The
beginning of the new year signifies the beginning of the gardening season for
me. In no way is this more evident than in the large stack of seed catalogues
sitting on my garage bench. Frankly, the seed I order tends to come from only
one or two vendors, but I love looking at what all the major vendors have to
offer.
This
year, I’m thinking about adding a few more trees. Now, my little slice of Earth
is not very big and currently the only trees I have are three useless palm
trees in my front yard that I hate but not enough to remove. I just don’t have
the space for full size trees. So, I am looking at some dwarf varieties.
Trees
are the gift that keeps on giving. Once planted, the roots tend to spread
quickly and deeply. Outside of water and the occasional fertilizer, most trees
usually only require a yearly trimming and harvest. In general, they are more
tolerant of weather changes than smaller, annual plants. This makes them
perfect food for Preppers. But they do take more space, which I don’t have.
Dwarf
varieties generally only grow 4-6 feet in height so they require less space. I
can plant these against my northern fence (where I already have a successful dwarf
lemon tree) and they won’t rob my raised beds of any food, water or sunlight.
It will probably take a year or so before I get a good crop, but the inputs are
so small, it is worth it.
Since
I live in growing zone 9, I have to be sure the dwarf trees I get are good for
that area. I would love an apple tree, but very few will work in zone 9 other
than Granny Smith. So apples will probably be out. Before you buy any dwarf
trees, make sure they work in your area. Visiting your local nursery will help,
but I have seen trees for sale locally that will not thrive in this area, so do
your own homework. Walk around you neighborhood and see what other people have
planted. If the full size variety thrives in your area, it’s a pretty safe bet
the dwarf version will thrive, too.
Just remember, the payoff takes time. Buying a
2-year old dwarf tree will likely cost $30-$50. It may take another year to get
a good crop and that may only be a dozen or so fruits. But given the low inputs,
you will likely get your money back within a few years. For example, I bought
my dwarf Meyer Lemon tree for $30. It was about 2-years old and already had a
few small lemons growing on it. I removed those and the few more I got 6 months
later. After a year I started getting about 12-18 lemons twice a year. Lemons are cheap, but after a few years, I've easily made my money back and I know where they come from.
So, I return to my seed
catalogues. I will definitely be growing my tried and true favorites and maybe
trying some new stuff. I’ll put up my small, temporary greenhouse in the next
few weeks so I can start my seeds by the end of January. Though it’s still
pretty cold overnight around here, my mind is already turning to thoughts of tomato
sauce and pickles.
I wonder if they make a Tomickle?
TRP
