The new year is upon us. It’s time to start planning and ordering supplies for the new growing season. We’ve put together a list of places to order your plants and trees for your homestead.
Order your Trees:
Start by checking your county for their tree sales. It is an excellent way to get plants for a good price that will do well in your area. Using our county as an example, you can get bundles of 25 bare root seedlings for $35-$45. They are very small measuring approximately 12 in. It’s very economical if you’re looking to line a property, create a wildlife refuge, or add to your garden/orchard and willing to wait for them to grow.
Examples of these tree bundles include evergreens such as spruce and pine; large deciduous trees such as maple, walnut, oak, and birch; and small trees such as American plum and chokecherries. You can also get shrubs like cranberry bush, Nanking cherry, dogwood, hazelnuts, chokeberries (aronia), and lilacs. Some counties also offer American elderberries. Our county also offers 6 ft bare root fruit trees for $56 for apples and plums.
Here is a list of some county tree sales in the Twin Cities area:
Anoka County: https://www.anokaswcd.org/tree-sale-order-forms/instructions.html
Carver County: https://www.co.carver.mn.us/departments/independent-agencies/soil-water-conservation-district-swcd/programs-services/tree-program
Chisago County: https://chisagoswcd.org/tree-program/
Dakota County: https://dakotaswcd.org/2022-tree-sale/
Isanti County: https://www.isantiswcd.org/tree-sale-2020.html
Mille Lacs County: https://www.millelacsswcd.org/trees/
Pine County: https://www.pineswcd.com/index.asp?SEC=89C9FF96-EB3D-415F-83E4-325A204886AF
Ramsey County: https://www.ramseycountysoil.com/tree-order-form/
Scott County: https://www.scottswcdtrees.com/
Sherburne County: https://www.sherburneswcd.org/tree-sale.html
Washington County: http://www.mnwcd.org/tree-sales
Check your county website if it isn’t listed here. Also, if your county doesn’t have the trees you are looking for, check a county next to you. Order early because the best ones tend to sell out. There is usually an order deadline and pick up dates are typically end of April, beginning of May.
When buying fruit trees, I prefer bare root over potted. They seem to survive better and grow faster than potted. Also, you’re more likely to have better luck when you pick up a tree locally than when you order it online. When it comes to fruit trees, you can get a much larger tree that will produce sooner than what typically comes in the mail.
Order your fruit trees:
Research the trees you’re interested in. Some need two varieties to pollinate, some are self pollinating. Make sure your two varieties flower at the same time. Some varieties are earlier or later than others. Make sure the variety is compatible with your hardiness zone.
Last year I added to our orchard with fruit trees from Remick’s Orchard, Oak Grove, MN. They sell bare root fruit trees (apples, cherries, pears, plums, peach), grapes, berries, and flowering bushes. They are very reasonably priced, $40-$46/ tree.
I have also ordered a couple hardy peach trees from Stark Bros, out of MO. Wide selection of fruit trees, etc. They have a nifty zoning organizer by zip code which is fun to use to find out what varieties grow in your area. Their plant descriptions are also very handy. Since they ship in the mail, the trees I got were much shorter than what I bought from the local orchard but it was still a good way to get specific varieties I couldn’t find locally.
Gilby’s Orchard, Aitkin MN (between Brainard and Duluth). They sell a wide selection of bare root fruit trees, as well as other trees and plants. Also reasonably priced. Pickup or shipping options.
The Apple Tree Guy, Carlton, MN (closer to Duluth). Sells a variety of fruit trees and berries.
Wolcyn Tree Farms, Cambridge, MN. They have lots of trees including fruit, shade and evergreen.
Good to Grow Trees, Brandon, MN (NW of Alexandria) Fruit trees and unusual fruit (less popular berries).
Winter Cove Farm, Maine. Cold hardy bare root fruit trees, nuts, and berries. Plus growing guides.
Trees of Antiquity, CA. Organic heirloom fruit trees and growing guides.
Check with your local garden center or nursery to see if they offer bare root trees in early spring.
Order your berries:
River Hill Harvest in MO is a great place to buy elderberry cuttings. They are reasonably priced and shipping is reasonable too. They also offer resources for growers, as well as elderberry products. You can also propagate cuttings from local sources or get them from the county tree sales.
Indiana Berry & Plant Company is a very reasonable place to get bare root berries. They have a wide selection of strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, currents, gooseberries, and other more unusual berries. Reasonably priced and you can pick your shipping date. I’ve gotten some blueberries there and will probably try some others there.
Simmons Plant Farm, AR. They offer a variety of berry plants for really good prices.
Nourse Farm, Ma is a good resource for berries, and planting guides. They list their berries by season which is helpful for picking varieties.
You can also transplant berries from friends and family when they want to thin some out. Also keep an eye on places like Craigslist for plants. I’ve ordered through a berry farm on Craigslist that offered people to join their berry order for a bulk discount from the nursery and people could could pick up at their farm when the truck delivered.
Orchard Resources:
University of Minnesota on growing fruit: https://extension.umn.edu/find-plants/fruit
Books & Videos by Michael Phillips: The Apple Grower and The Holistic Orchard.
Here you go! Order early before your favorite varieties are sold out! Have fun!
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