When planted in the right place, trees can give you shade, add interest to your yard, and even give you some privacy. Adding fruit or nut trees is another way to make your yard more interesting and full of life.
Not only will these trees have some of the same effects as evergreens and other deciduous species, but they will also give you a lot of fresh fruit or nuts.
When looking for fruit or nut trees to put in your yard, there are a few essential things to consider, such as their mature height, what kind of fruit they produce, and where you live. Before planting an edible tree near your home, consider these factors.
How Fruit and Nut Trees Can Boost Your Landscape
The following are some of the ways that fruit and nut trees can make your landscaping more interesting:
Native Trees
People often choose peach, orange, lemon, and apple trees, but you could also plant some native fruit trees that are less common. Some attractive fruit trees are native to the United States.
The pawpaw tree, for example, is a native fruit tree that grows from Georgia to New York and west to Nebraska. It grows a smooth, yellow-skinned fruit with a creamy texture and a flavor that tastes like a mix of bananas, pineapples, and mangos. The pawpaw tree is the giant native fruit tree in North America.
Each ripe pawpaw fruit can weigh a pound or more, and the tree’s leaves are big, palm-like, and tropical. This tree can grow to be between 10 and 25 feet tall when it’s fully grown. It needs full sun and soil that drains well. Pawpaws don’t travel well so you won’t find them in most grocery stores. One of the best ways to enjoy them is to grow them yourself.
Another famous native fruit tree in the United States is the wild cherry tree. These varieties are different because they aren’t always sweet enough to eat raw. Usually, these tart cherries are used in baking or to make jams and preserves. Black cherries and chokecherries are two kinds of native cherries.
Wild cherry trees produce fruit and beautiful flowers in the spring. The wild cherry tree comes in many different types, and many of them have attractive bark that can be used as an ornamental feature in the yard.
The Hawthorne is a member of the rose family. It can grow as a tree or a bush, and its hardwood and thorns can be used to block the wind in your yard. Also, the Hawthorne tree grows berries that can be used to make jams or preserves.
The red mulberry and the Texas mulberry are native to the United States. They grow very well in the eastern part of the country. Mulberries are more likely to get damaged than other berries, so it is best to eat them straight from your fruit tree. They are also sweet and tasty when eaten raw, but you can also make jams and preserves with them.
You Should Also Think About Climate
Before choosing a fruit tree for your yard, find out how wide and tall it will grow when it is full-grown. This will help you decide where in your yard to put the tree and ensure that the tree you choose will work for you in the long run. If you don’t have enough room for a 30-foot tree, choose a smaller one.
Your climate is another essential thing to think about. If your winters are very cold, for example, you probably won’t be able to keep a tropical fruit tree alive. But cherry, apple, and other edible trees can be a great addition to your yard in this climate. Instead of a tree that doesn’t do well in your area, try one of these.
Nut Trees
Fruit trees aren’t the only kind of trees that you can eat that can look great in your yard. Nut trees can add variety to your yard and provide tasty food. Try putting in a pecan tree, an American filbert tree, or a hickory tree. The Chinese chestnut is another choice.
Even though the Chinese chestnut tree is not a native plant, it has been successfully grafted to the American chestnut tree to make a tree that is more resistant to blight, which has always been a problem for American chestnut trees but still has some of the native plant’s characteristics, like sweeter nuts.
Like with fruit trees, you should ensure that the nut tree you choose will grow well in your climate and won’t get too big for your yard.
Conclusion
If you know the weather where you live and do a little research, you can easily find a fruit or nut tree that will add beauty, variety, and a good harvest to your yard. Remember that some fruit trees need to cross-pollinate with a different variety to produce fruit. If you don’t have room for this, choose a self-pollinating variety instead. Talk to a local tree nursery if you’re unsure if a particular tree will work in your yard.