The Bee Better Teaching Garden experiments with several types of fruit trees and shrubs. Our criteria first and foremost, are the fruit’s performance without spraying. We also consider plants for an average residential property, so we look for varieties that are self-pollinating and also dwarf varieties.. Below is a list of the fruits we have in the teaching garden.

UPDATED: 12/3/23

Honey Crisp apple—Malus domestica ‘Honey Crisp’—Moved from south-side whiskey barrel to newly revised front Red Bed. Still no fruit.

North Sentinel apple—Malus pumila ‘North Sentinel’—Moved from the Mixed Border to the Rock Garden. Excellent tasting fruit. We had three this year.

Transcendent crabapple —Malus domestica ‘Transcendent’—Pruned hard last summer so I can reach the fruit. I should have done this years ago, and all along. Still got some nice fruit.

Banana—Musa basjoo

Blueberries—Vaccinium ashei ‘Premier’ ‘Climax’, & ‘Powder Blue’

Cherry—Prunus avium ‘Stella’. Still hasn’t produced fruit.

Chokeberry—Aronia melanocarpa

Chokecherry—Prunus virginiana

Cornelian cherry—Cornus Mas

Dogwood—Cornus kousa

Fig — Ficus carica ‘Brown Turkey’

Fig—Ficus carica ‘LSU Purple’—First year for fruit. Delicious!

Fig—Ficus carica 'Celeste’

Fig—‘Ficus carica ‘Marseilles’

Goji Berry—Lyceum barbarum

Goumi Berry—Elaeagnus multiflora

Grapes: Concord, and Muscadines—Vitis rotundifolia

Kiwi, Hardy—Actinidia arguta—still has not fruited

Kumquat—Fortunella japonica—Tons of fruit for the first time this year!

Updated 12/3/23—Dwarf Mulberry, Morus nigra

Passion Vine—Passiflora incarnata 

Paw-paw—Asimina triloba—A very good year.

Paw-paw—Asimina triloba ‘Sunflower’, sowed seeds from Johnny

Pear, Kieffer—Pyrus communis x P. pyrifolia

Pear, Asian—Pyrus pyrifolia

Persimmon, Japanese —Diospyros kaki ‘Fuyu’

Added 12/3/23 Persimon, American—Diospyros virginiana

Plum Prunus ‘ Corinthian’ from Denny Werner. Small but very tasty.

Quince—Cydonia oblonga ‘Pineapple’

Raspberries—Ever-bearing, Rubus idaeus—probably Southland

Serviceberry—Amelanchier × grandiflora ‘Autumn Brilliance’

Strawberries—Fragaria × ananassa