Choosing fruit trees to grow with your child in your educational garden really isn't that difficult. When choosing them, you'll both learn about concepts like "chill hours" and "hardiness" in order to pick a tree that will produce the best and tastiest fruit in your area.
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With lesser winters and a more tropical environment, Central Florida growers have the best of both worlds with a more temperate weather and greater fruit choice.
The Central Florida Growing Region
Florida generally is pretty hot and humid - the further south you go, the more humid and hot it gets. However, winters are the key difference in what fruit trees you can and cannot grow in Florida's different regions
Including growing zones 9b to 10a, Central Florida experiences winters with minimum temperatures of 25 to 35 degrees Fahrenheit.
Importantly, we run into the concept of chill hours. These are the amount of hours that a plant requires around or above freezing in order to actually set fruit. Not enough hours and the fruit won't develop, and too much cold for too long can harm the plant. Central Florida receives 100-300 chill hours each year.
Along with chill hours, the first and last frosts of the season could wipe out your newly planted trees if you are caught off guard. The first and last frosts are seen in Nov.-Dec. and Feb.-Mar. for North Florida, keeping ~5 months of the year one to watch out when planting new trees.
Take a look at this Fruit Farm tour from zone 9b in Florida. They have plenty of fruit trees.
Let's look at some common fruit trees and the cultivars you can grow in Central Florida
Citrus
Mulberry
Passionfruit
Persimmon
Pear
Banana
Blueberry
Plum
Citrus Varieties
Citrus in Central Florida, while the cold is not as much of a worry, the presence of an important pest, the asian citrus psyllid, becomes more prevalent along with issues with watering. Growers should take care to monitor their citrus plants, plant resistant cultivars, and water when necessary.
Oranges
'Navel'
'Ambersweet'
'Pineapple'
'Midsweet'
Grapefruits
'Marsh'
'Ruby Red'
'Duncan'
Lemons
'Meyer'
'Bearss'
Limes
'Tahiti'
'Key'
Mulberry Varieties
A native plant to Florida (depending on the species), multiple cultivars do well in Central Florida.
'East Coast'
‘Bryce’s World’s Best’ (Leah’s favorite!)
'Dwarf Everbearing'
'Mystic Red'
Passionfruit Varieties
A host to the Gulf Frillary and Zebra Longwing butterflies, these plants are great to add if you’re wanting to support native wildlife along with tasty fruit.
Purple Passion Flower (Passiflora incarnata)
'Possum Purple'
'Panama Red'
'Sweet Sunrise'
'Whitman Yellow'
Persimmon Varieties
Much more hardy in central Florida, growers have better chances of growing them here.
'Fuyu'
American 'Turkey Lake'
Pear Varieties
Traditionally, pears could not grow in Central Florida because of the lack of chill hours needed to make them flower and fruit; however, the University of Florida has produced multiple varieties that are “low chill” and can fruit in Central Florida.
'Flordahome'
'Hood'
'Pineapple'
Banana Varieties
While quite edible, those in North Central Florida should be weary of frosts and freezes because these plants are still sensitive to those.
'Dwarf Cavendish' (Musa acuminata)
Pink Velvet Banana (Musa velutina)
Japanese Fiber Banana (Musa basjoo) - the most cold hardy
Black Thai Banana (Musa balbisiana) - cold hardy
Blueberry Varieties
A wonderful addition to most gardens, blueberries in Central Florida require a low chilling hour requirement, which multiple blueberry cultivars have been bred for.
'Emerald'
‘Sunshine Blue’
'Jewel'
'Windsor' (North Central)
'Springhigh'
'Farthing' (North Central)
Plum varieties:
Choose low chill cultivars recommended by the University of Florida:
'Gulfblaze'
‘Gulfrose’
'Red’
'Gulfruby'
'Gulf Gold'
Remember to check the chill hours of each variety and compare to the number of chill hours you get in your garden.
If you want to learn more about fruit trees for your area, take a look at these articles!
Thank you for reading!
Please reach out if you have any questions or concerns by clicking here!
Have a wonderful day!
-Leah Brooks
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