How much Fruit?

[ninnymary]

I have a semi-dwarf Fuji apple tree. The tag says self pollinating and I know I won't get as much fruit without another tree to pollinate it.

How much less fruit will I get without a pollinator? About half as much?

I am pulling out a newzeland flax and can squeese one more fruit tree in my small city lot. I am leaning toward a plum. They are supposed to do well in the bay area. Another choice is a pear tree.

The new tree would probably be a semi-dwarf or a dwarf.

I'm hoping I can get enough apples so that I don't have to plant another apple tree to pollinate my existing tree. I much rather plant something else.

I don't can, so we only need enough to eat fresh.

Your opinions?

Forgot to mention, none of my neighbors have an apple tree.

Mary

 

[journey11]

I have a dwarf peach that is all by his lonesome and self-pollinates. For the size of the tree, I still have to thin out so many peaches so as to not overload the tree and to get nice-sized peaches. I know, that's a peach, not an apple....but that may be something to consider.

I have three semi-dwarf apples that cross pollinate and I get way more apples than I can use. It doesn't hurt the tree really, but you do get bigger apples when you have less on there.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Does anyone in the area have a crab apple? They are great pollinators for apple trees. A lot of the apples you see at the grocery were pollinated by crab apples.

I cannot answer your basic question. I've always had different apple trees around for pollination.

 

[ninnymary]

Ridgerunner...Haven't seen any crab apple trees around. None of my neighbors around me have any apple trees either.

Mary

 

[lesa]

They claim they can be up to a mile away....

 

[ninnymary]

Well Lesa...I suppose there is probably an apple tree somewhere within a mile from me. But with our bee population on the decline I'm not sure I can rely on that. I don' see very many bees in my garden.

Maybe that's why my zuchinni doesn't do so well?

Mary

 

[lesa]

I think you are probably right- the declining bee population is a real problem... For us in the northeast, we worry about late frosts, that take our blossoms. At least you won't have to worry about that!