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Lisa, I have and semi-dwarfed fruit trees, pear, cherry and apple. This is year three or four, I've gotten six apples and about a quarrt of sour cherries this year. First production. As long as you aren't in a hurry.....

Spacing on trees varies from 10-15 feet, depending what kind.
Strawberries van be grown in a small area, grow both June bearing and "everbearing". Mine did poorly, but it was my fault. Also look at blueberries, raspberries, gooseberries. Just some ideas.

Beams, small melons, peas, cucumbers, and other vining plants can be grown on trellis or fence to conserve space.

Just some ideas.

Don't forget a cold frame for lettuce and such well in to winter.
 
Having trouble with quotes from my phone.

I just use a single layet of feed bags to insulate. I just made sure all the big gaps were covered in the walls. I have a lot more birds in my coop than most of you so they tend to create a lot more heat of their own than a small flock would. I like to keep my coop small & have a large run. This allows the birds to use their bodies to heat the coop when it gets cold out. It also means you need a lot of ventilation though. My coop has a window in 1 end above the pop door & vents along the entire roof line all the way around. Roosts are mostly at the end away from the window.
 
LisaYolkUm said:
okay so I want to ask some non-chicken questions...................hope you are ok with this.........

has anyone ever grown a hazelnut bush?

or how about some dwarf fruit trees or fruit trees in containers?

I am trying to add the food bearing potential of my small yard.

I already do basic veggies of tomatoes---many types, peppers --many types, blueberries, strawberries, raspberries.

next year I will add some raised bed for square foot garden and
potato bin , and a lettuce, spinach, swiss chard area.

I am wondering about fruits and nuts................in small size and spaces.............

thanks !
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Lisa:

Here's my list...grapes, black berries, blue berries, semi-dwarf Cherry, x2 dwarf peaches, x2 3-n-1 pears....nothing in pots...imho, I'd be looking at bushes and I think the blue berries are the least maintenance...fruit trees will require some sort of spraying if you want decent harvests...and if somebody tells you they are self-fruiting don't believe it...grapes need an annual trim, and so do blackberries(to a lesser degree)....if you decide to buy trees, get types that flower late...due to potential late frosts...I have not had good luck with strawberries and I want to add a thicket of asparagus

Here's a good gardening forum....BHG....actually there's forums on just about any topic from the forum pulldown menu

http://forums.gardenweb.com/forums/
 
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chiques chicks said:
Wingstone - Assume the road to the farm is closed, hoping you can get around the back way.

Ankle deep water in my basement, neighbors had to move their ducks to the garage, pen is flooded. No major problems here --yet
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I had a brooder and a Banty coop in standing water this morning, I was able to move the brooder to higher ground, but not the coop. The goats hate rain. Poor things.
 
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chiques chicks said:
Wingstone - Assume the road to the farm is closed, hoping you can get around the back way.

Ankle deep water in my basement, neighbors had to move their ducks to the garage, pen is flooded. No major problems here --yet
Click to expand...
the normal spots are flooded,,,can still get thru with the truck, wouldn't try the car though...

Your basement sounds like a good place for the neighbor's ducks...

Really, I do not mind being cut off from society for a couple days....kind of peaceful
 
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SilkieSensation said:
Having trouble with quotes from my phone.

I just use a single layet of feed bags to insulate. I just made sure all the big gaps were covered in the walls. I have a lot more birds in my coop than most of you so they tend to create a lot more heat of their own than a small flock would. I like to keep my coop small & have a large run. This allows the birds to use their bodies to heat the coop when it gets cold out. It also means you need a lot of ventilation though. My coop has a window in 1 end above the pop door & vents along the entire roof line all the way around. Roosts are mostly at the end away from the window.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the advice! I am going probably keep the extra birds through the winter and then give them away come spring so I can take advantage of their body heat.
 
Dwarf fruit trees will work fine, but are tricky in a container, since they are very subject to the cold that way. Plus it may be some years before they bear very much fruit. But if you have room to put them in the gound, and a little patience, that's an awesome idea. If you are in a very confined space, think vertical gardening. Many kinds of beans, tomatoes, gourds, cucumbers, etc etc, either come in varieties that will climb up a vertical trellis, or can be trained to do so. Go up!
 
morf2540 said:
Dwarf fruit trees will work fine, but are tricky in a container, since they are very subject to the cold that way. Plus it may be some years before they bear very much fruit. But if you have room to put them in the gound, and a little patience, that's an awesome idea. If you are in a very confined space, think vertical gardening. Many kinds of beans, tomatoes, gourds, cucumbers, etc etc, either come in varieties that will climb up a vertical trellis, or can be trained to do so. Go up!
Click to expand...
thanks everyone for your fruit and veggies ideas.......

I do plan vertical gardening for some vegetables.

My situation is that I do not have that much space-------and the spaces I have that are very sunny or on my deck and in the front yard.

I had a nice yield for one person and even for the chickens with my deck container vegetables. I also have many strawberry plants ---first year with minimal year yet I hope they will be a bumper crop next year as they grew and multiplied and look so healthy! I also purchased one blueberry bush for the deck.......maybe next year it will produce mor
I can take in my strawberry and blueberry containers into an unheated sunroom for the winter.

next year the front yard will have more vegetables..............and I was hoping I might have a small fruit tree in a container on the deck. I have seem some articles on this that say it works....but I really wanted to hear from PA locals who have done it.........I imagine I might be able to overwinter a small tree in the same sunroom.........if its not taller than 6 ft or so......

I was also considering a hazelnut bush...........

ideas are easier to generate than doing all the work around implementing these ideas!
on the other hand all the deck veggies and strawberries and blueberries were easy because its in a container.............no digging etc.........and I just run a hose to them!

I am ready for this rainy weather to be done...........it is making me tired!
 

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