Grafting Fruit Trees

Kath and Katie show the why and how of grafting fruit trees.

4 Month Old Paw Paw - Cutting Grown

Cutting grown Southern Red Paw Paw outside our office after 4 months

Paw Paws in Pots

We are currently trialing cutting grown paw paws and as you can see the results have been spectacular.

Advantage 1 Instead of taking 18 months to fruit a cutting grown paw paw takes only 4 months. Advantage 2 Sick of getting a ladder to pick your paw paws? Cutting grown pawpaws fruit at ground level. Advantage 3 You can even grow them in a pot. Disadvantage Cost. There is a lot more work involved in preparing the cuttings so they would cost $29 each as opposed to $10 for the seedlings. If we get enough people interested we will start making them a regular selection from our nursery. Would you like to be Emailed when they are ready for Sale? (Email me when the Cutting Grown Southern Red Paw Paw is ready)

Passion Flower

There is a lovely place in our orchard at the moment near the passionfruit vines. The aroma is the first thing that I notice as I near the trellis, there is a heady spicy scent in the air. I am then stopped in my tracks by these strikingly beautiful flowers which are produced in great numbers. We have the hybrid vines in the orchard these are a cross between the Giant Grandilla, Passiflora quadrangularis and the Sweet Lilikoi, Passiflora alata, both of which have equally beautiful flowers. It can be a little difficult to get them to set fruit and often hand pollination with a soft paint brush is the only way to ensure fruit set but they are worth the effort for their delicious fruits and are stunning if grown for the flowers alone. Picked flowers can be used in shallow saucers as table decorations or they are gorgeous when used to scent rooms with their magnificent fragrance, I often bring them up to the office to enjoy both the amazing complicated flower and the unusual perfume.

Murray Darling and Fruit Prices

With Prime Minister John Howard announcing that the Murray Darling will not be used for agriculture the price of Fruit & Veg in Australia may be set to skyrocket. A current affair did a video estimating price hikes once the restrictions are in effect (per kilo) Oranges - $4.97 - $8.70 Apples - $2.71 - $4.74 Pears - $3.98 - $6.97 Plums - $5.94 - $10.40 Macadamia Nuts - $19.98 - $34.97 To combat prices they suggested some people would eat canned fruit or buy imported fruit. I have a better idea: Why not Grow Your Own Fruit

Find the Perfect Fruit Tree

There are many considerations in choosing fruit trees that are right for you such as frost tolerance, Dwarf, pollination, fruiting times etc

How it Works

You use a menu (pictured left) to select what you want and the web page shows you plants that match.

What do you Think?

Be the first to use our new web page choosing fruit trees but please remember to tell us what you think below. We will use your feedback to make it better.

Panama Berry

I love my panama berry it is my favourite fruit tree, especially at the moment when it is fruiting. The tree itself is very attractive with soft foliage that hangs almost to the ground it is evergreen, fast growing and always looks beautiful. Fruits are produced for months so at this time of the year the tree is adorned with both the delicate white flowers and the pretty red fruits that are about the size of a small cherry. In ideal conditions the trees can grow to about ten meters but I have no intention of letting mine get that tall as I would not be able to reach the tempting little fruits.
It is a browsing tree, none of the fruit that my tree produces ever make it inside, all my fruits are eaten in the shade of the tree. My birds have not yet realized that the fruits are delicious, I am not sure if this is because they are hidden under the soft weeping foliage but I feel lucky about that. My neighbours wallabies feed on the foliage of his tree but mine have never munched a single leaf on my tree so the foliage weeps to the ground. The fruits are very sweet, I think they have the flavour of vanilla ice cream and I just love to suck the inside flesh out of the skin even though the skins are edible.
Correy will want to know if he can grow a panama berry in a pot in his garden and yes they grow beautifully in large containers, as with any fruit tree in a container it will require regular watering, a good quality potting mix and a healthy layer of organic mulch to keep the moisture in. The panama berry is a must have as a snacking tree for children and adults alike, anyone who like sweet think will love the panama berry.

Feijoa - Feijoa sellowiana

We have been enjoying a bumper crop of feijoas from our orchard at the nursery this year. Our fruit fly controls are certainly paying off as the fruits are 90% free of fruit fly grubs. Greg has been spraying the orchard with eco-naturlure since August 2006 on a weekly basis. The underside of the leaves of selected trees are sprayed so that it sticks to the back of the leaf and does not get washed of in rain. Feijoas and guavas are particularly attractive to fruit flies so it is wonderful to be eating fruits that are not infected with fly. This is an Apollo feijoa, it has large elongated oval fruits that are delicious and it has cropped well in the orchard this year. They are sweet and have a delicate flavour that is a combination of pineapple, guava, strawberry, passion fruit and lemon. Fruits are refreshing and delicious eaten fresh and they can be used in desserts and preserves.

Feijoas are well known and popular in New Zealand where many of the modern cultivars have been developed, they do however originate from south America where they are common in the mountains of Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay.

Feijoas are easy to grow, they are hardy and can be grown in full sun or part shade, they are even tolerant of maritime conditions although this will slow their growth and will reduce the crop. They are ideal to use as a wind break, flowering and fruiting hedge to protect more sensitive plants in your garden.

Talking Gardening with Col Campbell

Colin Cambpell is my favourite celebrity gardener. He has a talk show that you can listen to in Brisbane on on Saturday morning where he gives spot on advice.

Why I like listening to "Col" is simply because he inspires you to get out into the garden and enjoy it. I notice that most people who ring up talk back radio ask questions about their fruit trees which is a great way to learn.

Also with water restrictions and govt hurting those who want to have a garden I believe collin really does stand up for those of us in the cities who want to contrast the pollution with a few trees.

Goji Berry & Sandpaper Fig

We have two great new additions for you:

Goji Berry

Sandpaper Fig