5 Great Reasons to Grow Fruit

Whether you love fresh fruit most for its flavor, nutrition or beauty, growing your own has never been easier, and you can stretch the harvest over more of the year, too.

Still, fruit can feel unfamiliar to newcomers. Planting, care, harvest and post-harvest handling work a bit differently than with vegetables. To make starting easier, choose dependable seeds and plants that produce high-quality fruit and pick varieties that ripen in sequence from late spring through summer into fall. To inspire you, here are five great reasons to plant some fruit this year and enjoy what it brings to the table.

For lots of people, flavor alone justifies growing fruit. For market growers, quality sells itself: local-food fans love produce that skips the long haul and arrives at peak ripeness, farmers' market shoppers seek out stands with local fruit, CSA members feel more connected to farms that offer a wider range of produce, and chefs can name the farm on their dessert menus. And at home, even picky eaters will happily snack on soft, sweet, ripe berries.

People are eating more fruit, partly because of research on its health benefits. Many of the plant compounds responsible for fruit's color, aroma and flavor are also phytonutrients and diets rich in fruit are associated with stronger immunity, protection against free radicals, healthy bones, and lower risk of some cancers, heart disease and age-related cognitive decline. Fruit is something to feel good about eating!

Fresh berries are simpler to grow than ever

Today's varieties, growing methods and tools give growers options in every region. With a good site and careful preparation, many fruits need little care during the season, particularly brambles, blueberries and rhubarb. Plastic mulch cuts down on weeding around perennial fruit. Berries are especially popular in hoophouses, where shelter from the weather can produce impressive yields of top-quality fruit. (See growing fruit under cover.)

Choose varieties that ripen one after another, and look for berry cultivars that adapt to a wide range of conditions. Many berry plants take 1–3 years to reach full production, and the wait is well worth it. In the meantime, newer varieties that fruit sooner can fill the gap. 'Prime-Ark Freedom' blackberry, which fruits on thornless first-year (primocane) canes, is a great example. For more on lengthening the season, see our blueberry, raspberry, and and strawberry harvest guides.

Growing your own fruit makes financial sense, whether or not you farm for a living. Home gardeners save by eating fruit fresh in season and preserving the rest for the year ahead. Commercial growers can command premium prices for fresh, ripe fruit, which brightens a farmstand and supplies the raw material for value-added products like blueberry jam that sell year-round. Some strawberry varieties can even be started from seed for pack sales. 'Seascape' strawberries suit hanging baskets, container sales and gifts. Bare-root strawberry plants save growing time, make good use of space and give the greenhouse season a head start. Buying plants in small quantities also lets growers try several commercial varieties without a large upfront cost.

Begin with a set of varieties chosen to cover each part of the season.

For harvests all season long, plant a collection or use fruit harvest charts to choose cultivars that fill each slot.

Look for varieties with excellent flavor, looks and yield, and spread your picks across as long a harvest window as possible. When comparing varieties, pay attention to when each one ripens.

If fruit is new to you, a ready-made collection is an easy way to begin. Options include a blueberry collection, a raspberry collection, and a strawberry collection, each combining early, mid and late varieties to stretch your harvest. For more on choosing varieties to fill each slot, see the harvest guides below.