Synopses & Reviews
Fruits, berries, and nuts are an exciting way for food gardeners to expand their homegrown harvest with new produce. The Fruit Gardener’s Bible is the complete reference on every aspect of planting, growing, caring for, and harvesting these nutritious, delicious plants.
Organic fruits and berries are expensive to buy, making it especially worthwhile to grow them in the home garden. From small fruits like strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries to orchard fruits, such as apples, pears, peaches, cherries, and nuts, backyard gardeners will learn how to choose the best varieties and methods for a healthy harvest. The Fruit Gardener’s Bible focuses on what’s practical and achievable for small-scale growing and introduces readers to the best organic, no-spray methods. From pruning to harvesting and protecting from wildlife, food gardeners will find all the information they need to incorporate fruits and berries into their existing beds and yards.
A perfect companion to the best-selling The Vegetable Gardener’s Bible, The Fruit Gardener’s Bible is the definitive reference for growing fruits and nuts at home.
Synopsis
Enjoy bushels of crispy apples and baskets of juicy blueberries from your own backyard. Authors Lewis Hill and Leonard Perry provide everything you need to know to successfully grow delicious organic fruit at home, from choosing the best varieties for your area to planting, pruning, and harvesting a bountiful crop. With tips on cultivating strawberries, raspberries, grapes, pears, peaches, and more, this essential reference guide will inspire year after year of abundantly fruitful gardening.
Synopsis
Grow your own organic fruits, berries, and nuts! The Fruit Gardeners Bible is the complete reference on planting, growing, caring for, and harvesting everything from strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries to orchard fruits like apples, pears, peaches, cherries, almonds, and walnuts. A perfect companion to the best-selling The Vegetable Gardeners Bible, The Fruit Gardeners Bible has all the information you need to successfully grow fruits and nuts at home.
Synopsis
Juicy, Ripe, Nutritious, and Grown in Your Own Backyard
Bring the mouth-watering deliciousness of fresh fruit into your garden. Whether you're interested in planting a blueberry patch or a small apple orchard, adding a nut tree to your yard or incorporating raspberry brambles into your landscape, The Fruit Gardener's Bible is your complete resource. Covering everything from pollination to pruning, Lewis Hill and Leonard Perry guide you through every step of planting and harvesting fruit.
About the Author
The late Lewis Hill was a nurseryman for more than 55 years. He was the author of 15 books (many written in collaboration with is wife, Nancy Hill) that total more than 600,000 copies in print. Lewis's Secrets of Plant Propagation was selected by the American Horticultural Society as one of the "75 Great Garden Books." Lewis's family lives in Vermont, where they have been farming for 200 years.
Table of Contents
Part One: Getting Started with Fruits and Nuts
Chapter 1: Fruits and Nuts in the Home Garden
Including Fruits in Your Yard
Learning to Grow Good Fruit
Chapter 2: What to Grow and Where
Choosing Hardy Fruits
How Much Room Do You Need?
Selecting Plants
Chapter 3: Seasonal Care of Fruits and Nuts
Winter Care
Spring Care
Summer Care
Harvest Time
What to Do with All Your Fruit
Part Two: The Small Fruits: Berries, Bushes, and Brambles
Chapter 4: Strawberries
June-Bearing or Day-Neutral?
Two Ways to Grow
Preparing the Soil
Planting and Care
Harvesting Strawberries
Chapter 5: Raspberries and Blackberries
Getting to Know the Brambles
Plant and Site Selection
Planting and Care
Harvesting Bramble Fruits
Chapter 6: Blueberries
Different Types for Different Regions
Meeting Soil Requirements
Planting and Care
Harvesting Blueberries
Chapter 7: Ribes, Elderberries, and Other Bush Fruits
Getting to Know the Bush Fruits
Planting and Care
Harvesting Bush Fruits
Unusual Bush Fruits
Chapter 8: Grapes for Every Region
Getting to Know Grapes
Choices for Hot and Cold Climates
Grapes Need Support
Planting and Care
Harvesting Grapes
Unusual Vine Fruits
Part Three: Tree Fruits & Nuts
Chapter 9: Apples and Crab Apples
Apples for Every Climate
Standard, Semidwarf, or Dwarf?
Planting and Care
Harvesting and Storing Apples
Choosing Apple Cultivars
Crab Apples for Eating
Chapter 10: Pears
Two Distinct Types of Pears
Planting and Care
Harvesting Pears
Unusual Tree Fruit: Quince
Chapter 11: Peaches, Nectarines, and Apricots
Choosy about Climate
Selecting Plants
Planting and Care
Harvesting
Choosing Cultivars
Chapter 12: Plants for Every Region
Lots of Colors, Shapes, and Uses
Climate Considerations
Pollination Matters
Planting and Care
Harvesting Plums
Pluots and Plumcots
Wild Plums
Chapter 13: Cherries, Sweet and Sour
Sweet, Sour, and Bush Cherries
Picky about Pollination
Planting and Care
Harvesting Cherries
Gallery of Unusual Tree Fruits
Chapter 14: Nuts
Getting to Know the Nuts
Planting and Care
Harvesting Nuts
Part Four: Growing Healthy Fruits, Nuts, and Berries
Chapter 15: Improving Your Soil
What Is Soil?
Preparing Soil for Fruiting Plants
Mulches Are Labor-Savers
Make Your Own Compost
Chapter 16: Getting Plants off to a Good Start
Care Starts before Planting
Planting Well Pays Off
Pamper after Planting
Don't Harvest Too Soon
Chapter 17: Pruning: Not Just for Trees
Why Prune?
When to Prune
Pruning Bush Fruits and Grapes
Match Pruning Style to Your Tree
Making the Cuts
Espaliers: Pruning as Art
Reviving Old Trees
Chapter 18: Diseases, Insects, and Other Fruit Problems
Nonchemical Controls
Determining What's Wrong
Physiological Problems of Fruit Plants
Diseases
Insects
Spraying: How, What, and When
Chapter 19: Wildlife Friends and Foes
Preventing Mouse Damage
Rabbits, Porcupines, Raccoons, and Squirrels
Dealing with Deer
Outwitting Birds
Avoiding Other Hazards