Around February, area nurseries will begin receiving shipments of fruit trees for the year. Did you know there’s a large assortment of fruit trees you can grow with much success in San Antonio? The key: choosing the right variety.
Some fruit trees such as pears, oriental persimmons, figs, and pomegranates are easy to grow since they do well in our native soils and don’t require extensive pesticide spraying to survive and produce a crop. Apples, peaches and plums are another story. They do best in raised garden beds with drip irrigation and must be sprayed every week with an insecticide and fungicide to prosper.
It is best bet is to select fruit trees that are suited for our warm winters. Consider these:
- For peaches, ‘June Gold,’ Tex Royal’ and ‘La Feliciana’ do best; ‘Elberta’ will not survive here.
- For apples, try ‘Dorset Golden’ and ‘Anna;’ forget about ‘Red Delicious.’
- The best pear varieties are ‘Warren’ and ‘Kieffer;’ ‘Bartlett’ pears are highly susceptible to fire blight.
- The ‘Methley’ plum is the best choice for San Antonio.
Full sun and good drainage are musts for all fruit trees whether they’re grown in native soil or raised beds.
By Calvin Finch, Ph.D., Guest Author
