Dwarf fruit and nut trees make a great addition to just about any garden. They can help you add some diversity to your garden. Since they are so small, you can have several dwarf trees producing several types of fruits and nuts instead of having one full size tree producing only one kind of fruit.

The fruit produced by a dwarf fruit tree is the same size as fruit produced by a regular sized fruit tree. Basically the only difference between a dwarf and regular sized tree is the amount of fruit that they produce. A miniature tree tends to produce more fruit for its size than a regular sized tree. They will also produce fruit earlier in the season then the normal sized trees. A smaller tree around two to three feet tall might produce around 25 fruits, while a five foot tree can produce around 50 pieces of fruit.

Improved Meyer Lemon Tree

There is a wide variety of miniature fruit and nut trees available such as lemon, orange, apple, pear, almond, chestnut, cherry and peach to name a few. Most of these will grow fairly easy in a pot if you choose to grow them in a container garden.

How does the fruit and nuts grown from these miniature trees taste? Back when this type of tree was new science, the produce didn’t have much flavor. Today however they taste much better since the breeders have had some time to add some flavor to the produce.

Miniature trees are produced using several methods. The first method is with genetics. Sometimes in nature, a small tree will naturally be produced. By collecting these naturally small trees and cross breeding them, a new variety can be created that will produce trees that are just as small as the first ones are.

A dwarf rootstock is another way to keep the trees small. There is a large variety of rootstock to choose from that can be used. Some rootstock might be good for some varieties, but they could be poor choices for other varieties. You should choose the rootstock based on the type of soil that you have. If you are going to be growing the dwarf fruit tree in a container then choose the soil for the container according to the type of rootstock the tree has.

Dwarf Washington Navel Orange Tree in Grower's Pot

Growing in pots and pruning are the other methods of producing dwarf fruit trees. By carefully pruning unwanted limbs off, it is possible to control the size of the tree. It is also possible to grow them in a large pot that is 10 to 15 inches in diameter. When you grow them in a pot you will need to prune back the roots every year or two.

Taking care of dwarf fruit trees is simple and straight forward. They need lots of fertilizer; using the same type that is used for tomatoes works out well. Pruning them will help produce full-sized fruit, and provide the tree with better air circulation and light penetration. When fruit begins to appear, you need to remove most of the fruit early keeping only one piece of fruit every four inches. This will allow the keepers to grow to full-size.

Dwarf fruit trees have come a long way since they were first created. Miniature trees are great if you want to add some variety to your garden, or simply add a small container tree inside your house.

For further reading see:

How to start a DIY square foot garden

7 easy plants to grow in a hydroponics garden

Quick and easy guide to starting your own organic vegetable garden