Xhristofer's Edible Backyard

Joined: 23/06/11 Updated: 23/06/11 Frost:
Location: Bundaberg

About My Edible Backyard

I love to grow plants that return more than just an attractive appearanceand the satisfaction of eating home grown fruit has to be tried to be believed. Besides, the practice of long term cold storage has almost removed the taste in commercially grown fruit. When I ate my first home grown peach it was like I'd never eaten peaches before! So good!

I started off with a Gulf Gold Plum and it grew so well and tasted so incredible I bought more trees....and more...and more! With the next delivery I will be well and truely out of room on my little 1/4 acre block. Mind you I'll have around 70 different varieties of fruiting trees and shrubs. Why have some spare dirt that doesn't yield something? 

Most of my trees have come from Daleys and they've all grown brilliantly. Yes I've lost and replaced a few, but one (persimmon) was from clearing mulch around the tree and the heat of summer burning the roots. The others have been eaten by my lawn mowers (geese) who maintain the yard. Once the trees establish themselves the geese seem to accept their presence in the yard and leave them alone. 

I guess people are wondering about how I water a fertilise in a suburban area. Well the geese have a small pond that hold around 200 litres. Geese tend to foul their water by not caring where they deficate. I have to clean out the pond weekly and use the effluent to fertilise and part water the trees. It all works quite nicely. I also plan on adding tanks for rain water and effluent water when the larger pond goes in.

That's my little garden.

Comments

Miracle Fruit ^4/10

Comments: -

Mine is a tiny little plant which has suffered from being appetising to geese. Virtually no growth since being planted two years ago. Now protected from attack. More of a novelty plant really. Good for diabetics with a sweet tooth apparently. No fruit on mine as yet.

Height 30 Centimetres

Growing: In the Ground

Qty: 1

Sun/Shade: Full Sun

Pollination: Self Pollination

Fig Black Genoa ^9/10

Comments: -

Yum! What a plant. Needs lots of water in the warmer months and the application of pyrethrum and garlic prevents caterpillars from eating the leaves off. Fruit is very good; sweet and juicy. Size up around 100 grams which is pretty large.

Mine (and my father's) suffered last season and didn't produce much fruit and what was there was dry. Just a bad season I guess. Season before that the trees were loaded. Fresh fig are so good! They will fruit all year round but spring summer fruit are best.

My tree has been pruned to give a central trunk and allow above groung branches. It was formed as a central trunk with 4 surrounding grounded branched before. This made it difficult to support and it broke often.

Planted: 2008

Height 1.5 metres

Growing: In the Ground

Qty: 1

Fruit Harvest: 5 kilograms per Year

Pollination: Self Pollination

Avocado - Hass (A)

Comments: -

This tree has been in for two years. First winter it went all black and died off badly. The stump shot up again and has quadrupled in size. Had flowered and set fruit in the first year but all failed to mature. Really looking forward to trying these if it makes it through the winter.

Planted: 2009

Height 2 metres

Growing: In the Ground

Qty: 1

Sun/Shade: Full Sun

Water Given in: Spring

Pollination: Self Pollination

Guava Hawaiian ^9/10

Comments: -

Nice looking tree. Grows quite fast. Fruits well and they taste very good. Sweeter than the Indian variety. Maintenance free.

Height 3 metres

Qty: 1

First Fruited: 1 Years from purchase in pot

Sun/Shade: Full Sun

Pollination: Self Pollination

Carambola Starfruit - Daleys Sweet Gold ^6/10

Comments: -

This has been a difficult tree. I've had to transplant it three times. First it was too shaded, then the soil wasn't right and too shallow, but now the soil is deep, free draining and obviously suited to the tree. Its now about 1.8M tall and looking much better than it was. Its only flowered once in the 3 or so years I've had it.

Planted: 2008

Height 1.8 metres

Growing: In the Ground

Qty: 1

Sun/Shade: Full Sun

Water Given in: Spring

Pollination: Self Pollination

Jaboticaba - Yellow ^7/10

Comments: -

Interesting little tree. Still too immature to fruit. I bought it because I also have the black variety. It hasn%u2019t done a great deal since planting but it was planted late in the season so spring might see some advancement.

Planted: 2010

Height 75 Centimetres

Qty: 1

Sun/Shade: Full Sun

Water Given in: Spring

Pollination: Self Pollination

Lychee - Bosworth 3 ^7/10

Comments: -

I just love lychees. This tree is only very young and has struggled to get moving. I mulched the tree with mulch purchased from the local rubbish tip and it has taken off. New growth abounding which is a little odd for winter time. All my trees seem to have enjoyed warmer roots. I must admit to have tried a lychee many years ago without success. But they are grown commercially here so perhaps my management wasn't the best. Here's hoping for better luck this time.

Height 75 Centimetres

Qty: 1

Sun/Shade: Full Sun

Water Given in: Spring

Pollination: Self Pollination

Star Apple ^7/10

Comments: -

Absolutely beautiful tree. Foliage is deep green on upper side and iridescent gold on underside. Never seems to drop any leaves. Mine is currently about 3M tall and looks very healthy. No fruit as yet but the trees appearance is stunning in sunlight.  

Height 3 metres

Growing: In the Ground

Qty: 1

Sun/Shade: Full Sun

Water Given in: Winter

Pollination: Self Pollination

Monstera - Fruit Salad Tree ^10/10

Comments: -

First planted in semi-shade and didn't go well. Transplanted to full sun in winter and never looked back. Went from a single leaf of 30cm to a thriving plant with multiple leaves up to 1M and 21 fruit in 12 months. Taste is unbelievable.

Once the fruit's green outer covering starts to shed, remove the fruit from the plant. They ripen faster on the bench or in a dark cupboard, but ripen nicely though more slowly in the frig. Just be patient and dont pry off the small green plates covering outside of the fruit! If you do a world of hurt and discomfort awaits in the form of small prickles in your tongue. Let them fall off and the flesh go creamy opaque before you dive in.

Superb with vanilla icecream or simply refrigerate and enjoy.

Planted: 2008

Height 1.5 metres

Qty: 1

Fruit Harvest: 7 kilograms per Year

First Fruited: 3 Years from purchase in pot

Sun/Shade: Full Sun

Water Given in: Winter

Pollination: Self Pollination

When I Fertilise: Never

Dwarf Plum Gulf Gold Tree (G) ^9/10

Comments: -

Red skin with gold flesh. Heavy cropping variety that tastes sweet and juicy. Simply delicious straight off the tree. Said to bare off older wood but will fruit off current years growth. In fact so much so that it will break the branches off from the weight of abundant fruit if not thinned.

I tried to prune mine and through inexperience have made the tree more a spreading shrubby mess than anything else. But it still yields massive amounts of fruit for its size. A more upright tree would be easier to manage but, oh well.

Height 3 metres

Qty: 1

Fruit Harvest: 10 kilograms per Year

First Fruited: 3 Months from Purchase in Pot

Sun/Shade: Full Sun

Pollination: Self Pollination

Naranjilla ^8/10

Comments: -

Interesting and beautiful plant. Watch those prickles! Seems to be a spreading variety and it sends runners off in every direction. Only growns about 1.5M tall and then spreads out. Seems to fruit all year round. Fruit is golf ball size or slightly larger on mine. Orange furry skin with bright green flesh amidst a multitude of tiny edible seeds. The flesh/seeds can be sucked out through that skin once wiped thoroughly to remove hairs.

A little tarty straight from the tree. But add vanilla icecream and it tastes surprisingly like good strawberries. Simply delicious eaten this way!

Planted: 2009

Height 1.5 metres

Growing: In the Ground

Qty: 1

Fruit Harvest: 3 kilograms per Year

First Fruited: 1 Years from purchase in pot

Sun/Shade: Full Sun

Water Given in: Spring

Pollination: Self Pollination

Pest Control:

Fruit is not botherd by any pest here. Grass hoppers like to nibble the leaves a little.

Peach - Angel High Chill (Grafted) ^8/10

Comments: -

 Very fast growing tree. Doesn't spread out too much and grows more tall than out. Also doesn't lose its leaves in winter like my other stone fruit. It stays nice and green and lush. I just have to beat the geese to the fruit this year so I can review the taste.

Planted: 2010

Height 3 metres

Growing: In the Ground

Qty: 1

First Fruited: 1 Years from purchase in pot

Sun/Shade: Full Sun

Water Given in: Spring

Pollination: Self Pollination

Fertiliser or Organics Used: Seasol, Thrive, goose effluent.

Pest Control:

Fruit fly traps seem to work very well.

Question: