# Forum Home Renovation Landscaping, Gardening & Outdoors  Fruit Tree Suggestions for Melbourne

## CraigandKate

After some suggestions on what varieties to grow in Melbourne, I have 4-5 spots in the front yard I would like to put some fruit trees, but not really sure where to start in picking the varieties that are best? Or a good supplier of fruit trees in the Melbourne area? 
Thanks 
Craig

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## plum

feijoa trees are quite good in this area, evergreen and a nice acquired tasting fruit.

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## Moondog55

Apricots. Moor Park variety, allow 12m<2 for each tree [ 3.6 * 3.6] and a Meyer lemon
How much actual room do you have and what sort of soil?

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## justonething

It depends if you want deciduous or evergreen and what type of fruits you like. Deciduous allows for maximum sunshine into your house in winter and provide shades in summer. If you like deciduous, stone fruits like apriots, plums and peaches are good and cherry blossoms are pretty in spring. You can also grow pears and apples (a much bigger tree) or persimmon if you have a lot of room. If you like evergreen, the citrus like lemon, mandarin or kumquat are nice.  If you like small leaves evergreens, feijoa is a nice looking tree. You can also grow avocados, which have bigger leaves.  
You probably already know this, all fruit trees requires plenty of sun. Most tree will take 2 - 5 years before bearing fruits and birds and insects will bite on every piece of the nicest deciduous fruit - unless you put netting over the trees, not sure if that looks nice in the front yard. On that score, the citruses have thicker skins and usually stay intact without much help.

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## CraigandKate

Sandy Soil, I have a strip that runs North South and is about 20m x 4.5m along the front fence.  
Deciduous would be preferred along next to the house as it is on the west side so shade in summer would be great currently thinking of these three:  Dwarf Moorpark apricot - Yalca Fruit TreesYalca Fruit Trees  Dwarf Satsuma plum - Yalca Fruit TreesYalca Fruit Trees  Dwarf Apple Gala - Yalca Fruit TreesYalca Fruit Trees 
Plus a orange of some description, what are your thoughts?

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## CraigandKate

Also yes I agree on the netting out the front not looking great, but we really would like some fruit trees and that does not leave us much choice as far as locations after building my mancave in the backyard!

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## justonething

If you are thinking about an orange tree, I'd look at navel. The advantage is you will have fruit during both summer (stone fruit) and winter (oranges). The only concern I have is that orange trees tend to be quite big. On googling for dwarf orange, I found that they do have a naval variety called Dwarf Orange Washington Navel Tree - Citrus sinensis.

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## SilentButDeadly

All citrus trees can be pruned to maintain a small size regardless of dwarfing root stock. As can any fruit tree really.  We maintain all our fruit and nut trees (none of them dwarfs) into a size roughly 2.5 by 2.5 metres because that makes it easier to get the fruit - it also makes the branches stronger to maintain heavy crops and keeps the tree canopy open and well-aired.  We also plant them quite closely too with barely half a metre between the canopies. You only need to manage them intensively for the first few years and then they'll behave...a bit like children. 
In addition to your already noted species, I'd recommend a Black English Mulberry...a great thing to nibble from.  Whatever you end up with, make sure they are suitable for both eating fresh, cooking and preserving as this means less wastage in times of glut.  Which'll be most years if you've done well.

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## CraigandKate

Yes I have been thinking about a orange or mandarin thanks for the link. 
Thanks SBD I have been wondering about that, I would prefer to just get the fullsize versions and prune them to size. Are your fruit trees in a row? How do you net them?  
Growing up we had a good orchard (20 odd fruit trees) and used a netting system my dad built, that was basically a "electricity pole" at each end of a row with twin wires running between, we could then throw the net across the whole row of trees and tied it up at the bottom.

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## SilentButDeadly

> Thanks SBD I have been wondering about that, I would prefer to just get the fullsize versions and prune them to size. Are your fruit trees in a row? How do you net them?

  Fruit and nut trees are all over the place. Some in pairs, some not...it's not an orchard! 
We don't net them if we can help it. Most times the birds only take a few and any that are only a bit dinged can be made into jam. This year the ringnecks really liked the pear though so it copped a drape. The Rosella fancied the nectarines but there were heaps to go around... 
Tomato stakes and 50 mm poly pipe make a good frame.

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## justonething

> I would prefer to just get the fullsize versions and prune them to size.

  I did as well, full size offers more choice of variety and better fruit with more yield. But to be able to limit its size successfully, you got to have dedication or discipline, skill (which you would no doubt learn as time go on) and a bit of time on your hands. To prune regularly is something that I invariably fail at some point because of work, a growing family, or holiday commitments, the world cups or just too busy to notice it needed pruning. Having kids take up a lot of time. And the next thing I know, the tree had overgrown and I was left with the decision of either cutting off the most productive spurs which are always around the peripheral or live with a larger size than optimal. Eventually, I just live with a compromise, plant a dwarf variety, get slightly lower quantity/quality fruit and be done with it. A dwarf tree is more forgiving of oversight. Now with the kids all grown, attending to these fruit trees wouldn't be a problem. But back then, I think it was.

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## SilentButDeadly

It only takes ten minutes of clever butchery (twice a year) to deal with a fruit tree.  Never be scared having a hack - you won't kill it...and it will never bite back. Great way to take out petty frustrations too...

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## Moondog55

> It only takes ten minutes of clever butchery (twice a year) to deal with a fruit tree.  Never be scared having a hack - you won't kill it...and it will never bite back. Great way to take out petty frustrations too...

  Obviously you've never tried to prune a kaffir lime unarmoured

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## SilentButDeadly

> Obviously you've never tried to prune a kaffir lime unarmoured

  I have actually...ours is well trained. We give it the occasional hair cut with the lawn shears. 
 It's the native finger lime you have to watch out for!!

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## CraigandKate

So I have ended up with: 
Santa Rosa Blood Plum
Elephant heart Blood Plum
Granny Smith Apple
Snow Apple 
Thanks for all the help guys, I went with full size trees in the end and will keep on top of the pruning and training. Ill get some pictures up soon the plums are flowering nicely after this recent run of warmer weather!

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## DuckCommander

> I have actually...ours is well trained. We give it the occasional hair cut with the lawn shears. 
>  It's the native finger lime you have to watch out for!!

  The finger lime should be called a thorn bush. The tips have a habit of embedding in skin and breaking off. The only way to get them out is to wait until the wound festers and push it out with the muck. They have more thorns than leaves!

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## Moondog55

> I have actually...ours is well trained. We give it the occasional hair cut with the lawn shears. 
>  It's the native finger lime you have to watch out for!!

  Lawn shears Yes Secateurs No
No experience with finger limes, sounds excellent for a barrier hedge

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