While you need a variety of food sources to maintain a happy, healthy life, you are going to have to be realistic. You can’t plant 23 different types of farms. That’s why you shouldn’t discount fruit trees. A fruit tree will produce food, take up less space, and require less maintenance than a full-blown garden.
That’s not to say you won’t need to plant a garden eventually, but adding fruit trees to your property will be a huge benefit. So what kind of trees do you need? That will vary depending on where you live.
Fruit Trees are the best! Fruit trees don’t require the same time, care, and attention that a full-blown garden does, and they can provide you with fabulous tasting fruit in an emergency. Fruit trees are a must-have for any prepper garden.
Here are some fruit trees that you might consider adding to your prepper garden.
- Apple
- Peaches
- Pears
- Plums
- Pomegranate
- Oranges
- Lemons
- Limes
- Nectarine
Think about how great it would be to have fresh apples and oranges. Not only do fruits taste good, but they will also help you stay hydrated. Remember from our water article, a single orange can provide you with 8 ounces of fluid.
Not every type of tree is right for every region but you can easily find out what is best to grow in your area simply by googling the best fruit trees for (your state). ie: Best Fruit Trees for Texas.
Peach trees are fun to grow and are one of the fastest choices, and while peaches and nectarines aren’t the same fruit, they do have similar growing needs.
Plum trees are great because they require less care than most other fruit trees. They adapt to a wide variety of conditions and are more compact than other fruit trees that require little to no work.
There are a large variety of apples so you’ll want to research which tastes best. There are 2,500 varieties of apples in the US alone. The most common is Red Delicious, followed by Gala, Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, and Fuji apples.
You’ll be happy to know that most apple trees aren’t hard to grow. The great thing about apples is, not only does it taste great on its own, but you can also make some great things from them like apple juice, and apple pie. Growing apples is a long term commitment. You aren’t going to be able to plant an apple tree today and start enjoying the fruit weeks later. A large apple tree can take 8 to 10 years to produce its first fruit, a small tree usually 3 to 5 years. But if you take care of your apple tree it could live as long as 100 years.
Apples have some impressive health benefits. They are rich in fiber, disease-fighting antioxidants, and a variety of vitamins and minerals including potassium, folate, niacin, and vitamins A, B, C, E and K. Eating apples has been associated with a lower risk of a variety of cancers, stroke, and diabetes.
Nectarine trees are almost identical to the peach in appearance, culture, and care. Nectarines are a delicious, summer-growing fruit with an autumn harvest. They’re usually a little smaller than the average peach and have a smooth skin. Uses of nectarines are the same as those of peaches too. They can be eaten fresh, baked into pies and cobblers, and are a sweet, tasty addition to a fruit salad. Let’s learn more about how to grow nectarines.
Earlier we talked about the need for a fresh, natural water source if you are going to build your own sustainable community. But what’s next? Well after you have secured a source of water, you are going to need food to survive.
My mother has a lemon tree in her yard and that single tree producers hundreds of fresh lemons every year — far more than a single-family could ever use.
But lemon’s are great for other things besides just eating. The citrus can be used to make cheese. You can use lemons as a cleaning solution or as a diuretic. Lemon juice also helps stop bleeding gums and reduces toothaches. Lemon juice is a powerful antiseptic. There are just so many things you can do with lemons so don’t discount planting a lemon tree on your property.
Fruit trees are going to be your saving grace. They take almost no work to maintain and if worst comes to worst, let’s be real … you are going to have enough work to do. Having a few fruit trees is a no-brainer.