The latter two are naturally dwarf and work especially well in home orchards. Sour or pie cherries that have performed well in NH include Montmo- rency, North Star, and Meteor. In the northernmost regions of the state, the hybrid plums Underwood, Pipestone, and Superior are good choices. European plums to try include Early Italian, Green Gage, Castleton, and Stanley. Methley, Shiro, Santa Rosa and Ozark Premier are Japanese plums that do well in southern NH. Since sweet cherry trees can be extremely large, making pest control and pruning difficult, purchasing sweet cherries grafted onto these dwarfing rootstocks is recommended. These trees will be smaller and they will fruit earlier in life than full-sized or seeding trees.

Some nurseries now offer sweet cher- ries on dwarfing rootstocks from the Gisela series. Most of these rootstocks will produce a tree that is quite large in the case of sweet cherries, these “standard-sized” trees often grow to 30 ft in height.ĭwarf rootstocks for plum, cherry, and apricot trees are not readily available for home garden use. A piece of vegetative wood (usually a bud for the stone fruits) is grafted onto a rootstock (a tree grown for just that use). What about Dwarf Trees?Īll fruit trees are grafted. Specific variety recommendations are found below. Most catalogs offer approximate hardiness ratings. There are several mail order nurseries as well that offer quality, bare-root trees. Purchase trees from a reputable garden dealer or nursery. Generally, these sites are elevated relative to the surrounding landscape which allows cold air to flow away on clear, cold nights. They should be planted on sites that offer freedom from late spring frosts. These fruits, especially apricots, bloom in very early spring, often a week or more before apple trees bloom. Japanese plums, apricots and sweet cherries are less hardy and are best suited to home orchards in extreme southern New Hampshire.Ī second consideration is the risk of spring frost injury to blossoms.

In more protected sites in the Northern part of the state, these stone fruits offer the best chance of success. European plums, hybrid plums, and sour cherries are quite hardy with some varieties tolerating winter temperatures of -20☏ or lower. The first consideration is winter hardiness. Plums, cherries and apricots, which along with peaches and nec- tarines are often called “stone” fruits, are flavorful additions to the home orchard if the site is suitable.

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