You want to plant a fruit tree in the yard, but where to put it? Here are the most important factors to consider, presented in the form of questions. The place in the yard that answers YES to the most questions below wins.
1. Is it close to the house, especially the front door or whichever door is used most often? (Why? Out of sight, out of mind. A fruit tree that you see many times a day will be eaten, enjoyed, and cared for more.)
2. Does it get optimal sun for the species? (Keep in mind, for example, the desire for an avocado to get sun early on winter mornings, or that it’s fine for a deciduous tree to be in shade all winter. But in general, full sun, all day, all year, is best.)
3. Does it offer convenient access to extra rain in the form of driveway runoff, roof runoff, or gravity-fed rainwater from a storage tank? And is it easy to reuse household water at the site? (Could be laundry water or shower water, for example.)
4. Can the site be easily incorporated into the automatic irrigation system, if one exists?
5. Is the area big enough for the tree’s mature size, unless you want to commit to pruning?
6. Is the soil quality and depth appropriate for the species? (Remember that if the soil is shallow or doesn’t drain well, you can plant on a mound.)
7. Will the tree enhance desires for privacy and shade but not obstruct desired views?
8. Finally, is the spot near other trees of the same species that can benefit from cross-pollination? (Think of A/B-type avocados or different varieties of apple.)
For example, I recently planted a Keitt mango. I had two potential spots in the yard picked out. Both spots get a lot of sun, but the spot that won gets sun earlier on winter mornings, when a tropical mango needs it. Both spots have good soil, are close to rain tanks, and can easily be incorporated into the automatic irrigation system, but the winning spot has more space such that the tree can grow to a 30-foot canopy if it wants to — and I want it to, if it wants to!
Greg, thanks so much for your excellent blog. I think I’ve read every post at this point, and re-read many of them.
I’m a first time homeowner in Los Angeles with my first yard and I’ve become an avid collector of fruit trees. Right now I have most of them in big terra cotta pots and they’re doing well, but over time I’d like to put as many as I can in the ground. My problem is that the sunny places I’d like to plant them are close to my house. I’d be pruning them small so I’m not worried about the size above ground, I’m only worried about the roots.
Advice on the internet seems to say you’d be crazy to plant any tree within six feet of the foundation. But this seems to me to be overly cautious, general advice that doesn’t take into consideration the type of tree or rootstock. For instance, all throughout my neighborhood I see big beautiful decades old citrus and avocado trees growing right next to sidewalks and homes and driveways with no apparent issue.
My trees are: meyer lemon, bearss lime, wonderful pomegranate, sir prize avocado, nagami kumquat, mandarin, fuyu persimmon, Violette de Bordeaux fig and katy apricot (on citation rootstock). From what I’ve read figs are the ones to really worry about roots-wise, which is ironic because we have a mature one (though it’s a non-edible caprifig) right next to the house already that pre-dates us!
Any advice you have would be appreciated. Thanks so much,
Mark Hammer
Hi Mark,
I’m impressed! I need to find the time to go back and read some of my older posts. I might learn something.
I think you are spot on about looking around at the results of what people have already been doing for a hundred years in your neighborhood rather than taking advice elsewhere. Even at my house, planted before I bought the place, there were trees planted only a foot or two from the foundation: Japanese maple, camellia, pineapple guava, citrus. I’ve seen no problems from these.
Of the trees you mentioned, the only one I would be nervous about planting near the house is the fig, but it looks like you might be able to get away with that.
Sounds good, thanks! By the way, I found the Davis Garden Show through an old post of yours, and between your site and that great podcast I feel well covered! Much appreciated!
Hi Mark,
That’s great. I love the Davis Garden Show. I look forward to every Thursday.
Thanks for your great posts!
I live in the Santa Monica Mtns, basically Calabasas weather zone. The ground is clay and we have been getting brutal summer heat the last couple of years. I’d like to plant a Santa Rosa plum and a couple of Hass avocados. Wondering if I should select a spot that will get some shade from my Oaks in the afternoon or if I should barrel ahead with full sun locations. I can link into our irrigation system. Given the clay, how large of a hole and what soil/amendments would you recommend?
Hi Joan,
Thank you! For the avocados, the most important thing to do before planting is to check your soil’s drainage. See this post for more on that: https://gregalder.com/yardposts/how-to-plant-and-stake-an-avocado-tree/
You’ll probably be better off planting in full sun. Plum trees are tough in the sun and heat. Avocados are not as tough, but if you give them plenty of water and, especially in their first couple years, some sunburn protection and heat protection when it’s over about 105 degrees, then they can do fine.
See these posts for more on these topics:
https://gregalder.com/yardposts/how-to-water-a-newly-planted-avocado-tree/
https://gregalder.com/yardposts/how-much-and-how-often-to-water-avocado-trees-in-california/
https://gregalder.com/yardposts/avocado-trees-get-sunburned-what-to-do/
https://gregalder.com/yardposts/protecting-avocado-trees-from-heat/
I have some avocado trees growing to the east of a large oak and it’s not the best arrangement. The main problem is not from the afternoon shade of the oak but from the roots of the oak drinking the water that I give the avocados. I have to add extra water to make up for it and still, my trees in full sun look better at the end of the summer than those that are competing with the oak roots. I’ve seen this root competition issue happen in other yards as well.
I love your blog just discovered. I have two avocado trees, Fantastic %Poncho both listed as cold hardy to 15 & 18 deg. Just planted in 20 gal pots 2/28/2020. Fantastic bloomed in March, set 7 fruit, but they aborted early. No flowers on Poncho. Poncho has lots of leaf browning, but zero on Fantastic. They are 5 and 7 ft tall now Dec 2020. I am in USDA zone 8b frequent freezes to low 20’s. They are on cement park space, water with city treated water.(chlorine not checked). Fert with AmSo4. Fantastic is showing flower buds. Will use
Frost protection cloth bags and Xmas lights if needed. Will probably need to prune tops in spring and paint trunks white. We get 20+ days 100+. Have peach, plum, Wash navel, celeste fig, blueberry, raised vegetable bed. Am retired Ext Hort Texas A&M. Will be 90 years old in April. Hope to eat an avocado next Jul/Aug. Thanks for your blog!