Temperate Fruit & Orchards > Temperate Fruit Discussion

Growing apples in warmer climates. Has anyone tried this?

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Slicko:
Grandmotherbear opened her post in 'Apples Anyone' June 14 with:

"Hello to all apple lovers, especially you fellow Floridians. I am just northwest of Lake Okeechobee and I wanted to share with you a wonderful website I discovered  about 6-7 years ago. www.kuffelcreek.com He grows apples in the tropics - he himself started out growing them in California, and for years he had a picture of his backyard full of fruiting apple trees and the thermometer at 113. You read his explanation of chill hours and it turns out that what chill hours do is synchronize bloom, fruit set and harvest.  Important if you're a commercial grower, less important if you just want apples whenever the tree provides them. He says in the hot zones you can have bloom, ripe fruit, and green fruit all on the tree at the same time..."

I have always wanted to grow apples but, living in a sub-tropical climate I have always thought that this was out of reach. Whilst I knew that there were some apple varieties that may be grown in warmer climates, I had my eyes opened by the Kuffelcreek website.

I invested in the book 'Growing Apples in the Tropics' and ordered two low chill varieties, Anna  and Tropical Sweet. I was so encouraged by my success when these two trees that I planted two varieties that require more chill, Granny Smith and Royal Gala. All my trees are on dwarfing rootstock.

My first two trees presented me with a small harvest this year but big enough for me to be encouraged and I am looking forward to seeing how the two new trees fare.

So I wonder if there are others living in a similar climate have tried the same process as outlined in the book and how it worked for them.

Mick

Tropheus76:
I am in Orlando and I grow Anna, Tropic Sweet, and EnSheimer(sp). The Anna after three years might produce a fruit or two and the EnShimer has produced one or two in the last two years. The Tropic Sweet has not. All are steadily growing, in fact I will need to prune the hell out of them this winter.

Slicko:
Hey Tropheus,

I have just the Anna and the Tropical Sweet, both in their first year and both fruited this year. I live in a subtropical climate.

In Kuffel Creek's web site is a basic outline of what can be done with low and higher chill variety apples in hotter climates and it seems to be working for me. I have yet to pick the last of the Tropic Sweet and it is already setting a second crop with plenty of time for them to ripen,

Mick

From the sea:
I know Dorsett Golden sets fruit in the Florida Keys with no chill hours.

gunnar429:
My DG is actually flowering at the moment...very pretty flowers!

Too small to hold fruit though.

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