Gardening for the Soul…

Here I am, in my small corner of the world, smack-dab in the middle of Massachusetts. This five-part blog series is for anyone who finds nature feeds their soul and for whom may want to learn a bit more about setting up vegetable, fruit, and flower gardens.

My experience: I’ve been obsessing over flower gardens for fifteen years, my berries/apples for about seven years, and I’m relatively new to vegetables, four years in now (thanks to impulse pandemic gardening). I only know what I know. My background is in science, and I now write novels full-time. The way I garden is only one way. I am no expert, but feel free to glean whatever information you can from my series…

Let’s talk about fruit (more coming on harvesting veggies in the fall)!

Let’s jump into Fruit 101:

Always know your grow zone and sun location. You’re getting tired of hearing this, aren’t you? But even fruits have preferred locations. My fruits are all planted on the western side of my property where they also get southern sun. Some also require more acidic soils as well. I’m calling this my 101 because these are the basics I’ve learned about the fruits I grow. I am still learning so as always take my advice with a grain of salt.

Apples –

Apple trees are an investment in time, space, and money. Do a little research at your local nursery before purchasing. I have a Macoun tree and Golden Delicious tree. Some years you’ll yield a bounty of apples! Some years, none. Some years, the four-legged critters eat them all. They need to be well-spaced to allow for growth, pruned as needed to put more energy into apples rather than foliage (I did a big prune this year - ouch - but the apples came back after a year off!), and you should grow at least two varieties—they need cross-pollination. I’ve had to also use food-friendly sprays to eliminate fungal growth (causes the leaves to spot and drop early) and caterpillars nibbling on the tree. This year - I had hundreds of baby apples - but with the rainy summer so many have dropped. I also did not spray them this year so the loss of so many apples could be from the stress of the pruning, an abundance of rain and storms, funguses, or disease. Hoping to yield a few dozen or so at this point. Like I’ve said before: Gardening is an experiment of trial and error. It can be tough when you love them so much!

Strawberries –

These can be grown in beds, rows, or pots. There are three kinds of strawberries: ever-bearing (slow and steady all summer), June-bearing (monster-sized crop early in June and the ones I see most at local nurseries), and day-neutral (usually two to three peak times throughout the summer). Little critters love to eat these! Netting may be needed. I’ve had trouble with these but got a cutting from a friend, planted it within my blueberry garden bed, and they are spreading nicely. Even got a berry or two. Stay tuned on how they fare next year! So far, I’ve not cut them back in the fall.

Blueberries –

Varieties include lowbush, highbush—the most common, rabbiteye, and half-high. Some are self-pollinators, some are cross-pollinating. Some require more pruning than others, too. Blueberries like more acidic soil and lots of sun and being planted near each other, and away from other fruits/vegs. I don’t usually cut them back in the fall, and each year they’ve gotten better and bigger (slowly!) for me. My strawberries are planted within the blueberries and the blueberries did very well this year, fruit-wise. I am unsure of my variety, but I have a lot of berries this year, but they are ripening rather slow. So something is working!

Raspberries –

Now, these are the king of my yard. I was gifted a handful of “canes” from a friend a few years back and they have taken over, needing constant maintenance to prevent their spread. They are like weeds…shooting out left and right. So if you want them to stay in your yard and not go into your neighbor’s, pull all those little spreaders up in spring…and summer! They are my September Glory. I love them! These monsters produce an abundance of berries each autumn (with a small June harvest). The soil and sun must be in a magical alignment (west and south sun). Raspberries can be ever-bearing like what I have, or June/Summer-only bearing. They like lots of sun and fertilizer. I also prune them down to 12-18 inches in the fall. The June fruits return on non-pruned (old growth) canes, and the autumn-growing (ever-bearing) fruit appear on new growth.

What to do with that wonderful bounty?

Besides eat them fresh, what else to do with that bounty of fruit? I freeze my berries to use later in the year in baked goods or smoothies, make applesauce (I make mine with half the skin on - less work - and all that fiber!), apple butter, and jams. So much jam! Frozen berries work in jams, too. You can also prepare apple pie filling and freeze it (or make pies to freeze). Pies, pancakes, cobblers, scones, sauces, custards, jams and jellies…the sky’s the limit with fruit!

Have specific gardening questions? Drop me an email through my website contact form. Join me next time to talk about vegetable harvests and fall pruning/planting.

More in the series:

Part 1 (June): Setting up Vegetable Gardens

Part 2 (July): Setting up Perennial Flower Gardens

Part 4 (September): Harvesting your Veggies & Planting for Late/Second Harvests

Part 5 (October): Pruning Your Perennials and Preparing For Winter (veggies & flowers)