Fruit for Frigid Climates

Extreme Climate Survival

I write about what I know, and I know about extreme cold climate gardening, because that is where I have gardened all my adult life. The previous editor of this Organic Gardening Topic hailed from a different climate, and he wrote about what works for him. So when you look at suggestions in this topic which seem to be limited to a particular climatic zone, look to see who the author of the article is. Few gardeners in my area are brave enough to attempt growing fruit. Almost all of the fruit consumed in Manitoba is imported from east, west, and south of here, from as far away as Chile. Very little of that fruit is grown organically. We are lucky if we can buy organic apples, pears, or oranges once in a while. I grew up in Germany. When I reached out of our apartment window, I could pick organically grown grapes which were trellised on the wall. My father had planted various fruit trees and berry bushes in our alotment garden on the outskirts of the city.

Ruthless Selling Practices

The garden centres in Winnipeg sell plenty of fruit trees and berry bushes, but many of them are not hardy in our zone 3b. The people managing the large garden centres are not paid to promote good gardening practices. They are paid to sell. When you live in an extreme climate like we do, you need to know what is hardy in your zone. I have spoiled many a sale at garden centres by warning prospective buyers that what they were about to purchase would not survive the next winter. I consider myself fortunate to be friends with the Kackenhoff family who own the largest tree nursery in Manitoba. They do not engage in these ruthless practices. They raise their trees right here in Manitoba whereas the other centers import them mainly from Ontario. My Kackenhoff trees always survive.

Hardy Trees

I need my fresh organic fruit. As soon as I started my own city garden about 20 years ago, I started to investigate what trees and shrubs were adapted to our climate. I knew that certain varieties are raspberries, strawberries, gooseberries, and currants are hardy here, because my father had grown those for the last 20 years. I also knew that Nanking cherries and wild plums are hardy here, and I grow lots of those. Chokecherries and high bush cranberries also grow here wild, and they are great for making jelly. Sand cherries grow wild here, but only in the sand dunes of the Lake Winnipeg beaches. When the shrubs are grown on clay soil, they do not bear flowers or fruit.

The copyright of the article Fruit for Frigid Climates in Organic Gardens is owned by Traute Klein, biogardener. Permission to republish Fruit for Frigid Climates in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

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