labor-Savers
Make Your Own Compost
Chapter 16: Getting Plants off to a Good Start
Care Starts before Planting
Planting Well Pays Off
Pamper after Planting
Don't Harvest Too Soon
Chapter 17: Pruning: Not Just for Trees
Why Prune?
When to Prune
Pruning Bush Fruits and Grapes
Match Pruning Style to Your Tree
Making the Cuts
Espaliers: Pruning as Art
Reviving Old Trees
Chapter 18: Diseases, Insects, and Other Fruit Problems
Nonchemical Controls
Determining What's Wrong
Physiological Problems of Fruit Plants
Diseases
Insects
Spraying: How, What, and When
Chapter 19: Wildlife Friends and Foes
Preventing Mouse Damage
Rabbits, Porcupines, Raccoons, and Squirrels
Dealing with Deer
Outwitting Birds
Avoiding Other Hazards
About the author
The late Lewis Hill, a beloved and best-selling Storey author, grew more than 20,000 trees on his farm in Greensboro, Vermont. He was also a member of the National Christmas Tree Association and the New Hampshire-Vermont Christmas Tree Association.
Dr. Leonard Perry is an Extension professor at the University of Vermont.
Summary
Sweeten the growing season with this comprehensive guide to incorporating productive fruiting plants into the garden landscape. Enjoy bushels of crispy apples and baskets of juicy blueberries from your own backyard. Authors Lewis Hill and Leonard Perry provide everything you need to know to successfully grow delicious organic fruit at home, from choosing the best varieties for your area to planting, pruning, and harvesting a bountiful crop. With tips on cultivating strawberries, raspberries, grapes, pears, peaches, and more, this essential reference guide will inspire year after year of abundantly fruitful gardening.
Learn the best ways to grow:
- Strawberries
- Raspberries and Blackberries
- Blueberries
- Ribes, Elderberries, and Other Bush Fruits
- Grapes
- Tree Fruits & Nuts
- Apples and Crab Apples
- Pears
- Peaches, Nectarines, and Apricots
- Cherries, Sweet and Sour
- and more
