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25 August 2011
Let's Grow Fruit Trees !
At one point in every gardener’s life they think ‘ I want to grow a Fruit Tree !’ What can be better? The product of caring and patience is a delectable and delicious fruit that has come into existence because of your desire to tame the plant-world and grow your own food ! The choices to starting a Fruit tree plant are grafting or budding techniques or growing fruit trees from seed. Grafting produces an identical specimen to its parent plant (if one plant sample is used) or the offspring can have a combination of traits (if two separate parent specimens are used).
The method of growing fruit trees by seed starts with the pollination of the blossoms which begins the development of the ‘seeded’-fruit. Each seed produced by the fruit has a chance to become its own specimen, possibly a unique new variety. Just as human children are born to be a separate person, unique in traits and needs, so are the offspring of fruit trees grown by seed. Although growing from seed can make new varieties, they are not always tasteful. The seeds from a great tasting orange, bought from the market, may not yield an equally tasteful child tree.
The best way to create an identical fruit is by grafting or budding techniques. These techniques grow fruit trees that replicate the qualities of the parent(s).
Seed growth doesn’t always produce desired results, so, apples, oranges, and avocado varieties are usually not grown from seeds. By using the grafting process, propagating these fruit trees will reproduce the exact tastes, textures, colours and smells that we have become accustomed.
On the other hand, peaches, nectarines and apricots have an advantage to producing a good copy of desirable traits from seeds. With these species you can simply sprout and grow a seed from a great-tasting specimen, and likely the fruits will meet the usual qualities and tastes within three to five years.
Good Fruit Trees to Grow From Seed
The best fruits for growing your own Fruit tree from seed are peaches, apricots and nectarines. You can pick several varieties from the market and then use the pit from the fruit that most closely meets your desirable taste. The pit of these fruits contains almond-shaped seeds that can be used to plant a fruit tree. Let the pits dry for a few days in an area with open air, like the kitchen or workshop. The drying stage shrinks the seed within the pit and also makes the pit brittle enough to crack. Be careful cracking the pits, the best process is to use a store bought nutcracker designed to crack edible nuts. Using a knife is dangerous and can result in personal injury. Some may suggest using a vise or to slightly hit the pit with a hammer but whichever technique you use be cautious not to injure your hands and fingers.
Sprouting Your Fruit Seeds
After freeing the seeds from the pit, place them in a container and put them in a cool, dry place like the refrigerator. This chilling period for fruits is two to three months. This cool stage is to help the seed go through the normal germination stage that would be associated with the winter. There are natural processes within the seed that will only occur if the seed is cooled; the cycle of winter to spring. In areas where the temperatures stay just above freezing during winter, the seeds have a great chance of spring germination if they are planted directly in the ground at the end of autumn or early winter. The seeds should be planted about 10 cm deep. Planting in the backyard from seed can have issues in the form of invading rodents, dogs or cats. Fruit tree varieties from warmer regions require a shorter chilling period.
Getting started is easy, just soak your seeds in room temperature water for about 12 hours and then put them in a small container (a jar works good) containing damp soil. Close the container and put them in the refrigerator in a spot where they won’t freeze. If you are unable to view through the container, open it in about a month to check the progress. Check weekly if no results after the first month but expect to see baby sprouts from 1-3 months. When you see the sprout coming up from the soil then your fruit tree seedling is ready for transplant. A good time to plant the seedlings outdoors is about a month before the end of the frosty season or approximately 6 weeks before the spring in warmer climates. Put them in a position where they will enjoy a warm moist home in the spring but when choosing your fruit tree variety, make sure you investigate the given variety's care instructions. Although many species and varieties start with the same guidelines, as the baby fruit trees develop you must make sure you can give them the proper climate, lighting and soil to survive.
Growing Avocados from Seed
The Avocado Tree can be grown using the seeds from a ripened fruit. The fruits from the Avocado grown from seeds will most likely be useless as food but many gardeners grow from seed simply for the unique look of the Avocado tree and not the taste. This can be done by sprouting in water or planting the seed directly in soil. One method consists of taking the seed, pointy side up, and poking toothpicks through the seed in order to hold it partially in water atop a cup or jar. It takes up-to six weeks but when the roots and leaves are nicely formed, then they are ready to plant in soil. Soon after germination, the sprouting seedling should be put into soil to prevent rotting from being in the water too long.
Planting avocado seeds directly into soil is also easy. Using a small pot, 100-125mm, simply put the seed in the soil, ‘pointed’- side up, and cover the seed exposing just the tip above soil. The soil should be kept between 15 and 20 C and within six weeks a well shaped plant, with leaves, should begin its establishment. When the Avocado plant reaches 30 cm, it should be trimmed to 20 cm to help promote a more round and filled foliage. As the Avocado tree grows, it can be replanted in a larger pot or planted into your garden to accent your other plants, flowers and trees.
My Conclusion on Planting Fruit Trees by Seed
Although budding and grafting give the best chance to identically replicate a fruit, growing by seed is still fun and rewarding. Since planting apples, oranges, and Avocados from a seed may most likely yield unaccustomed fruit tastes, choosing apricots, peaches or nectarines will give better results for fruits that will be edible. The seeds within the pits of these tasty fruits will produce offspring trees that will have equally indulgent fruits as the parent specimen.
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