by Avis Licht
You can have great fruit growing in a small garden. Here are some of my favorite and easy to grow fruits. Each of them has their own particular needs, so be sure to look up which varieties are best for your climate.
Strawberries are at the top of my list. They can be grown in small areas, they can be planted in pots and they can be spread around the garden. Commercially strawberries are one of the most heavily sprayed plants both with herbicides and pesticides. It’s much better to grow your own.
Can you have too many strawberry plants?
If you want a fruit tree for a small space, consider a genetic dwarf fruit tree. They are bred to be smaller without pruning. You can have a full sized apple, cherry, nectarine and more that is only 6 ft tall.
An espaliered tree can be trained to grow against a wall or fence and take up very little room. This requires some real attention and work to keep the tree properly pruned and still produce fruit. But once you learn how, it can be incredibly productive in a small space.
Citrus trees can be grown in large pots in a sunny spot near the house or on a deck. Choose naturally dwarf varieties so that they won’t outgrow their containers.
It's easy to grow citrus in a pot
Citrus are wonderful for the edible landscape because they are evergreen, fragrant, produce fruit and look beautiful. Another winner.
Whenever plants are put in pots, be sure they get enough fertilizer to keep them healthy, and regular water. Pots can dry out quickly because they are exposed to the sun and wind.
Surprisingly, fig trees can be happily grown in pots. Normally a fig will grow quite big, but it can be tamed to fit your small garden in a pot and still be healthy and produce plenty of fruit.
Figs thrive in planting containers
Dwarf blueberries stay small in the ground and are good for container plantings.
These are a few of my favorite fruits for the small edible landscape. Enjoy!
