(Just so you know there are no issues with my in laws and the associated families, they are the cream of the crop and I trust and love them dearly so no worries about being taken advantage of or anything like that)

You say this now, but it could be a different story later. Remember...,when you are doing all the work, others will not value the trees like you will. Maybe your family is awesome, but this would never work with mine...mainly because I would never do it, but that's just me.
There is a ton of things to consider Gracee...tons...too much to write about here. Narrow your question a bit and I'll try to help a bit with mistakes I've made and mistakes I know are common.
One thing...don't select your trees based on pictures and glowing descriptions. Throw out some ideas for varieties and narrowed questions and we'll work through it. I'm not a peach guy...so I'll leave that alone, but I know a little about apples and what will likely do well for you since your in my growing zone and I follow a guy in Indiana who grows apples also. He and I are of similar minds.
There are lots of home orchard layout suggestions online and the reasons for their suggested methods are very sound.

You need to think about what you like to eat and what grows well in your climate. Also try to grow mostly easy to grow plants at first, then experiment with the questionable things later. Get your soil in good shape. Do you have a lot of organic material in your soil? You want to have a healthy natural web of life in your garden.
john S
PDX OR

Like I put in the "disclaimer" I love my husbands family I would do anything for them and the care and maintence of the trees will be my responsibility no one else will interfere. This is a dream come true for me as I don't have enough property to clutter it up with trees. The only way I can grow fruit trees is to practice espaliering against my fences (which I am still going to try just for fun)

Okay well I am not sure where to start with questions....

The property is fairly level the initial sites I am looking at are the higher parts. The soil is a neutral ph but it has A lot of clay, but it is well mixed there aren't big ribbons or layers of it in the soil and it has a good crumby texture even when damp. My first shovelful of dirt yielded fat worms so it's got a good start. I plan to section off the land I choose and start adding organic matter this fall leaves compost etc. I plan to fork it in a bit (no tilling) and in the spring turn it (no tilling) And add then add more. The property is well drained and the info about it on websoil survey is good and it is listed as prime farmland.

Initially the plans as far as trees are as follows
4-6 peach trees
4-6 apple trees
2 pears
2-3 cherries (sweet and sour)
Apricots ( these are not my trees they are grown off of a tree where my mother in law grew up at. They may not do good here but she wants to try them)

The varieties I am initially looking into are based mainly on taste. I chose taste first then I plan to eliminate what won't work here (Indiana zone 6a) and what are not considered healthy trees. I am open to suggestions on these!

APPLES
Fuji
Roxbury Russet
Albemarle Pippin
Golden Russet
Cox orange pippin
Ashmead kernel
Stayman
Winesap
Caville blanc
Macintosh

PEARS
Fondante des Moulins-Lille
Seckel
Doyenne du Comice

CHERRIES
Montmorency
Van
Black tartarian

PEACHES
Flaming fury
Red haven
Belle of Georgia
Polly
George iv
Contender
Indian blood cling

I also want to set this orchard up right! So layout suggestions, spacing, what goes where etc. I welcome any advice on this.

This is all a bit overwhelming so I am sure I will have more questions but I think those are my starting questions. I love gardening so I know there is a lot of work that can go into this sort of thing. I am not expecting to just plant the trees and do nothing but watch them grow! I know there are a lot of steps between planting and eating and I want to learn as much as possible before I dig my first hole! Thanks for everyone's help

Grace e

Gracee...Your apple varieties are too edgy imo for a home orchard whose attendant does not live there and has no fruit growing experience. Cox's Orange is a renowned apple for flavor, but is well known to be a very difficult apple to grow. Same goes for Ashmead's Kernel...even Harvestman here has difficulty with growing them and difficulty with light fruit sets. Harvestman is one of the most knowledgeable guys here and sprays commercial grade pesticides and fungicides. His AK is in his own orchard I think, so he watches them closely. AK is however a well received apple for flavor though. Nearly all your listed apple varieties are like this...at least somewhat.
If I were you I would want a early summer apple, several mid season and several late. Consider disease resistance, hardiness, cropping habits, keeping qualities etc. It's ok to have a few varieties like this, but for a family orchard don't you also want some heavy reliable bearing apples too? Don't you want at least a few varieties with good disease resistance?
Gracee, don't expect to "get lucky" with diseases etc...you won't. They will all find your little orchard...you can count on that. It's your orchard Gracee, so for sure grow what you like. If you think there might be some merit to what I'm saying I'd be happy to recommend a few good varieties that are well known to be good growers that are more apt to leave you happy and satisfied rather than frustrated and apple-less.
FWIW Gracee If I could only have 6 varieties I wouldn't choose any that is on your list, in fact Stayman would be the only one that would make the cut if I were able to have 30 varieties (and I do have it). Most of that is because of the aforementioned and some is personal preference. I do like some of your choices (Roxbury, Newtown Pippin) for their historical significance though, but that only extends so far. More than anything I would want good apples to eat, and since it's a family sharing thing, I would want abundant crops of them. Most extensions offer advice on varieties to home growers and my opinions are generally in line with their's, because there is sound reasoning behind their suggestions. Gracee, are you planning to spray? If so, how often will you be able/willing to? Are you hoping to grow organically? Are you opposed to synthetic pesticides/fungicides? What is of most importance to you fresh eating, cooking, sauce etc? It's paramount that these questions be answered first before variety selection is considered.

This post was edited by Appleseed70 on Mon, Sep 8, 14 at 11:24

Try to find out in advance what pests and diseases are prevalent in your area. Perhaps neighbors will be helpful. Are there squirrels or deer? Will you have to fence?

Like I said I picked this initial list of cultivars based on taste first. I need to find out if they are good or not. So if if you have selections that might work better please let me know! I know in southern Indiana we have apple scab and fireblight. I am not opposed to spraying. I would start with organic methods and go from there. A friend of mine grows apples and has had great success with her organic spray (forget the name, but it's from earth first) but there have been years where she didn't spray and still had fruit. The varieties she has are Macintosh, johnagold and a red one I forget the name for.

The orchard would be checked on at least once a week sometimes twice. So it will be maintained. The fruit would be used for fresh eating, cider/juice and preserving. My family loves to put up canned goods.

Since this for a family high yields is a good thing, but taste is still very important and I am willing to work with some cultivars more if the taste is worth the work. So please any suggestions for different varieties is very welcome. The list I have are just my initial search.

Thanks again for your help

Grace e

Ps
Yes we do have deer so the orchard will have to be fenced.

20 years ago, I started out with the same starry-eyed idealism - on my own property. A lovely home orchard providing fruit for my wife and 4 kids. I went way overboard planting apples - especially 'antique' varieties and oddities like Cinnamon Spice.

At one point, I had 60 apple varieties growing here; many not suitable for this site, or my lack of insect/disease prevention. Most are gone, now - and most that are still in existence are only there because I've just not bothered to remove them. There are *maybe* 5 that I gather from - and two of those barely get used - most fruit is eaten by the deer, or if I'm feeling especially industrious, I'll pick up a few 5 gallon bucketsfull and feed 'em to the cows.

I do not have the time or inclination to spray. Sure, I have PC & codling moth damage - but I can eat around the 'worms'.
My kids are gone, and I can only eat just so many fruit - and I don't need all that sugar, anyway.

Stonefruits, with the exception of Montmorency cherry and native Chickasaw plums have not been worth the space they occupy. Even in the years when the peaches produce a crop, nobody bothers to pick them, so brown rot and PC get 'em.

Pears are easy, and produce mostly perfect fruits with virtually no care.
Persimmons & mulberries also produce well without care.

If I were starting again now, I'd definitely have to cage individual trees or fence the orchard to keep deer at bay.
Late-ripening apples/pears never have a chance here - wasps and big European hornets eat them all long before they ever have a chance to ripen.

Take it slow - pay attention to what folks here tell you - important stuff like 'Cox OP will be difficult to impossible', 'Esopus Spitzenberg is a fireblight magnet', 'red-fleshed crabs will mostly be 'crap' in a zone 6 setting', etc.

I started my little back yard orchard about 6 years ago. I have more than 50 trees and haven't had a crop in years because of late frosts. I don't have problems with deer here but squirrels and racoons wreck havoc when there's fruit.

Like Lucky said, If I were to go back and start over I would make a complete enclosure first. I am in the process of making an enclosure but It's much more difficult now that there are so many trees.

If I were in your situation I would put up a 10 foot fence that can be covered with hail cloth and frost protection and put hardware cloth along the bottom to keep rabbits and vermin out.

Several times I have seen tall "cage" fences for sale on Craigslist that were used to make enclosures in warehouses. They are very tall and usually go for much less than you'd expect because their uses are minimal. Personally this is the first place I'd start. Then I'd choose dwarf trees as much as possible.

As many have said, the antique apples are much harder to raise. I never had fireblight before but our weather has changed and we are getting more rain in the late summer. I have lost 4 apples this year because of fireblight that I was not prepared for (one of them was Roxbury Russet).

Regarding your family, I see no problem here. My aunt and I have an arrangement where she cans tomatoes and I can peaches and we share them. We've done this for years and it brings a lot of joy for both our families.

You have not mentioned what financial arrangements there are. Putting in an orchard will require thousands of dollars one way or the other. Things to consider beyond the trees are the costs of equipment, sprays, irrigation, water, fertilizers, etc. Will these costs be yours or shared?

Unfortunately as much as you plan there will always be things that were overlooked. What you end up learning you can share here for others to learn from. Of course my greatest joy is sharing what I've learned with my family, and they will be able to pass it down too. Be prepared for failure and disappointment along with the joy.

"Hi I just got handed the ultimate opportunity for a gardener.... Land!!"

The ultimate opportunity for a gardener is a mild and sunny climate. It's fairly easy to work around poor soils, small spaces and a multitude of other obstacles, but inclement weather is a huge limitation no matter what size lot you have to work with. I grow a lot of food year round on a fairly small lot in a sunny, mild (leans more toward hot/dry at times) climate.

That said, consider reading up on Backyard Orchard Culture and The Art of Successive Ripening, because even if you have a lot of land it will be a good idea to start out small & manageable. Tending to fruit trees is specialized work that requires a learning curve, planning, etc. Next, check out Recommendations for USDA Zones 5-9. Locating a good, local independent nursery (not a big box store) will be a huge help as well. Lastly, grow things that you and your family like. It will do you no good to grow things that no one will eat. Good luck!

What do you want to do with the fruit? Personal consumption or sell (farmer's market? u pick?)??

That would be my first question because a full size bearing tree can produce a tremendous amount of fruit. I couldn't imagine 5 trees of the same type of peach or apricot...you'll be swimming in them and they rot fast in hot/humid weather.

Pests... deer/squirrels ...birds...and then your bugs...Japanese beetles/etc...plum curculio...soft fruits are getting hammered now by SWD.

Disease..brown rot, CAR, PLC, etc etc

Watering...depending on the climate, you may have to water...mow///weed///mulch.

To me the perfect orchard would be about an acre right out my back door, fenced in, with no trees for a mile in each direction :) situated on the side of a south facing hill. I'll keep dreaming.

I love Gardenweb you always get realism here. That's why I came here, I have read so much on the internet and much of it contradicts each other. (I normally hang out on the rose forums here).

Land to me has been the obstacle. I have a sunny mild climate (humid though), but I only have a little over a 1/4 acre and much of that is occupied by my gardens and chicken run and that leaves a little area for my kids to play in. I haven't wanted to plant alot of fruit trees here because my husband is not sure he wants to stay in the area and I would hate to plant something and have to leave it. I have small stuff, blueberries, grapes, and strawberries (I started them from seed with great success thanks to this forum!!) and I completely re-did my Mother in law's raspberry patch this year so she shares them with me.

The expense of the trees is mine (they probably will help with the cost, but I am going into this with the expectation of paying for it myself if they help great if not it's no big deal) the land and water is provided. I plan to plant only half of the orchard next year, see how it does and work out any issues and then possibly plant the remaining half the following year. I don't like to jump in with both feet, I prefer to cover as many angles as I possibly can first. I know that there will be problems pop up, but I want to eliminate as much as possible.

The fruit is intended for my husband's family to enjoy. As the current count stand there are 57 members of the immediate family so it's alot of people, family functions can be a bit chaotic. I figured start with 4-6 trees and add more later if that isn't enough. I know peaches and apples are the main ones that would get used that's why I have only 2-3 trees for the other fruits.

milehighgirl That is exactly how I plan to fence in the orchard. I don't want to deal with deer, and I want to be able to some extent be able to protect the trees from late frosts etc. I know in Arizona where I am originally from, for late frosts/freezes they did alot of things. Flooding, Smoke, Spraying the trees with water to protect the fruit, some of the larger orchards had huge fans installed in the groves. We would cover our trees with sheets and put a light on underneath, but that's fruit not buds so I will have a learning curve there.

mrclint thank you for the links! And I am pretty much a regular at all of the local nurseries here, but they only sell the same trees the local big box stores do. Which brings up another question. Where do you all get your trees? I have been looking at Trees of Antiquity, and I have ordered things from Stark Brothers, and a few other mail order sites.

"Take it slow - pay attention to what folks here tell you - important stuff like 'Cox OP will be difficult to impossible', 'Esopus Spitzenberg is a fireblight magnet', 'red-fleshed crabs will mostly be 'crap' in a zone 6 setting', etc." lucky_p that's exactly why I came here :-) I can always get a straight answer that isn't sugar coated. I tend to be intrigued by antique varieties, but I do know they aren't common for a reason. Usually they are just to hard to grow! I guess I would like 3 apple trees and 3 peach trees that are just good eating, healthy, and not so demanding and then have maybe 2-3 trees each that are something unique just to try.

lucky_p persimmons and mulberries grow wild here there is no need to plant them. My brother in law this year went out to the field behind us and spread a tarp and harvested buckets and buckets of mulberries from just two trees out there growing wild. I'm tickled to see you like the Montmorency cherry. What pears grow well for you?

Thanks again for everyone's advice.

grace e

dregae, using backyard orchard culture I have over 30 fruit trees with successive ripening, year 'round, on a standard sized lot.

You will want to find a local independent nursery so that you can consult with them when you have problems. You can snip off some leaves (or whatever), place them in a baggie and take it into a trained nursery professional for analysis. They can tell you exactly what you are dealing with and help you fix the problem.

OK Gracee...here goes:

First good luck with the organic approach, it is possible, but extremely difficult and way more than what most folks are willing to invest. Want to save yourself some headaches? Skip the organic and go right for synthetic sprays. Some will disagree, but remember those folks are a small percentage of those that started out trying it.
I'm glad everyone else has basically mirrored what I said. If I was you I'd skip all but one of the antique varieties, actually with only 6 trees I'd skip them all, but it may make you happier to select just one. Personally I'd choose the Newtown Pippin, but it is susceptible to fireblight scoring a 4 out of 10 in this regard.
Don't even for one second consider Cox's OP with a organic program. I've actually had these and although good, they aren't nearly as good as everyone says. Honeycrisp is light years better, produces better and is easier to grow. There are easier trees however.
My suggestions:

Early: William'sPride ( beautiful apple and one of the most DR varieties available. Taste is reportedly as good as any other for it's harvest date. Fireblight and scab: Field immune CAR: highly resistant.

Redfree: DR variety, very good DR. Good apple, not a super great keeper.

Midseason: Honeycrisp (imo and that of many others the best tasting apple there is) good DR although not normally considered a DR variety (except by orangepippin.com). Good keeper

Stayman/Winesap: This was the single choice you picked that I think is a good one for your orchard. This would function as a good cider apple too. Pretty good general DR. This variety is triploid meaning it's pollen is sterile. This is not a big concern, but should play a part in it's placement within your orchard should you choose it. Good keeper

Liberty: Widely regarded as the most DR variety available along with WP mentioned earlier. Some here claim PC hits it pretty hard. It is often compared to Macintosh in flavor. Heavy and reliable bearer. I do not have this and have never eaten one. Some love it and to some it's only so-so. It is a heavy bearer and reliable cropper. Suggested for the backyard orchard by just about everyone. The reviews you'll find away from this site tend to be much more positive than what folks here will tell you. Your call. Despite differing opinions, this apple has a lot going for it. So-so keeper.

Goldrush: Another of the DR varieties. Very good DR to everything, save for CAR, to which it is susceptible. This is likely the only apple that I think everyone here will agree with as a potential candidate. I have this, but have yet to eat one. It is considered the best flavored of all DR varieties and reportedly holds it's own against all other apples DR or not. It would be your late season fall apple. Flavor is regarded as very good. It is among the best keeping apples available and is suitable for a wide range of uses, fresh eating, cooking, baking, sauce, canning, and cider/juice. In fact; this apple is used by several commercial cideries, one as a stand alone single varietal cider. IMO this apple has too much going for it to not choose it. It is virtually "custom built" for the scenario you have described.

I have some other suggestions too, but this will get it started. You will likely hear suggestions for Zestar too, I've not had it, but had a hard time choosing between it and WP for an early apple. I've ultimately chosen WP, but I think Zestar sounds like a winner.
Others will have more suggestions, these are just mine. Choose for yourself Gracee.

This post was edited by Appleseed70 on Mon, Sep 8, 14 at 16:56

grace e,

Montmorency is easy, and productive. Birds are the biggest problem. I did not grow up with cherries, and don't really care for them all that much. Have picked buckets of them and brought them to the house - then they sit there and rot. Or, wife/kids will ask - in July - what about those cherries? Well, they were ripening a month and a half ago; the birds ate 'em.

Pears... most all of them are good. I have over 30 varieties - some just a branch here and there in another tree, and I've lost IDs on a lot of them - and cue franktank's question - whaddya gonna do with all that fruit? Had a friend come retrieve five five-gallon buckets of 'em last week - and they didn't even look at half the trees!
Keiffer, while denigrated by most as barely edible, is still one of my faves - takes fireblight hits, shrugs 'em off and keeps on bearing; having grown up in the Deep South, it's the pear of my childhood - I love the firm, crisp, juicy - and, yes, gritty - texture and flavor. A soft, melting, 'butter' pear - blech! Give me one with some substance!

That said, I really like the Asian pears. Chojuro is probably my all time favorite. Hosui is good. Ya Li probably my #2 fave.
Korean Giant was a FB cripple here, scant production of big juicy flavorless fruit - though most folks rave about it. Tsu Li, Dasui Li unimpressive.
Most of my European or EuroXsand pear hybrids are those that have demonstrated good fireblight resistance. Spalding is good; still waiting for Tennosui to fruit for me; probably some others that I couldn't name without looking at my orchard map.

Apples - for me, MonArk has been stellar(ripens mid-July); Centennial and Kerr crabs are favorites - good fresh eating, make good jelly, brandy, etc.

Montmorency makes a pie that one will never forget.

The best tip i can give you (and this may sound crazy) is to prune in June and keep the trees small. I took a workshop a few years ago on keeping fruit trees small and the 5 trees that were young enough to benefit are AMAZING. The woman who gave the workshop has a book coming out (something like 'little fruit trees') this winter. It has changed my fruit-growing life and I look at our other 20 trees and wish I had known then what I know now.

When you prune in June, it keeps the growth under control. When you keep the trees at about 6 feet tall (you don't need or want dwarf trees for this) you can pick every single bit of it with your friends and family. And it pretty much grows just as much usable fruit. AND they look so much more healthy and pretty.

I know it's hard to trim back a young tree to nothing... and to trim off branches with little growing fruit on them... but it is so worth it!!!

I will keep it telegraphic

1) fence. electrical, chainlink, and chicken wire at the bottom, extending underground.

2) hugelkultur. Plant with rotten wood in the hole

3) cover. cover the whole season. start with mulberries and juneberries in June, select good summer varieties (peaches or plums), then concentrate on storage apples (with some fresh eating apples, though I, too, prefer pears for fall-early winter eating) to tide you into May of the next year. Goldrush. Arkansas Black. Other reasonably disease resistant apples that store well. Consider melons for late summer, and other storage crops (like, shelling beans, garlic, onion, butternut squash) planted in the orchard rows until the trees grow out.

4) have a storage facility in your garage for long term apple storage. You need a large freezer, and a brewing thermostat.

Kawh707 - do you mean:
Grow a Little Fruit Tree: Simple Pruning Techniques for Small-Space, Easy-Harvest Fruit Trees by Ann Ralph?

Oh yes, what Glib said, "extending underground". I forgot to mention this. You don't want voles or groundhogs or moles in your orchard. I think people suggest 2 feet underground. Hopefully someone with experience in this area will chime in.

Dregae,

Looks like you're getting plenty of advice here.

Regarding peach cultivars, it appears you are selecting based primarily on winter hardiness.

Here, I've had good luck w/ Contender, Redhaven and the few Flamin Fury varieties I've grown (I think the Stellar series peaches taste better than the Flamin Fury series, but the Stellar series doesn't appear to be as hardy.)

I would avoid Belle of Georgia. It is a somewhat hardy white peach, easy to grow, and produces well, but it drops the moment it's ripe. Wind will blow the fruit off. Or when you are picking, you pick one fruit and two drop off. It's so extremely soft, the fruit bruise sitting in the box, and certainly bruise when they hit the ground. There are also better flavored white peaches out there.

I've not grown Indian Blood cling, or the white peaches - Polly, George iv.

Dregae,

...my husband is not sure he wants to stay in the area...

When you say you might move out of the area, what does that mean?

milehighgirl We live on the outskirts of the city on a 1/4 acre lot and my husband wants land, but he stays here because of his job. If we did move it would still have to be in this area just not in the city. It's kind of a pie in the sky idea he just has fond memories of growing up on a ranch but he has a good job. However until he gets the itch out of his system I have been reluctant plant something like fruit trees. The land where I get to plant the orchard will always be a very short driving distance away so I am not worried about planting it then having to leave it. If anything I will be closer. Thank you all for the advice and suggestions. I am refining my lists a great deal and have eliminate some of my original selections and added some new ones to research! You all have been so helpful.

grace e

This post was edited by dregae on Tue, Sep 9, 14 at 16:33

I have not read all of the posts but am going to give you the most important advise so far in this thread, unless already mentioned: This is the only website to read. There are a ton of articles, blogs and etc on the subject throughout the web, but 99% are just filler to try to get traffic to a site in order to sell ad space. This site is where the most real people go to learn and share. There are a couple other forums with good people on them, but not in the numbers you find here.

If you like you-tube videos Stephen Hayes is very good. He is in England so ignore any references to certain varieties.

When I first started trying to learn this stuff I made mistakes because I had not found this forum, therefore followed misinformation, or information that was incomplete.

Good post cckw. Your experiences seem to have more or less mirrored mine.

I just finished reading this entire thread and I don't think I saw one word of poor advice, so I'll keep my contribution short.

Liberty is a remarkable apple for disease resistance, but is a codling moth magnet. Managing CM with spinosad (organic) is possible but touchy. Bagging works but is tedious. The fruit can be magnificent one year and mediocre the next; it's possible to store, with some effort, right through March here, but is not the best keeper.

Do grow a pear. If not struck with fireblight pears can be pretty healthy and not attract too many pests.

Otherwise, keep it small and simple. Good trees are a lot of work, good harvests even more so!

Good luck!

Hey Mark...will you be doing any pruning to your Liberty this year? Was wondering if I could get some scion wood? I know a lot of folks here have it, and maybe I'd be better off getting it from someone closer so it spends less time out of the cooler, but I can't remember who all has it.
I was thinking of trading small quantities of Imidan 70WP for scions. I have more than I'll ever use (fresh, just got it) and a lot of folks here have expressed the desire to try it. The only hangup is I'm kinda worried someone may misplace the bottle and it gets mistaken for something else. For those with young children I probably wouldn't be comfortable with it.
Let me know.
BTW, I never have any issues with CM here (knocking on wood), but I spray a lot. My issues tend to be fungal and bacterial so the DR varieties should do well for me. I've heard enough great things about Liberty to want it, but enough so-so comments to preclude me from devoting space to a single tree. I have a seedling (now getting quite big) that I've been grafting to. So far I've put Goldrush and Honeycrisp on it. Liberty would be an awesome additional graft.

I'll be doing my winter pruning of the tree in February or March, and would be happy to send you scions. Drop me a line when we get closer to the time. If I'm not email enabled I'm marknmt@yahoo.com (tough one to remember, huh?)

Thanks for the Imidan offer, but I think I'm OK without it as long as my triazicide is fresh. I tried to rely on spinosad this year but I think I missed a window -there's a few stings.

CM sprays are about all I have to contend with thus far. Occasionally I'll need to add a bit of sulfer to knock back powdery mildew, and I keep a bit of copper on hand just in case I see something on my pear that scares me, but that's it.

Couple of quick notes:

Olpea gave you advise on Peaches. He is the best peach guy on this forum, and has a huge number of varieties, so just do what he says on choosing peaches.. although you can also look at what Scottsmith has to say. He is into great tasting uncommon varieties.

Mrclint suggested you find a local nursury to get some assistance from.... Depending on were you are that may only be a waste of time. In my area (Omaha NE) There are many places that sell trees and say they know what they are doing, but I have not found a single knowledgeable person, but many posers.

I object to several of your variety choices, but so do others, so I won't elaborate now. You have time to sort it out before you have to order, so be open.

I also agree with spending the money on a high fence before planting.