Thanks for posting those links, they are useful sites. I had some extra time last summer and bookmarked results of a lot of searches. Here are a few other websites that I found useful for researching fruit varieties. These sites, and the ones posted by Clark and MrClint above, should not be considered definitive authorities, but part of your research tools in determining what you want. I am not posting these to endorse particular nurseries, just found the info useful. Some have particular cultivar information, some list relative ripening dates or pollination info. Hope some of you can make use of this! Peach varieties Paul Friday varieties: http://flaminfury.com/www.flaminfury.com/Flamin_Fury_Peach_Varieties_2_2_1_2_2_files/bro pdf_1.pdf Stellar varieties: http://www.fruitacresfarms.com/StellarPeaches.htm http://www.michiganpeach.org/peachvar/windowsyellowmelting.htm http://www.vaughnnursery.com/files/peachvarieties.html http://www.jerseypeaches.com/pdfdocs/FS1072-Yellow-Flesh-Peach-Varieties.pdf http://www.jerseypeaches.com/pdfdocs/FS1073-White-Fleshed-Peach-Fact-Sheet.pdf http://www.vanwell.net/images/stories/harvestdates/peaches_lg.gif Plum varieties http://www.nyshs.org/pdf/fq/2006-Volume-14/Vol-14-No-1/New-York-Plum-Picks-for-2006-Recommended-Plum-Cultivars.pdf Plum pollination http://www.michiganplum.org/pollination/ Nectarines http://www.jerseypeaches.com/pdfdocs/FS1071-Nectarine-Varieties.pdf Asian pears http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/proceedings1990/v1-304.html This post was edited by eboone on Fri, Apr 18, 14 at 10:14

This is a follow up. The original post was me, but I left for a while, and when I returned, it was with a different screen name. I did wind up buying 3 paw paw trees, from a local nursery. We finalized on the place in July, so that was when I bought them. Not wanting to wait until the next year. I planted carefully, and watered every week that first summer. I was surprised they survived, but they did. The varieties were Sunflower, NC-1, and Rebecca's Gold. I since read that RG is a bad choice due to being later, didn't know that then. At the end of the trees' 3rd fall now, NC-1 grew the best, now 5 feet tall, Sunflower a bit less, 4 feet tall. RG was eaten off twice by rabbits, but has grown to all of 18 inches tall now with a protective screen in place. This spring, NC-1 and Sunflower both bloomed, but neither fruited despite my playing the fly with a paintbrush. I still don't know if they will fruit at my place in Battleground WA, but it looks promising they survived. It was very foggy when I took the photo. It gives a general idea of the tree's growth compared to other species I planted the same year.

Thanks for the pics Grant, your dragon fruit is interesting, doesn't look quite like a regular hylocereus undatus (flower is very different). I wonder what the heck it is! At least it is giving you fruit! I've been growing them for several years now and not a single fruit. I can't seem to get them to bloom at a time where I can cross polinate them, come to think of it they don't bloom buch at all. I have one called Haley's Comet that will bloom tomorrow night, but nothing else to polinate it with and I've tried many times to get it to polinate itself, it does not cooperate. I've fertilized mine several times this year with a super bloom type fertilizer, but I don't see that's it's done much good. Maybe we'll get more blooms as it cools down. Kevin

You might want to check out growing cacti commercially in israel. Their water situation is similar to ours and they're producing tons of fruit in the desert there, prickly pear and cereus peruvianus (sp?). The cereus looks like ones I see all over my neighborhood loaded with fruit that isn't used and that's a shame if it's as good as touted. http://www.localharvest.org/cereus-peruvianus-kubo-apple-cactus-C11497 http://video.answers.com/commercial-cultivation-of-the-cactus-plant-506875420 Here is a link that might be useful: Local Harvest