Fruit Trees that do well in Containers

[DRFixembones]

I have the following trees sitting in front of my house in 3 gallon containers: Mauritis Lychee, Carambola, Longan, and Atemoya. I have very limited yard space and was wondering if anyone knew which (if any) of these would do well and produce well in a container?

[Jake]

I had a longan that went from a 3 gallon directly to a 15 gallon. It produced every year for 3 years till I gave it away. After 3 years it still wasn't root bound.

[nullzero]

Usually any airlayer semi dwarf trees make good candidates to fruit in containers. Figs, Longan, Wax Jambu, and others. A lot of Eugenia species do well in containers as well. Production wise it is very hard to beat a fig in a container. Blueberries do well in containers as well. Cacti fruits can produce reasonable yields in containers.

[DRFixembones]

Usually any airlayer semi dwarf trees make good candidates to fruit in containers. Figs, Longan, Wax Jambu, and others. A lot of Eugenia species do well in containers as well. Production wise it is very hard to beat a fig in a container. Blueberries do well in containers as well. Cacti fruits can produce reasonable yields in containers.

Thanks for the info. What about Lychee or Starfruit??

[nullzero]

I have fruited lychee in a 18 gal container before. Yields were lower than longan. 5 year old in a +20 gal perhaps can get a yield above 30 fruits. I am sure can improve on with very large root pruning container and optimal care.

A dwarf variety of starfruit would produce well in a container. I know logees sells a dwarf starfruit.

[Daintree]

Because I am zone 6, and I can't dig holes in my greenhouse floor do to a huge amount of large maple tree roots, I have EVERYTHING in pots. Mostly 15-20 gallon, the biggest is 25 gallon.

They are all doing great, and here is what has fruited for me so far -
Soursop
Custard Apple
Annatto
Caper
Papaya
Babaco
Cinnamon
Various citrus
Coffee
Pitanga
Pitangatuba
Cacao
Noni (bleh...)
Banana
Jaboticaba
Various guavas
Cas mango (spondias dulcis)
Rose apple

I think I am missing a couple, but can't think of them now...

Cheers,
Carolyn

[SummerDragoness]

I have a 9-10' fruiting loquat in a 20g pot, figs, pomegranate, persimmon, citrus, avocado, and guava in respective pots. I'm eventually going to move them all into fabric pots to prevent root binding though, like my mamey sapote.

[NewGen]

Because I am zone 6, and I can't dig holes in my greenhouse floor do to a huge amount of large maple tree roots, I have EVERYTHING in pots. Mostly 15-20 gallon, the biggest is 25 gallon.

They are all doing great, and here is what has fruited for me so far -
Soursop
Custard Apple
Annatto
Caper
Papaya
Babaco
Cinnamon
Various citrus
Coffee
Pitanga
Pitangatuba
Cacao
Noni (bleh...)
Banana
Jaboticaba
Various guavas
Cas mango (spondias dulcis)
Rose apple

I think I am missing a couple, but can't think of them now...

Cheers,
Carolyn

That's awesome!
What kind of temperature are you able to maintain in the greenhouse during your winter?

[containerman]

I grow several Avocados in containers. I just ordered a Pakistan Mulberry that I will be growing in a 1/2 wine barrel like I do with my avocado trees.

[Daintree]

Because I am zone 6, and I can't dig holes in my greenhouse floor do to a huge amount of large maple tree roots, I have EVERYTHING in pots. Mostly 15-20 gallon, the biggest is 25 gallon.

They are all doing great, and here is what has fruited for me so far -
Soursop
Custard Apple
Annatto
Caper
Papaya
Babaco
Cinnamon
Various citrus
Coffee
Pitanga
Pitangatuba
Cacao
Noni (bleh...)
Banana
Jaboticaba
Various guavas
Cas mango (spondias dulcis)
Rose apple

I think I am missing a couple, but can't think of them now...

Cheers,
Carolyn

That's awesome!
What kind of temperature are you able to maintain in the greenhouse during your winter?

In the tropical house, it is 60-85 all year round, although during a really cold winter it may dip to 50.  In the orangerie, it gets hotter during the summer and colder during the winter, sometimes down to 40.  Each section has its own gas furnace, and I can further control things by shutting the door between the two.  This was purely accidental, as I just didn't build a big enough greenhouse to begin with, and almost immediately added on!

[DRFixembones]

I grow several Avocados in containers. I just ordered a Pakistan Mulberry that I will be growing in a 1/2 wine barrel like I do with my avocado trees.

How many avocados do you get per tree in a container?

[NewGen]

Because I am zone 6, and I can't dig holes in my greenhouse floor do to a huge amount of large maple tree roots, I have EVERYTHING in pots. Mostly 15-20 gallon, the biggest is 25 gallon.

They are all doing great, and here is what has fruited for me so far -
Soursop
Custard Apple
Annatto
Caper
Papaya
Babaco
Cinnamon
Various citrus
Coffee
Pitanga
Pitangatuba
Cacao
Noni (bleh...)
Banana
Jaboticaba
Various guavas
Cas mango (spondias dulcis)
Rose apple

I think I am missing a couple, but can't think of them now...

Cheers,
Carolyn

That's awesome!
What kind of temperature are you able to maintain in the greenhouse during your winter?

In the tropical house, it is 60-85 all year round, although during a really cold winter it may dip to 50.  In the orangerie, it gets hotter during the summer and colder during the winter, sometimes down to 40.  Each section has its own gas furnace, and I can further control things by shutting the door between the two.  This was purely accidental, as I just didn't build a big enough greenhouse to begin with, and almost immediately added on!

Amazing zone pushing. If you feel like it, please share some photos.
Thanks,

[Kevin Jones]

Carolyn is my hero!

Kevin Jones

[Orkine]

Atemoya will fruit in a pot.

[brian]

kumquats do very well in containers, mine fruit heavily with only 3ft canopy

[Tropheus76]

Wow, Daintree, you win the forum for the week. That's extremely impressive, I cant get about half of those to even grow and I am in Florida three and a half zones higher.

[Daintree]

Well, I am not actually zone pushing.  The trees haven't figured out they're not in the tropics, thanks to the cheap natural gas we get here.  If I lived in another part of town, I'd even have geothermal - woo hoo!
Truth is, though, I am not as great as I made myself appear - half my citrus look like cr@p right now...

This is the orangerie - the banana is so easy!  Miracle Berries on the far right, orchids along the window, and misc African stuff that doesn't mind it hotter in the summer and a little cooler in the winter.



And the tropical house - note the bird feeder (I raise little parrots out there also) and the colorful Walmart toy tubs. They are a true 15 gallons, and I just drilled a bunch of holes in the bottom and sides.  Turns out the rope handles are NOT really strong enough to move the pot... Rose apple on the right, custard apple leaves hanging from top of pic, and pitangatuba to the left of bird feeder. You can't see the jabo or the vanilla orchids.



In the center of the picture below is my cinnamon tree.  I didn't know for years that the berries are edible! To the left you can barely make out one of the 5 year old cacao trees, and a couple of babies.  I have to hand pollinate them, but I have gotten a couple of pods. The two blue toy tubs on the right have my soursop and custard apple trees.  You can only see the trunks in the picture.  I have had to hand pollinate those too. 

I certainly won't make enough fruit to survive a famine, but it does keep me off the streets and out of the bars!

[NewGen]

Thank you  for posting the photos.
I must be quite a contrast to be inside this tropical environment in the winter and see snow just outside the walls.
Do you have any issue with spider mite and ants? I only use my greenhouse for about 3 months, and always have to deal with those 2 problems.

[FMfruitforest]

Sugar apples and atemoya’s do great in containers, delicious fruit and quick to bear make them some  of the best fruit trees to grow in florida

[PitangatubaMoray]

Peanut butter (fruit) trees, seem to do fine in containers

[Daintree]

Thank you  for posting the photos.
I must be quite a contrast to be inside this tropical environment in the winter and see snow just outside the walls.
Do you have any issue with spider mite and ants? I only use my greenhouse for about 3 months, and always have to deal with those 2 problems.

Yes, there is nothing better than bare feet and a glass of wine in there, when the wind is howling and the snow is coming down outside.  As far as bugs, I do have a few spider mites and white flies, but keep them in check with frequent hosing of the plants.  No ant problems - I have Chinese Painted Quail that live out there, and they LOVE ants, centipedes, earwigs and slugs.  Once plants go outside, I tend NOT to bring them back in, due to pests, and unless the plant is rare or expensive, if it gets scale, mealybugs, etc, out it goes!

Carolyn

[DRFixembones]

Sugar apples and atemoya’s do great in containers, delicious fruit and quick to bear make them some  of the best fruit trees to grow in florida

I have an Atemoya that I purchased in a 3 gallon and it’s about 5 feet tall. How many fruits do you think an Atemoya in a large container will produce?

[containerman]

I grow several Avocados in containers. I just ordered a Pakistan Mulberry that I will be growing in a 1/2 wine barrel like I do with my avocado trees.

How many avocados do you get per tree in a container?

My trees are still young but the most has been 35 on a 6 foot tree.