Fruit trees are a great way to bring fresh produce to your back yard. Sometimes we get carried away with installing shade or ornamental trees and forget about fruit trees. On most commercial projects it is not practical to install fruit trees because of the liability associated with fruit produced. Apples can become trip hazards for customers or other small fruits may attract unwanted critters or insects. If you are a home owner, you may want to consider the benefits of installing fruit trees on your property.
Benefits of fruit trees include:
- Fruit trees can provide shade to your property.
- Most fruit trees have beautiful blossoms during the spring months for several weeks.
- Since fruit trees produce fruit, you can enjoy the beauty of the mature fruit on the trees.
- During the fall months, the leaves of these trees turn colors giving your lawn eye some fall eye appeal.
- Best part of all, you can enjoy fresh produce from your own back yard.
- You can control the amount of insecticides used on your fruit. This allows you to know the source of your produce and how it was handled.
Many fruit trees commonly found in Iowa include: apple, cherry, pear, peach and plum. If you are planning on installing a fruit tree on your property, be aware that some fruits trees can make quite a mess to clean up. If you use the fruit supplied by your tree then there shouldn’t be any problem with a mess. It is important to check the zone hardiness of the plant prior to planting. Some varieties do not do well in colder climates and some varieties do not do well in warmer climates. Do your research or contact your local nursery for instruction on which plants do well in your zone. Plant your own fruit tree and enjoy the fruits of your labor in a few years.
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