Can you plant apple tree into a garden bed?

General Fruit Growing
#1

OK, as usual, as I tell myself: “You have no more space, that’s it!” I start looking for a new spot. So I found a 6X8 space in my yard where I can plant another apple tree. The problem is, that this side of the yard doesn’t have native soil. It had junk fill and 2 inches of poor top soil on top when I bought the house. It is also a slop, so I built a garden bed (two parallel beds actually) raised on one side about 1.5’. It is filled with garden soil - mix of bought topsoil, compost, leaves, perlite, the mix is about 7 years old, but I added home made compost there every year. It looks more like container mix than actual soil. And it is ONLY place in my yard I can use for my unplanned apple. The idea is to fill path between two beds, plant tree in the middle of 6X8 space and still grow strawberries around, as they grow there now until tree is mature and shade the whole space. The question is - can I plant tree in the garden soil? I know you shouldn’t plant tree in the hole filled with reach soil, because roots will stay in the hole and wouldn’t grow out. But if the whole space allowed for roots has rich soil - is this OK?

#2

It will be fine. I cheat and use rich soil on several of my trees. I’ve converted entire 150’ garden areas into orchards with no problems.

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#3

Thanks!

#4

This last spring I planted trees in an old burn pile. Nasty old orange fused clay, burnt carpet, melted plastic, rocks, metal etc. Best tree growth any where on the 6 acres. Surprised me totally.

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#5

Are you sure there is no nuclear trash around?))

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#6

My fig and apricot trees are planted in flower rows (all irises). The original idea was just to plant some deciduous trees to give irises shade during our scorching hot summers (when irises flower in spring, trees are not fully leafed yet), but eventually it developed into a full blown fruit tree addiction. :slight_smile: The flower rows are filled with compost with hard clay underneath, trees are planted in holes filled with a mixture of clay and compost, and spaces between rows are heavily mulched. Both fruit trees and irises are doing well.

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#7

Thanks, Stan!

#8

I have some trees planted where there used to be a old chicken coop and cattle pen. The trees grow like crazy there.

#9

I am actively planting fruit trees in all my raised beds. I like this sort of intercropping; it’s particularly useful in really hot and bright desert areas like mine.

#10

Thanks, guys!

@insteng, does “grow like crazy” includes production? I am sure a lot of nitrogen should promote vegetation, but doesn’t it negatively affect production?

#11

Look at posts 27 and 28 in this thread: Wood chips / compost - #26 by danchappell

Too much nitrogen on apples causes excessive growth and reduces fruit quality including lower brix.

#12

Thanks, I suspected it, because it is true for fruiting vegetable production. So what are my choices to use the garden bed? Should I add some nitrogen consuming materials like brown leaves or wood chips? Or planting strawberries around should create enough of healthy nitrogen competition?

#13

Don’t apply any fertilizer or mulch and let other vegetation compete for what nitrogen is present. Over a matter of yrs the nitrogen released by the soil will fall and nitrate nitrogen in the soil will leach out.

#14

Will do that. I still need to add something to fill the pathway between two beds that will become one planting site. What would be the best options for it? I can fill pathway with something then just mix existing soil with what I filled it with to make it the same soil on whole site. But what to use? I can add bagged topsoil, bagged “tree soil”, chips, shredded fall leaves, perlite, vermiculite, sand, shredded bark. Any suggestions?

#15

Bagged soil would probably be a good option. Anything that isn’t high in nutrients would work. Of your choices shredded leaves would be last. It’s high in nutrients and will decompose leaving no volume behind. Sand would be the opposite. It retains it’s volume, drains well, and has no nutrients.

#16

Thanks!

#17

I would listen to Fruitnut as far as the effect on apples. I have peaches and plums planted there and they are loaded every year. I haven’t seen any difference in production between them and my other trees. They just seem to grow about twice as fast as the other ones. Also it has been several years since there were any chickens or cattle in there so a lot of the nitrogen has already leached out.

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#18

Got that, thanks!