Temperate Fruit Trees
CategoryApple Tree
Fruit Trees > Temperate Fruit Trees > Apple Tree
These delicious and crunchy apples are available in varieties suited to a range of climates, from cool temperate to sub-tropical. Higher chill apples may sometimes be worth trying in marginal climates, for example Granny Smith, Red Fuji, Pinkabelle and Redlove. A shady winter site can be helpful in this regard, provided drainage is good, but apples can be tolerant of damp conditions. You may take it another step and simulate chill with misters and even fans as the temperature at the bud site is where chill is registered. This may help stimulate flower bud development. The tropical range can be tolerant of as little as 100 hours of chill and are suitable for warm temperate to subtropical climates. If you wish to try these early harvest apples in more temperate areas, protect flowering trees from frost. Full size apple trees can reach up to 8m in the ideal conditions, if left to their own defenses. However they are better managed to a height (approx 3-4m) and shape to encourage best fruiting performance and easy harvest and maintenance. Dwarfing rootstock can produce are more manageable 3m or so tree, depending on your growing conditions. Apple trees require even moisture to ensure essential nutrients like calcium are available. This is important for the normal development of fruit. Feed with a a good quality general fertiliser before flowering and during fruit development. Provide calcium in the form of dolomite if soil is low in this nutrient. Keep the feeder root zone mulched for healthy trees
Apricot Tree
Fruit Trees > Temperate Fruit Trees > Apricot Tree
There is no comparison to tree ripened apricots with their delicious flavour, sweet juicy flesh and unique aroma. The low-chill varieties make it possible for warm climate gardeners to grow fruit. The self-pollinating varieties listed below require from 300 to 500 hours chilling below 7C.
Berries Plants
Fruit Trees > Temperate Fruit Trees > Berries Plants
Many edible plants come under berries such as blackberries, blueberry plants, Cape Goosberries and Ugni plants.
Blueberry
Fruit Trees > Berries Vines and Climbers > Blueberry
Fruit Trees > Subtropical Fruit Trees > Blueberry
These varieties of blueberry plants perform well in Australia and provide a bounty of berries. To grow successfully provide organic matter and ample moisture along with a soil pH of 5.5, so if you have alkaline soil you need to consider growing these in pots. Blueberries make excellent potted specimens provided 25% of Peat Moss is added to the potting mix, or use a dedicated acid medium prepared for Azaleas. Potted plants are a great gardening project for children, who delight in harvesting the fruit. Low chill varieties such as 'Misty' and 'Sharpblue' can be pruned after cropping to induce a second crop that will ensure a supply of delicious fruit throughout the year. 'Sunshine Blue' is a very small bush and self-pollinating so great for balconies. Select for Southern Highbush varieties if you are in warm temperate or subtropical areas. Select Northern Highbush varieties for cool temperate areas. Highbush varieties are self-pollinating but generally produce more fruit when grown with another variety from within the same grouping. Rabbiteyes are well suited to warm areas and are vigorous bushes. They are a separate grouping for pollination purposes and do need to be grown with a pollinating pair. So select varieties from within this grouping to promote fruit setting. 'Brightwell' is partially self-pollinating. Blueberries, apart from being delicious, have many fantastic health benefits. They are extremely high in antioxidants, and have anti-inflammatory properties, as well as lowering cholesterol in the blood, it is also claimed that they improve motor skills, balance and co-ordination in elderly people. The longer the fruits are left on the bush to mature the greater the health benefits are so if you can beat the birds leave the fruits to the last minute to pick. Bird sage netting is the best way to do this. Blueberries can produce an abundance of fruit over many months, keep them evenly watered with good drainage and use a low nitrogen fertiliser. They are such a great addition to all gardens, from balcony to food forest. Get growing now.
Carob
Fruit Trees > Temperate Fruit Trees > Carob
This elegant tree is the great chocolate impersonator! Carob is a delicious low fat food often referred to as "fake chocolate" due to its similarities to cocoa in taste and texture. A Mediterranean tree, it favours arid conditions that are naturally alien to fungus and pests. It is very tough, happily growing in poor soils, it acts as a soil improver and stabiliser as well as providing an interesting crop. The tree can take up to 15 years to bear pods from a seedling however a grafted Carob such as the Clifford can take less then 5 years. The Carob Tree fruits well into old age with a large tree producing up to 1 ton of beans per harvest. The pods can be eaten fresh and are a delightful lolly-type stick for children to chew on.
Cherry Tree
Fruit Trees > Temperate Fruit Trees > Cherry Tree
Sweet Cherry Trees are large and long lived, they will need space to reach maturity and are only suited to large gardens with the possible exception of the Starkrimson Cherry Tree The juicy succulent fruits are loved by many but they can only be grown in areas that receive a cool to cold winter as they will need 700 - 1400 hours of chill depending on the variety. Many species break bud and flower in early spring so they can be susceptible to late frosts and are best not planted in frosty pockets. Some varieties will require cross pollination but our varieties here at Daley's are all self fertile.
Date Palms
Fruit Trees > Temperate Fruit Trees > Date Palms
Palms that bear clusters of dates. They often require male and female pollination to set fruit. Fruit can be astringent and non-astringent like a persimmon often people know them from the dried medjool dates in super markets but there are many more varieties.
Fig
Fruit Trees > Temperate Fruit Trees > Fig
Fresh figs are as different from the dried form as fresh cherries are to the glazed cherry. Cut open, they look very decorative and exotic. Eaten fresh the seeds are indistinct in texture and flavour from the flesh. Eaten dried, the skin thickens and the seeds become grainy and almost crunchy. There are hundreds of varieties and variations between figs but all are sweet and luscious.
Jujube
Fruit Trees > Temperate Fruit Trees > Jujube
Cultivated in China for more than 4000 years, the Jujube is highly esteemed there, and more recently, around the world. The fruit has a pleasant sweet taste and the texture and flavour resembles more an apple but is also reminiscent of dates. The fruit varies in size depending on the cultivar with a thin, edible, dark red skin surrounding a crisp white flesh. They can be processed in various ways - eaten fresh, dried, candied, or made into jam, pulp and wine. Jujubes are an extremely hardy, deciduous tree growing between 5-10m. They tolerate drought, saline soils and cool winters which make it a highly adaptable crop well suited to a range of climatic conditions. They do best in climates with long, hot summers after adequate rain early in the season and cool temperatures during dormancy. Great for inland and southern mainland Australia. Most cultivars are self-fertile, but some like cross-pollination. Fruit set requires average daily temperatures above 20C while fruit development needs temperatures over 24 or 25C. Any problems with fruit set can be remedied using cincturing, light summer tip-pruning or foliar sprays of Boron and ensuring bees are present. Fruit quality improves with the age of the tree. Jujubes prefer good drainage but will grow on heavy clay, tolerating saline, alkaline and acid soils of pH 4.5 - 8.4. Fruit is harvested in Autumn. Root suckers must be controlled
Medlar
Fruit Trees > Temperate Fruit Trees > Medlar
Medlar is native to the eastern part of the Mediterranean and the eastern part of Turkey. While it has been cultivated in Persia for centuries, this highly ornamental fruit tree remains uncommon outside of its centre of origin and there are limited numbers scattered through the gardens of old homesteads in Australia. The Medlar is closely related to the pear.It is a hardy, long lived deciduous tree which can grow to approx 4 metres in height. The large leaves are oval and downy. The flowers borne in late spring are large and white and resemble single white roses fringed with pink. This broad-crowned tree it has heavy foliage that turns a beautiful reddish-brown in autumn. The unusual fruit are apple shaped with a flat-topped wide open calyx (or ‘eye’) that reveals the five seeded vessels. The fruits are approximately 5cm in diameter and olive green ripening to dark orange and red/brown in late autumn. It is thought that early frosts start the softening process of the fruit, initiating an increase in sugars and therefore a general sweetening of the fruit. Broadly speaking, the flavour is similar to that of a pear. The fruit can be eaten fresh out of the hand when soft or bletted (bletting is similar to the process used in ripening persimmons, leaving them to soften). They may be left on the tree until it drops or can be picked when the fruit is easily removed from the branches. If picked to early the fruit will shrivel or fail to ripen. Eaten while unripe they are very high in tannic acid. In addition to being eaten raw, the fruit can also be used for winemaking. They can be cooked and made into jelly very easily due to the high concentration of pectin in them. The fruit can also be stored by dipping them into a strong salt solution to control fungi, then lay them out singularly, eye down, in a dry cool place until the flesh is soft. This make take several weeks. When kept in a cool place it will keep for weeks, even months during which time a process of fermentation will take place that changes the consistency of the fruit. It becomes soft to touch and brownish in colour. At this stage it can be sucked empty, leaving the skin and stones behind. The consistency of the flesh is rather coarse with a very unique taste to it. There are two cultivars available in Australia. The Dutch and the Nottingham. The Nottingham is a more compact tree with slightly smaller fruit. Both varieties are self - fertile. Planting: The planting site must be in a sunny position and protected from the wind, as the trees are very brittle and susceptible to wind damage. Medlars will grow in most types of soil as long as it is well drained. However, if there is a likelihood of the soil remaining wet for long periods, a medlar grafted onto a quince rootstock would be appropriate. Fertilising and Watering: Medlars have light maintenance requirements. Water requirements are minimal even during the summer period and a light application of manure (3-4kgs) or a couple of light dressings of complete fertiliser in the spring is adequate in most soils. Pruning: Young trees are best if thinned and pruned to desired shape. Established trees require little pruning other than the removal of dead or diseased wood and overcrowded branches. Fruit is borne on the tips of the main shoots and side-growths. The medlar is a relatively slow-growing tree, which means that the wood is rather hard. In earlier days, this wood was used to make spearpoints, clubs and fighting sticks for the hunt and for warfare. Later on the wood was used for making parts of windmills, especially some of the turning wheels.
Mulberry Tree
Fruit Trees > Temperate Fruit Trees > Mulberry Tree
Mulberry Trees have delicious juicy crimson black, red or white fruit that is rarely seen on the supermarket shelves hence the need to grow it yourself. For an easy to grow fruit tree that will reward you with bountiful crops of fresh fruit in spring, mulberries are a must in the backyard.
Nashi Pear
Fruit Trees > Temperate Fruit Trees > Nashi Pear
Also known as an Asian Pear this fruit combines the juiciness of a pear with the crispness of an apple. The taste is similar to a pear but is much sweeter. Fantastic storage qualities.
Nectarine Tree
Fruit Trees > Temperate Fruit Trees > Nectarine Tree
Nectarines are very similar to peaches in their requirements and characteristics, the only difference being they don't have the distinctive fuzzy skins. The fruit is much brighter in colour than the peach.
Olive
Fruit Trees > Temperate Fruit Trees > Olive
A favourite in the Mediterranean diet, Olives make an exquisite accompaniment to dairy foods, breads, fruits, relishes and alcoholic drinks. Olive trees are attractive, hardy trees. Well suited to hot summers and cool winters, some varieties have now shown promise in higher summer rainfall areas with low chill. They can survive on relatively poor neutral pH soils as long as they are well drained. They prefer slightly alkaline soils to slightly acid soils. Of course, fruit quality is enhance by healthy, fertile soils. Fruit grown in higher rainfall areas is well suited to pickling, but high fruit moisture content can make oil extraction more difficult. Some drying may be helpful, or reductions in irrigation and/or exclusion of rain falling on the rootzone may help. The following multipurpose olives are well suited to home growing. Those with lower chill requirements have this attribute noted.
Peach Tree
Fruit Trees > Temperate Fruit Trees > Peach Tree
Peaches are white or yellow fleshed and have an excellent flavour with soft, juicy flesh. For subtropical and coastal areas select from our range of low chill varieties requiring as little as 150 hours chill, (150 hours below 7C) Flordaprince, Tropic Beauty, Tropic Snow, China Flat, Sunset Backyard Beauty, Angel - Subtropical, Aztec Gold, Florda gem, Flordagold and Newbelle. With correct summer and winter pruning it's possible to harvest peaches within 2 years of planting. The varieties listed are selected from extensive breeding programs in Florida and are some of the best varieties to date. For Temperate regions choose from Tasty Zee, High Chill Angel and Dwarf Angel, Dwarf Fresno, Anzac, Dwarf Valley Red, these varieties requires 600 + hours of chill and fruit in the summer.
Pear Tree
Fruit Trees > Temperate Fruit Trees > Pear Tree
Pear Trees get far less attention than other fruits do, yet they are sweet and tasty, and nutritious. Like apple trees, they are long keepers when they are picked still green. If kept in a cool location they will last for months.
Persimmon
Fruit Trees > Subtropical Fruit Trees > Persimmon
Fruit Trees > Temperate Fruit Trees > Persimmon
A very attractive deciduous tree with spectacular dark-orange autumn foliage. The latin name Diospyros translates as " Food of the gods" which is very appropriate when describing the melting flesh of the persimmon fruit. The two fruiting types are made up of astringent and non astringent. The difference being astringent fruit must be left until they soften, astringency is the dry, mouth puckering sensation caused by the tannins in the unripe fruit. Non astringent persimmons do not have this effect, they can be eaten crunchy straight from the tree. Eaten fresh they are delicious, they can also be frozen, dried, made into beer ,wine or cider. They are very versatile in the kitchen and are used in pies, salads, ice cream, juices, and dressings. Dried fruit lose all their astringency, other methods are to freeze fruits for 24 hours or place them in a bag with a ripening banana as it releases ethylene which hastens the ripening process.
Plum Tree
Fruit Trees > Temperate Fruit Trees > Plum Tree
Grafted plum trees are capable of bearing large crops from 1 year after planting. They make delightful ornamental trees due to their mass display of white blossoms during August. Both self-pollinating and cross-pollinating varieties are available and exhibit very different characteristics.
Pomegranate Tree
Fruit Trees > Temperate Fruit Trees > Pomegranate Tree
The Pomegranate tree is an ornamental shrub producing fruit with a hard, leathery deep red or yellow rind. When opened the fruit exposes shimmering translucent kernels. The juicy flesh is tart-sweet and surrounds nutlike seeds that are edible and add a bit of a crunch to the overall texture. Pomegranates store extremely well in a cool dry place and continue to sweeten off the tree. The plant itself is very hardy and highly ornamental, it has large showy flowers and is suitable for use as a feature plant, for hedges and container growing, it also makes an attractive and interesting bonsai specimen. A shrub or small tree to about 4 m, the pomegranate is multi stemmed, spiny and extremely long lived. Plants are usually pruned to form a short but well defined trunk allowing 4 or 5 shoots to develop into a multi branched form. Pomegranate is not fussy about soil condition, in its native environment in Northern India and Iran it is found growing in rocky gravel.
Quince
Fruit Trees > Temperate Fruit Trees > Quince
The quince tree has been cultivated by people for thousands of years. Originating from Turkey and Iran this is a fruit with a fascinating history, it features strongly in the history and mythology of both Greece and Rome. Trees are very long lived and have a beautiful, gnarly twisted appearance, they are exceptionally hardy and can withstand both periods of dry and severe cold. The quince is valued for its high pectin content and is used frequently in jams, jellies and cosmetics. This fruit is one of the few that must be cooked as it is too tart, hard and unpalatable to eat raw.