Best fruit trees for high clay content soil?

[BehindBlueI's]

I'm "prepping" my retirement property with additional fruit trees. Regardless of if SHTF or not, free fruit is in my plans for the future. I have several mature apple trees but am looking for some variety. I planted pear trees back in '02, and they've lived but never done much. There is a multitude of naturally occurring walnut trees that do pretty good.

The ground has a very high clay content and stays moist most of the year. Also, due to being in a hollow, I get about 1.5 hours less direct sun than if I were on flat ground.

So, what thrives in those conditions? This is long term, I've got 18 more years before I can inhabit it full time.

 

[Kirk Freeman]

If only someone knew professors of Forestry and Agriculture at Purdue . . . if only. Oh, wait.

Let me shoot out some e-mails and report back.

 

[Clarity]

Have you done anything with the walnuts? I was lead to believe that the local walnuts are almost all Black Walnuts, which, while theoretically edible, are not nearly as productive, easily accessed, or useful as the English Walnuts that appear in bags of nuts around Christmas.

I planted a number of fruit trees over the last couple of years. The drought was hard on them. Anxious to see what comes back in the Spring.

 

[rockhopper46038]

I think that blueberry bushes (although not trees) might do well in clay soil.

 

[Clarity]

I think that blueberry bushes (although not trees) might do well in clay soil.

If it is acidic. I've had limited success with Blueberries. You have to be careful with soil pH.

 

[mrjarrell]

You might try contacting these people.

Purdue Master Gardener Program - Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, USA

 

[ATOMonkey]

Plum and Cherry trees tend to grow well, and produce quite a bit of fruit.

Black rasberries grow just about anywhere and will produce quite a bit of fruit if you can pick it faster than the birds eat it.

Also, red and green rhubarb grow well in Indiana and require little/no work.

Grapes can grow well, but require a little extra effort.

 

[Kirk Freeman]

E-mails back.

1. Have your soil tested.

2. How you plant them is key. Potting soil should be used along with mounding depending on drainage.

3. Look at bing cherries, plums, pears, pawpaws, walnuts, currants, possibly figs.

I would suggest calling Dick Crum on Saturday AM on WIBC. Say hello to Mr. Crum for me.

 

[ATOMonkey]

The nice thing about plum trees (not not nice depending on what you want) is that they have runners.

You'll have a gazillion plum trees in no time.

 

[mrjarrell]

E-mails back.

1. Have your soil tested.

2. How you plant them is key. Potting soil should be used along with mounding depending on drainage.

3. Look at bing cherries, plums, pears, pawpaws, walnuts, currants, possibly figs.

I would suggest calling Dick Crum on Saturday AM on WIBC. Say hello to Mr. Crum for me.

Skip currants unless you're farther south. They don't last as long as other bushes and they tend to get root rot pretty easy. Goose berries will do better, too.

 

[gunbunnies]

blackberry and rasberry plants make great property boarder plants as they also have thorns on thier stems that make it a chore to enter the property un-heard...

 

[smccabe17]

Northstar cherries do well in our soil, but the birds can get them easily.

Blackberries and raspberries are easy.

Blueberries do need very acid soil. Mix sphagnum peat or pine fines in with them to help with that. Some blueberries can be left in pots all winter and survive. Look for zone 3 or under. Tophat is the most popular container blueberry. The more varieties the better for greater yields.

Pears are ok, just remember they do need a pollinator.

I have had great success with Peaches.

 

[melensdad]

I have all clay and a mini-orchard. The Asian Pear and traditional pear trees seem to do very well, as do peaches. Blueberry . . . not so much. Raspberry & Blackberry do "ok" but bad but not great. Apples do "ok" as do Asian plums.

 

[TheRude1]

WIBC 93.1
Sat mornings 9am to noon
DR Dirt aka Dick Crumb can answer any questions you have about that
239-9393

 

[Iroquois]

If you have black walnut, nothing will grow beneath them or near them as they poison the ground in
defense...
You can cover fruit trees with nets to keep birds off if they're not too tall....wait till almost ripe.
Some trees are sexed, you need both sexes.....really...I think this includes pears.

 

[bdybdall]

How about persimmons or pawpaws. They're both native to Indiana and I'm given to understand that they (especially the pawpaw) have very few pests that bother them.

 

[BehindBlueI's]

I'll look into plums and pawpaws. Berries occur naturally in the area, I really don't have to plant them so much as just not mow them.

Yes, I've eaten the walnuts before, and yes they are a PITA to get in to. When I was a kid we'd leave them in the drive and run over them for a few weeks to get the outside hull off, then hammer them to get to the nut. If you try to peel the hull off with your hand, enjoy the stains on your skin because they are there for awhile. I don't think they poison the ground, creeper vines started trying to strangle them while I was overseas and no one was looking after the property, and grass grows fine.

 

[BigMatt]

Plants Tolerant Of Black Walnut Toxicity

 

[ThrottleJockey]

We do very well with pears, apples, cherries (even though we never get them before the birds), blackberries, raspberries, strawberries. Some native fruits that always do well are paw-paws and persimmon. Our peaches surprisingly do very well too sometimes yielding twice a year! Oh and I agree, Dr Dirt (Dick Crum) on WIBC Saturday mornings is THE guru of this stuff and it is never hard to get through when calling in.

 

[BehindBlueI's]

Plants Tolerant Of Black Walnut Toxicity

Huh, well that's interesting. I guess I won't be planting eggplants under a walnut tree any time soon.