There are several modalities to plant a tree. Planting grafted trees that are served in pots is the most convenient, according to my experience. Another way that I practice is sowing seeds in situ and budding them at the right time, which I consider to generate more resilient trees, but it demands more care. Since … More Planting bare root trees
Planting a new orchard requires the soil to be properly tilled. Deep ploughing is important and can be done in different ways. In soils with hard subsoil, I did so just in the lines where the trees were to be planted. When I faced clay in the subsoil, I tilled the full field with a subsoiler. … More The mouldboard
I am planning the planting of new orchards for this winter and considering the importance of cross-pollination. I have been able to find two late-blooming varieties in the nursery: Guara and Filippo Cea. They are self-compatible, so they do not require another variety to pollinate. However, it is claimed that including several varieties in the … More Cross-pollination
Self compatible varieties do not require other varieties to pollinate, which allows setting up monovarietal orchards. Before planting my first orchard, I tried to choose the right ones. I found much advertisement on new varieties in specialized webpages. From the 1970s on, research institutes in France and Spain have obtained varieties which bloom late and are … More Self-compatible varieties
Temperatures at dormancy and bloom are key factors that make almond production possible or not. Fruit trees require a minimum number of chilling hours (bellow 7ºC) during dormancy in order to blossom properly. This cold period is short for almond trees, which demand around 300 hours per year. Almond trees blossom in late winter and … More Chilling requirements and frost risk
I tested this alternative system to fill in the holes of the few failed trees in the orchard that was planted in 2013. I have set new orchards in 2015 using this practice. It demands extra care, but it does well. I only use common varieties free from breeder’s rights. The soil was tilled 40 cm … More Grafting almond trees
Nurseries in Spain provide two main rootstock options: conventional almond rootstock (generated from seeds of sweet almonds) and peach-almond hybrids. It is said that conventional rootstock grows deeper and stands drought better, while hybrids are better adapted to calcareous soils. Hybrids have become the norm, perhaps because they are easier for nurseries to produce. It … More Resilient rootstock
An almond tree has two clear components: the rootstock and the grafted variety. There are several options for the first and many options for the second. The job of a nursery makes things easy, since it supplies a complete plant ready to grow. In January 2013 demand for almond plants was huge. I was looking … More Planting trees from nursery
I planted my first orchard in January 2013. That was in the field I considered to be the worst of the farm. It is located on top of a little hill. The soil is heavily calcareous: Chlorosis symptoms and micronutrient deficiencies were evident in a vineyard uprooted years before. Its fertility was acceptable. Chemical analysis showed … More Petrocalcic horizon
Agriculture consists of filling in the space with plants and keeping the right conditions for them to grow. There are limiting factors that must be pondered before deciding how to do that. Modern technologies allow high density orchards, which maximise yield per hectare. However, this is neither the case of dry farming nor the case of … More The right distance
almondorchard 