I’m curious (and hoping to enjoy vicariously), what is your approximate fruit ripening dates over the season? I’m especially interested when different types of fruit ripen over the same time. I’m also hoping to be inspired by your responses and add some other fruits to my future plans.
For example:
Zone 7a- raspberries all June
Cherries all June
Blackberries mid June- mid July
Peaches July-August
Apples August- Oct
Grapes August-Sept
[I recognize that different cultivars can extend those repening times for many people]
I’m curious how many types of fruit some of you have ripe at once. And I’m quite jealous!
This is a lighthearted request, so feel free to ignore, but also feel free to brag about your extended fruit harvest!
Well right now at least I have apricots, sweet and sour cherries, mulberries, and the blueberries are just starting. Next is Japanese plums and early peaches.
Most of my plants aren’t into the production phase, but I know we typically ripen early. Strawberries start getting picked the first of the year, and the fields are ripped up by mid-March. Loquats are done in March. I picked my blueberries end of March - early May and blackberries in April/May. Both are done now. Miracle Fruit had its first fruit mid-May, got my last one last year in September.
I’ve made countless mistakes and done 1000 things wrong. But the one thing I can say I love about my orchard is that I have spread my fruit pretty well so that I have new fruit ripening every week. My season starts in April with asparagus (ha…i know its not a fruit but they are in my orchard and so welcomed after winter without fresh food). Real fruit starts in May with service berries, then sour cherries- different varieties of those each week, one after another). I even get my very first peaches in May - not my best peaches for sure but very welcomed. Spring Satin Pluot comes in late May as well. I then get a different peach pretty much every single week through September! (yes, I have a super late peach that ripens in mid september). Along the way I have different plums every couple weeks. 5 kinds of grapes all ripen at different times and often hit between plums which is great. My best peaches come in August. My apples start in August and run through October. I end the season with various persimmons, including my beloved Saijo, and some kind of unknown super late apple.
Life is good on the good years when we don’t have late frosts and I am able to control brown rot!
I have black raspberries ripening now. Peaches start ripening about mid/late August, another peach about 10 days later, then the last peach 30 days after that.
The apples will start ripening late June- early July through the months until late October and early November.
My pears will start ripening late Sept and then through Oct.
Loquats ripening all May, Blackberries ripening late may-all June and into July, peaches ripening mid June through july. Blueberries seem to stretch from very early may-July (not full production yet on anything so these are mild estimates)
Strawberries if not for the bugs would be April-
April is the weak month for me on fruit, hope to be able to find a loquat variety that ripens in April to bridge this gap of citrus to others: my plan was to plant things which ripen every month so that I have a little bit of something every month. I’d rather have a tiny handful all year rather than one large harvest of one thing.
The rest of the months things should be coming into ripeness, guessing Chilean guava will be July or august
Satsumas are around thanksgiving for me, and Kumquats between thanksgiving and Christmas with Nagami being not ripe enough until late January/early February if they can make it before a heavy cold front.
Used to be, sweet cherries followed strawberries in June, then cots and Asian plums, then nects in July and August, then Gala apples late August, then pears, then prune plums September and finally Fuji apples.
Thanks for all your replies. It is definitely inspiring. And for completely selfish reasons, I like seeing where each of you live, and how likely I might be in emulating you. @thecityman & @scottfsmith seem to be the most comparable to me (east coast 7a), and I’ve certainly enjoyed looking at their (yours) profiles (plant lists). But I also get jealous looking at some of the tropicals others have listed!
I seem to get the first fruit in June, usually strawberries, if they produce. July is berries, August the early figs and plums are ready. apples and pears come along Sept/Oct but I think it’s my varieties- I don’t have early apples nor does my sharing neighbor.
grapes in October or September.
no idea when peaches, cherries and nectarines arrive as those are too young to produce yet