Plum 'Starking Delicious' - Will buy a pollinator for spring planting. Likely 'Elephant Heart'.

Nectarine 'Juneglo'

Plum 'Green Guage'

Apricot 'Zard' - had it staked and was "flat" this spring with (4) shoots pulled horizontal. Well this tree pulled the 3/4" wooden stakes right out of the ground and sent up many-numerous, shoots.

Apple 'Golden Delicious'

In the distance past this 'Golden Delicious' - a peek at some of my other plantings of deciduous and coniferous trees as well as (2) cherries: 'Stark Gold' in front & 'Blackgold' upper right.

I haven't had a tree set a single flower yet, but, it's only a matter of time. I've been pruning on them real hard every late winter.

Thanks for the compliments.

Best regards.

Dax

Congrats, good garden...think to plant Paw Paw..very interesting fruit-tree :)

I'll be grafting pawpaws next-spring if I can get the scionwood I'd like. NC-1, Wabash, Susquehanna, & Shenandoah.

Dax

please keep us updated with your orchard. I am also in 5b (indiana) and would like to plant some fruiting trees in the coming years on our newly acquired property. there are neglected apple trees, persimmons, grape vines, raspberry, and who knows what else, that will also be receiving attention. this is all new to me, and value all the wisdom i can get from your experience.

Dax,

very neat and beautiful. Have you thought about growing pears, both Asian and euro?

In my Northeast, apples and pears are much easier to grow than stone fruit.

With the exception of cherries, stone fruits generally are not as well suited to colder climates (though there do exist some high-chill apricot varieties).

Hi neonweb, I will. I've been on GW for going on 13-years. I won't be leaving ever. I'm also growing grapes. A lot of this is trial, I realize... but there should be no reason in my mind why I cannot grow nectarines and plums and apples and cherries and peaches such as 'Reliance' or ultra cold hardy peaches such as 'Contendor' if I don't succeed with the less common cultivars. I realize 'Early Elberta' isn't 'less common whatsoever.' Nectarines are hardier and I happen to like them more than (peaches.) It's a win-win.

Thank you very much rphcfb14. I'm a fanatic, no doubt. I'm also a fanatic when it comes to properly spacing trees & shrubs. I don't plan on digging up many trees but I did plant a few conifers within 20 feet of each other that I know I will have to decide which one will be kept and which one will go in the next 25-40 years. Generally speaking though, I spaced everything for a 50-year period.

I will put in a few pears and both Euro and Asian. It's sort of on my last to do list. I'll just say that.

I also have as much space still yet allotted for nut trees... as I have given to my orchard. I met and became quick and also a pal with a nut tree expert a bit over a year ago. He has quite the collection. We grow a pecan up here that's larger than Kanza and cracks out perfect and is a lighter blond color than, 'Kanza'. It's called 'Hark' and it's not in the nursery industry but scions have been sent to the USDA breeding program in Texas as well as to Bill Reid at Kansas State (www.pecanblogspot.com) and last winter I sent scions to few friends on GW.

The grapes I'm going to learn a lot about fast I believe. And, I will just have to see for myself what fruit species and cultivars do well, too.

Dax

very nice orchard!

Dax,

hopefully your conifers are not the type of junipers that cause cedar apple rust!!

rphcfb14, they're everywhere in the wild here. My neighbor has at least a dozen of them planted that he dug from the woods. Not much we can do around here.

Dax