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Has anyone successfully grown apple or cherry trees in South Louisiana

Posted on 7/3/24 at 12:52 pm
Posted by TeddyPadillac
Member since Dec 2010
28526 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 12:52 pm
I've been looking to get some fruit trees, but want something I want to eat.
Satsuma is an easy one, and everyone has that.

I'm not interested in lemons or limes. I don't know what the hell i'd do with buckets of limes/lemons.

I've seen some cherry trees that are acceptable for zone 9.
Lapins Cherry Tree and Coral Champagne Cherry Tree.

I would love love love a Rainier Cherry Tree, but i just dont' think it would do well in BR. I know we are on the cusp of zone 8-9, and it says it goes to 8, but i doubt it could handle the heat we have right now. Same with the Honey Crisp apple tree.
The Golden Delicious Apple Tree can be planted in zone 9 as well as the Anna Apple Tree.

Another problem with these apple and cherry trees is they need a different apple or cherry tree to pollinate.




Also very interested in growing this banana tree, which i would think would be easier to grow in SLA.
Ice Cream Banana Tree





So has anyone had some success with Cherry or Apple trees in South Louisiana?
Posted by poochie
Houma, la
Member since Apr 2007
6763 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 12:58 pm to
I have an ein Shemer apple tree I planted in 2022 that made a ton of apples this year. I didn’t take great care of it and the bugs got them but it probably made 2 dozen. Let me see if I can find some pics.

couldn't find any pics from this year but these are last year. they got to about the size of a tennis ball or larger...



This post was edited on 7/3/24 at 1:09 pm
Posted by TeddyPadillac
Member since Dec 2010
28526 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 1:00 pm to
Do you just have 1 tree?
Where'd you get it from?
Posted by CatfishJohn
Member since Jun 2020
16854 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 1:03 pm to
My mom has an apple tree in New Orleans and the bugs eat the shite out of it but she's a granola old woman that refuses to use pesticides

Posted by RaginCajunz
Member since Mar 2009
6549 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 1:04 pm to
I'm not 100%, but I know with pear trees (have two) most of the good varieties don't grow here. Not just because of the heat, but many fruit trees require a certain amount of chill/frozen hours. We don't have enough chill hours in a year.

Also worth noting, our zone 8 and say zone 8 on the Oregon coast are quite different. When it gets hot here, it stays hot. Plants get no nighttime reprieve.

Posted by poochie
Houma, la
Member since Apr 2007
6763 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 1:05 pm to
quote:


Do you just have 1 tree?
Where'd you get it from?


yes, i had an anna and this one but lost the anna in last year's heat wave so i only have one.

Southern Roots south of Thibodaux.

both were grown from Bracy's Nursery in Amite.
This post was edited on 7/3/24 at 1:09 pm
Posted by TurkeyThug
Member since Jan 2019
247 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 1:05 pm to
I have the same. Ein shimmer

They will grow
Posted by tenderfoot tigah
Red Stick
Member since Sep 2004
11210 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 1:11 pm to
I also get good apples, but you better spray for bugs or they will blow through the apples.
Posted by TeddyPadillac
Member since Dec 2010
28526 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 1:29 pm to
quote:

Not just because of the heat, but many fruit trees require a certain amount of chill/frozen hours. We don't have enough chill hours in a year.



Yes it seems like that's the most important factor to look at when deciding on one. The ones up in Washington need like 500-1000hrs of chill time. Chill time being 45 or below.
We need varieties that can handle 300hrs at most. I see they are called "low-chill". The Anna apple is low chill, and i assume that Ein Shemer is as well.

I think i'm going to give each of those a run.

Thanks.
Posted by cgrand
HAMMOND
Member since Oct 2009
43033 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 3:11 pm to
I had an Anna
not a very attractive tree (none of them are) and the bugs are relentless. It was too much of a pain in the arse so I let it die. Damn thing woke up every morning looking for ways to die

I have wild cherries on my property they flower early and make tiny cherries that taste pretty good…this is the “cherry bounce” cherry. The stone fruits that are most reliable here are plums, peaches and loquats. If you want to try a loquat I have about 4 dozen in pots ready for new homes
Posted by highpockets
Lafayette
Member since Feb 2015
2002 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 4:16 pm to
We did Granny Smith and nectarines and both did well, but back in the 80's
Posted by TheBoo
South to Louisiana
Member since Aug 2012
5089 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 4:28 pm to
I planted an anna and golden dorsett earlier this year. Something is eating the shite out of the leaves but they took and have new growth
Posted by Cowboyfan89
Member since Sep 2015
12930 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 4:44 pm to
Be prepared to use fungicide if you have red cedars around. Apples are susceptible to cedar apple rust, and an apple tree exposed to that will likely never produce without the use of fungicides.
Posted by LegendInMyMind
Member since Apr 2019
65754 posts
Posted on 7/3/24 at 5:43 pm to
How do plums grow down there? That seems like a good choice if they grow well. I love plum jelly, it is probably my favorite.
Posted by MikeD
Baton Rouge
Member since Jan 2004
7847 posts
Posted on 7/5/24 at 9:16 am to
I noticed our neighbor has a tree that is loaded with pears. Don't know the variety. Another neighbor has grapefruit tree that produces very well.
Posted by cgrand
HAMMOND
Member since Oct 2009
43033 posts
Posted on 7/5/24 at 12:17 pm to
probably cooking pears. My little tree is loaded. I leave them to the squirrels and dogs
Posted by Bee Man
Hester, LA
Member since Mar 2018
353 posts
Posted on 7/5/24 at 11:01 pm to
I’ve never grown either of those, but persimmons grow well here. If you’ve never tasted one, you’re missing out. Other fruit trees that you can plant and grow well for me: fig, loquat, jujube, mulberry (Shangri La, Pakistan, and Green Shahtoot). I haven’t planted any yet, but you could also try Chickasaw plums (Guthrie and Odoms Red). They’re small, but are supposed to grow well in our climate with little, if any, spraying.
Posted by bbvdd
Memphis, TN
Member since Jun 2009
26871 posts
Posted on 7/6/24 at 8:52 am to
What about peach and pear?
Posted by poochie
Houma, la
Member since Apr 2007
6763 posts
Posted on 7/6/24 at 9:01 am to
I have a pineapple pear and a keiffer pear. The keiffer is going bananas this year, branches are maxed out with fruit. The other has a few small ones.

I had a peach tree that made one peach last year, it was delicious, the summer killed it! I replanted so hopefully I’ll have more.

Posted by luvdoc
"Please Ignore Our Yelp Reviews"
Member since May 2005
1031 posts
Posted on 7/7/24 at 1:12 pm to
After 20 years of experience in BR, I have narrowed it down to a few gems, as much for their Delicious Fruit as their indifference to benign neglect.

Native Chickasaw plums, mainly Odom and Guthrie, with the others grafted on my tree TBD. They do benefit from timely spraying for worms, but even in years that I forgot, more than enough unspoiled fruit.

I have two mature apples that I grafted onto Geneva 222 rootstock, one each of Anna and golden dorset. They each have a branch of Tropic sweet as well. They make hundreds of apples, but require consistent spraying to manage the bugs, and even more so, the fungus. I had hundreds of apples this year, and the good ones are as crisp and sweet as any in the grocery store, but we don't can, and I discovered neither I nor my family are fond enough of apples to justify the effort. I will probably cut down both this year. The GD is probably a bit better than the Anna.

Figs, persimmon, and pear have been Carefree for me. I have Southern Bartlett and Perdue pear trees that are some of the few grown for fresh eating rather than canning.

Citrus are great as well, with only cold and white flies as concerns. I'm spraying for whiteflies frequently right now, but they are thick this year and my New Growth right now is getting sucked dry despite my efforts.

I'm in the process of killing off my only Jujube, the variety called contorted, and another common name I can't recall. Large Acorn sized crisp sweet fruit. Entirely carefree. Fruit just doesn't do it for me, and doesn't justify a spot in the orchard or the aggressive root suckering out in my lawn. I injected it with Roundup last year and the main tree and many of the suckers died. I will inject the survivors eventually and hope to put the whole mass down.

I haven't bothered to try Peach and light of a reputation for requiring consistent care/spraying. But if you eat a Guthrie plum, it's easy to believe you are eating a peach.

As I get older, my biggest regret is not planting more. The failures can be removed, and the successes enjoyed. Once you get enough in the ground, there is always something wonderful happening

Eta: I never tried cherries. My research suggested almost all require far too many chill hours. The one or two varieties I read about that might do well here I could never find for sale. I stopped looking after reading a few online reviews of cherries in general suggesting a low yield and mediocre fruit


This post was edited on 7/7/24 at 1:18 pm
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