apples

Apples & Oranges & How To Grow Them

Lifestyle
8 years ago
2 minutes

The two most popular fruits to eat on the go- apples and oranges. So why not start growing them yourself?

Apples are a hardy and delicious fruit. With over 10,000 kinds of apples, you can choose from a wide range depending on what you like. 

Apples can be used in so many ways, whether you like them fresh and crisp on the go, or turn them into a beautiful apple pie for dessert. 

Apples grow best where it is cold. You don’t need a backyard to grow an apple tree, one can grow a dwarf apple tree (Pinkabelle and Ballerina apples) on their balcony, and can even be purchased bare-root or in a container. 

The Pinkabelle dwarf apple tree produces full-sized Pink Lady apples on a compact tree of 2m high and 1m wide and can even grow in a large pot. 

The dwarf apple trees still produce full-size fruit, but grow between half and two-thirds the size of normal apple trees. Therefore this will result in a tree around 2-4m as opposed to 6-8m for a normal tree in a backyard. 

A container grown tree can be planted during the growing season, which is winter time. It must grow in a sunny spot, requiring around five to six hours of sunlight a day. They also need plenty of space and room to mature, so be sure your balcony allows space for this. 

Your apple tree will require weekly watering and feeding, and they tend to grow 8-12 inches a year. 
 

Oranges on the other hand, come from a citrus tree.

By growing your own oranges you can make your own orange juice, orange cake, flavour for laksa and more.

The Valencia orange tree is best to grow in most areas, as it is a fast-growing and hardy tree. Like the apple, oranges grow during the winter, you can grow them in areas cooler than the usual zones.

Valencia oranges is where almost all of the world’s orange juice production is from.

They grow around 4m tall.

One can purchase an orange tree in dwarf variety. These require watering in spring to prevent wilting and withholding of irrigation in fall. During the beginning of its growth they need between 1-1.5 inches of water per week. 

Be sure to have a container with good drainage.

Make your garden look beautiful and full of colour with oranges and apples. 

Growing dwarf fruit trees in your apartment mean that you can enjoy a mini orchard in even the smallest of areas.