Possible trees for 2023 - The edible yard continues to grow

       

         No, I will not apologize for the pun in the title.

         Now that it’s February, I can start thinking about what trees I want to plant in the spring.  Last year I received two Kousa Dogwoods from the good folks at Tree Pittsburgh.  Well these were technically not native plants, I’ve always loved dogwood's explosion of white or pink flowers and the fruit of this particular dogwood is edible off the tree. 

        They are going to get some mulch and fertilizer come spring for sure.

Last year I pick up some flower and native grass seeds from the Mercer Country Conservation district although for a variety of different reasons didn't get to plant them last year.  If I am serious about creating an edible landscape for the future, then I want to work with the resources that they and the Macoskey Center provide.

 The conservation district is having their annual sale and I’m considering adding a few things to the yard this year.  For example I would like to plant at least two native and edible apple trees, but am thinking that I would be better off with younger trees than seedlings.   Or perhaps even buying dwarf apple trees from a nursery.  It only takes a dwarf apple tree anywhere from two to three years to bear fruit.  A standard tree can take up to eight years. 

The life span of these trees comes into play too.  A dwarf apple tree for example will survive anywhere between 15 to 25 years; where as a standard apple and pear trees can live well over 50 years (and help cement my legacy).  I also recently learned that it's a good idea to have different types of apple trees in your yard to promote cross pollination.

        Frankly, I don’t want to wait 8 years or more to bite into a home grown apple, so I’m looking into the possibility of adding North Pole Columnar Apple Trees to the mix.  This way I have the best of both worlds.  Apple’s that I can eat and use within one or two years of planting and still plant the standard apple trees on another part of my property to grow properly over time.

         Sadly the conservation district is not offering apple trees this year but they do have a few others that are worth looking into.

                For example the common lilac is a flowering shrub that my wife Sue loves.  Again it’s going to take about three to four years for the plants to really take hold and bloom although they are fast growing, however I recently learned that they too are edible and can be used in a variety of ways.  They appear to have some medicinal value as well but since this is unscientific at this time, I’m not commenting on it other than to say that it could be useful for someone in the future.   

                So I check that off on the order form.

                When it comes to the rest of the order form, I just don’t know what I will buy.  I know that these are just seedlings, coming in packets of 5 and that I’ll have to protect them is some way from the ravages of dear and other creatures.    It may simply be easier to go to a gardening center and buying an older and mature tree to grow.

                If I kill the seedlings though, I’m not out of a lot of money and I learned something for the future.

They are also offering an interesting variety of shrubs and trees though.  For example, Paw Paw’s, which I’m curious about but frankly feel that with such a short fruiting season – mid August till October - it’s not something that would make sense in my idea of an edible forageable lawn for the future.  The fruit, once ripe, will only last 3 to 5 days on average. 

Traditionally they were mashed into cakes and dried to preserve them.  They were often made into beers as well.  Paw Paw’s are also a highly nutritious fruit being high in vitamin C, magnesium, iron, copper, and manganese. They are a good source of potassium and several essential amino acids, and they also contain significant amounts of riboflavin, niacin, calcium, phosphorus, and zinc.

For those reasons alone they seem worth growing.  I've never tried them but the flavor is said to to be a cross of mango, banana and pineapple.  Grafted trees will fruit within 2 to 3 years, but the seedlings can take up to 10 years to bear fruit.  The lifespan of a Paw Paw can be anywhere between 20 to 40 years.

   For every positive that the Paw Paw has, it seems to have a negative as well.

The Highbush Cranberry for example appears to be rare in Pennsylvania and, while not poisonous to humans, they apparently taste that way, although they are high in vitamin C (25%) and Vitamin A (20%), fiber and antioxidants.  It’s an interesting shrub for a couple of reasons; mostly due to its rare nature and I like the idea of helping its return to the wilds of Pennsylvania. 

The fruit does not need to be cooked but, again in my fevered imagination of some future wandering soul…would they know it’s edible?  Or would they try it and spit it out?  

Nor do I believe my yard would be the best environment for them to grow, unless I planted them in the woods a bit further from my home, where the conditions may be better for this particular plant.  Once established this particular plant can last well past 100 years.

Black elderberry is another one of those that plants on the list that deserve a “maybe” mark.  The reason is that, even though elderberries are very high in potassium, vitamins A and C and are good sources of folate, calcium and iron; only the flowers and berries are edible and have to be cooked in some way. 

There are some claims that Black Elderberry has several medicinal uses, but the research on this is indeterminate at best.

Maybe I’ve read too much dystopian fiction in my life, but I’m thinking that an edible yard should have trees and plants that provide an immediate benefit to someone. That it should provide near immediate relief to a hungry soul.

Again this particular plant might be better suited for the deeper woods of my property than around my home due to its unique needs.   The lifespan of these plants is between 40 to 60 years. 

                If I’m going to do an edible yard, then that means finding native plants that will return year after year, which is an area of research I know little to nothing about.  Luckily there are resources out there

**EDITED**

        Thanks to the good people at the Penn State Extension; whose class on Edible Landscaping I recently attended, I think Paw - Paw's are off the list.   I simply don't have the right soil for there deep taproots.  

        Although I might be adding the American Persimmon.  Not only it is native to Pennsylvania but it's fruit is wonderful.  It's range is expanding somewhat due to global warming as well so it may be possible to grow here.  

        As well as a few more shrubs and other plants that I learned about.  I'm actually quite excited about this.