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chuckfromde

Raised Bed Orchard

19 years ago

Hello,

I am new to fruit trees and seeking some advice. My plan is to put in some trees this spring, and due to the hard silver clay soil that my builder left for me, I plan on constructing 3' x 3' x 1' raised beds using mini dwarf root stocks for the cultivars that I select. My hardiness zone is 7a. Some questions I have are:

1) What effect will the raised beds have on the hardiness of the varieties I select? Will I need to purchase trees hardier than zone 7 due to the fact that the raised beds may be susceptible to solid freezing?

2) What type of soil should be used for the beds? Is a store bought garden soil sufficient, or should I create my own mixture? (hoping to grow apples, pears, peaches)

3) For mini dwarf roots, is 3' x 3' x 1' sufficient volume to be successful? (trying to squeeze in multiple cultivars)

You advice and expertise is appreciated!!!

-Chuck

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