Hi all. I noticed there was a pretty successful Colorado front range thread, so it got me to wondering about other fruit growers in my part of the world. What’s everybody growing in the Willamette Valley of Oregon and nearby?
I’ve got several varieties of figs, a couple apples, pears, peaches, pineapple guava, hardy kiwi, grapes, a lot of different raspberries, thornless blackberries, Marion berries, strawberries, blueberries, olive, and I’ve even got a pomegranate I’m trying to grow and a lime, too. I don’t have much room left but I’m hoping to squeeze in some cherry and plum, too.
What’s everybody else growing, and are there any tricks that you have for growing in this area? I just started a few years ago so I’m still learning.
I’m looking forward to learning from other people in the PNW!
Most of us in PNW have Willamette Valley envy! You can grow pretty much anything! Mild winters, rare spring frosts, and lots of summer heat.
In addition to your great selection, Eureka and Lisbon lemons will overwinter with a little protection. Hayward and Saanichon fuzzy kiwi too. All good for cherries and euro/asian plums.
Note that this spring was wildly abnormal with its 10 days of SoCal weather. Made for great pollination and a little fire blight (which normally is absent) but most Aprils are rainy …so you’re out with the paintbrush for pollination.
I’m in the northern reaches (Anacortes, Washington) so I’ve resorted to all sorts of overhead structures to simulate Willamette Valley!
With perfect pollination weather this year, crops should be great.
Chris
I had good pollination on everything except santa rosa plum. I even had a full set on puget gold apricot. I’m going to graft santa rosa over to something else, it isn’t recommended here anyway. Had a tiny spot of fire blight on an asian pear but it only took out the blossoms
Wow, I had to look up where you’re at, it is pretty far north! Yeah, this definitely is a decent area to grow fruit. I bring my lime indoors for the winter… were you saying that you think citrus would do okay in something like an unheated greenhouse?
I have Eureka and Meyer lemons planted outdoors in 100g Rubbermaid tubs, protected with Christmas lights set on a thermostat. For winter I wrap tub with fencing and cover with bubble wrap. Under same protection was Mexican Key lime - however it lost all its leaves and I’ve decided to grow it in ghouse in the future. Another very hardy citrus is Yuzu, supposedly hardy to 21F. The outdoor Yuzu lost its leaves but is putting on a new flush.
For unheated ghouse kumquats,mandarins, satsumas do fine if low is high 30’s.
I can’t say, this is the first year after planting and I only have one branch. puget gold is the only variety that came out of multiple decades of WSU trials with at least a “meh” rating so that’s the one to try. OGW claims summer delight might be ok so I’m getting that next year
I’m in Seattle, WA I grow apples, jujubes, figs, table grapes, pawpaws, peach, plums, cherry, asian pears, pineapple guavas, blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, mulberries. I would to know more about what varieties does well for PNW.
I have grown many different things in Salem and Portland area. Currently I have pears, apples, plums, peaches, cherries, figs, olive, grapes and all sorts of berries including blueberries, strawberries , currants, gooseberries, blackberries, lingonberries and huckleberries. I grow these all no spray and organic.
My neighbors have persimmons and pomegranates also which are doing well.
The biggest successes have been Bartlett pear, indian free peach, thomcord grapes, desert king figs, rainier cherries, shiro plum, triple crown blackberries, heritage raspberries and shuksan strawberries.
My plans are to add a Gerardi mulberry, noir de spain mulberry, hood strawberries and a montmorency cherry next year as well as another frantoio olive.
I grow persimmon, goumi, pawpaw, quince, loquat, cherry plum hybrid, pluot, fig, apple, Asian and European pear, yuzu, sudachi, cherry, Japanese and European plum, peach, nectarine, jujube, mulberry, shipova, aronia, hardy kiwi, grape, blackberry, raspberry, black raspberry, black currant, red currant, gooseberry, haskap/honeyberry, evergreen huckleberry, and blueberry,
Plus growing wild are red huckleberry, Oregon grape, salmonberry, thimble berry, salal, cascara, red elderberry, rose, strawberry, and others.
I harvested 3 of them, 2 or 3 years ago, so it is possible. My tree has been very slow growing. I’m going to try to fertilize and irrigate it better.
Its planted in the open and remains healthy. I just pruned it with a bunch of thinning cuts hoping to encourage it to grow taller. Still only 3 or 4 feet tall.
I’d like to get it on its own roots, or something more vigorous than Flying Dragon. My lazy air layer didn’t work, and a cutting stabbed in ground kept leaves for almost 2 years, but had no hint of rooting.
I planted a grafted yuzu years ago and it did not overwinter. 4-5 years ago a friend gave me three tiny yuzu seedlings. Two of those are still alive outdoors unprotected despite this being a terrible winter that killed a fair number of plants which normally overwinter fine here. My two yuzu did suffer damage, but not much considering… I plant all my hardy citrus on slopes for good drainage as I believe that’s an important condition for overwintering them here.
John, my first yuzu died in the 1st or 2nd winter. I bought a replacement. The Flying Dragon rootstock from the 1st one grew back from the roots. I’ve grafted it to Shangjuan Lemon (after planting a fig tree right next to it).