Planting Fruit Trees to Grow A Productive & Healthy Orchard

I’m really excited about the topic of planting fruit trees because, as many of you know, we are starting a 40-acre heirloom heritage fruit tree orchard at our new farm! I hope you’ll join me on this journey by planting some fruit trees of your own.

Even though I’ve been growing fruit trees for many years, much of the information I am sharing with you I have learned from a third-generation orchardist. So, here’s a pro’s guide to planting fruit trees and growing a more productive orchard, with tips to avoid costly beginner mistakes so you can have the best time growing fruit trees!

No Fruits Without Roots

Planting fruit trees is an investment in the future! But if you don’t use good planting practices, proper fruit tree spacing, and focus on healthy root development, your fruit production will suffer later.

If you want to learn how to plant an apple tree, how to plant a peach tree, or another type of fruit tree correctly, you’re in the right place!

Advantages of Growing Your Own Fruit Trees

There are so many benefits of planting and growing fruit trees, besides the potential for low-cost, fresh homegrown fruit for years to come! Planting new trees adds beauty and value to your property, preserves biodiversity, benefits pollinators, and can provide habitat for birds and other wildlife. 

Plus, perennials generally require fewer labor hours than annuals to produce the same amount of food, saving you time and money in the long run. You know what they say: the best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago; the second-best time is now.

Best Time of Year For Planting Fruit Trees

As the weather gets colder and you start to see frost on the ground, it is a great time to plant trees! It’s true; fall is one of my favorite times for planting fruit trees. 

Many people, when considering planting fruit trees, think of spring as the ideal time for planting. I think that’s because nurseries stock trees in the spring to get ready for their busy season. You can plant fruit trees in the spring, but spring isn't the best time. 

The ideal time to plant trees (and other perennial plants, such as lavender, blackberries, and raspberries) is when the plants are dormant in the fall and even into early winter, until the ground freezes.

Fall planting allows a tree’s root system to get established while the plant is dormant and not growing. Additionally, the wet, wintery conditions enable the soil to settle around the roots, thereby reducing air pockets. Come springtime, the tree can come out of dormancy and start growing as if nothing happened at all! 

Tree Selection

When selecting trees to plant, it is essential to choose varieties that can thrive in the location where you intend to plant them. Here are some important factors to consider when selecting trees to plant:

• Get Trees from a Reputable Source - If you don't get your tree from a reputable source, you may encounter problems from the very beginning. Do your research to find reputable sellers and avoid buying from one-off sources. I am often asked where I get fruit trees from. Maple Valley Orchards in Wisconsin and Trees of Antiquity are two of my go-to sources. 

• Traits - Trees have varying traits, which means some varieties will adapt better to your local climate and growing season, plus you can select varieties with desirable traits specific to your goals. To help you choose the best trees for you, the blog post A Guide to Fruit Tree Spacing in an Orchard has more information on scionwood, rootstock, and the traits they determine.

• Variety Is Your Best Friend - Planting multiple varieties allows you to see what grows well and what doesn’t. Probably not everything will go according to plan, and some trees may underperform. However, with multiple varieties, you are more likely to find one that performs exceptionally well. 

• Chill Hours - Know how many chill hours you have in your climate and how many chill hours are required by the tree you are planting! Not doing so is one of the biggest mistakes people make that causes their trees to fail to thrive! Chill hours are the number of hours at or below 40°F during the winter months. Certain trees require more chill hours than others. If you live in a cold climate, select a tree that requires a high number of chill hours. If you live in a climate with 400 chill hours and plant a tree that requires 800 chill hours, you will get very little, if any, fruit production.

• Plant Hardiness - Choose trees with a plant hardiness rating suitable for your growing zone. Plant hardiness refers to a perennial plant’s survivability in an area based on the average lowest temperature that it can experience during winter and survive. Pro-Tip: Not every variety in a subset will follow the same hardiness rule! For example, most almond trees are rated for zones 7 to 9, but Hall’s Hardy Almond Tree is known to withstand cold winters down to zone 5. (Here is more information on understanding growing zones and plant hardiness.)

How to Plant a Fruit Tree

Follow these instructions for planting fruit trees correctly:

1. Location - Choose a location where your tree(s) will get at least 6 to 8 hours of full sunlight. Don’t plant them too close to buildings or other trees where they will need to compete for sunlight, water, and nutrients. Soil quality is also a factor in selecting the best location. Trees prefer well-draining, loamy soil.

2. Plant Spacing - Plan out and measure where you will plant all of your trees. Before you dig the first hole, consider proper fruit tree spacing based on the mature size of the trees you are planting. I am planting my semi-dwarf apple trees 16 feet apart. 

3. Grid Over Rows - Think in a grid, not rows. Instead of a single row, plant several smaller rows to create a square, allowing for increased pollination. (Good pollination is important, and all fruit trees will do better with the good cross-pollination that a grid creates.)

4. Dig a Hole - Dig a hole as deep and twice as wide as the root ball of the sapling you are planting. Pro-Tip: Before you dig, consider potential underground hazards, like buried water or utility lines. You may even need to call your local utility company to locate buried lines.

5. Position the Sapling - Position the sapling in the center of the hole. You want to plant the tree so that the soil level of the root ball is just slightly ABOVE the original soil level of the ground. You may need to add or remove soil from the bottom of the hole until the planting depth is just right. Pro-Tip: Plant the tree so that most of the growth is balanced and straight! Watch this video on Fruit Tree Planting Mistakes for more info!

6. Backfill the Hole With Soil - Using the native soil you dug out of the hole, backfill around the root ball, gently tamping it down. Try to avoid leaving any air pockets in the hole. Fill the hole until the soil tapers down slightly from the tree trunk to the original soil level. 

7. Water - If there is no hard freeze in the immediate forecast, water the tree after planting and continue to water it regularly. A newly planted tree requires 3 to 10 gallons of water a week, depending on the size of the sapling, the season, and the climate.

8. Mulch Around the Tree - Apply a 4 to 6 inch layer of mulch around the newly planted tree. Mulching suppresses weeds, retains moisture in the soil, and improves soil quality. 

9. Remove the Nursery Tape - You absolutely must remove any nursery tape or tags! If you don’t, they can girdle the stem and kill your tree.

10. Place a Tree Guard Around the Trunk - Use tree guards to protect young trees from girdling by hungry animals, especially in the winter months.

11. Intercropping - Consider using intercropping to increase overall fruit production. Intercrop your trees with plants that will flower around the same time that your fruit trees will flower to increase the overall food source for pollinators. For example, clover and field mustard can serve as cover crops and beneficial plants for intercropping with apple trees, as they provide excellent early nectar and pollen sources for honeybees.

Fruit Tree Care: Growing, Fertilizing & Pruning

Once your fruit trees are planted, it is important to know how to care for them. Growing fruit trees can be very rewarding, but if they don’t produce fruit after waiting for 4 years or even longer, it can be frustrating to say the least! Improper pruning, watering, or fertilizing are the most common reasons your fruit trees might not be producing fruit. 

The first major mistake I often see gardeners making is that they add compost to the hole when planting a fruit tree and/or fertilize immediately after planting. Doing this actually discourages the roots from growing out through the surrounding soil.

Don’t add compost when planting, and don’t fertilize your tree for at least three months after planting! Watch this video to learn all about the fertilization of fruit trees (including when to apply fertilizer) and which fruit tree fertilizer I recommend.

Pruning fruit trees is essential! Not only does it serve as a means of removing dead, diseased, and unwanted branches, but it also improves tree health and fruit production. 

And lastly, don’t be afraid to spray even if you’re growing organically. Keep your trees healthy with organic pest and fungal control methods. By using dormant oil spray, organic pesticides, and fungicides, we saw a dramatic increase in fruit production and a 90% reduction in pests!