I'm using Al's mix on a couple dozen citrus -- it's working great. I did have to adjust the volume of Turface (I use all of the various alternatives) for my area. Then when the manufacturer started using a bit smaller and rounder #10 granite component in their bags, it held too much water during winter. So I had to adjust it again. Watering schedules during summer and winter are so extreme you have to find the right balance and expect to water everyday in summer. I'm now trying it for some of my peaches, cherries, and apples (and have identical trees in more typical potting soil amended heavily with bark). My current issue is with fertilizer. The leaves on several of my peaches are yellowing and falling off while very small. Much more than in-ground trees and the other container trees. I'm doing the same "weekly, weakly" fert as my citrus, but now needing to supplement with different NPK ratio ferts since the Foliage Pro 3-1-2 obviously isn't cutting it (I suspected it wouldn't). My point is, as with any new-to-you drastically different soil, expect a learning curve and growth set backs if mistakes are made or adjustments aren't done in time. The gritty mix is everything it claims to be for aeration and drainage (if done correctly) - which is great for the plant. But expect to struggle a bit with fruits that need larger intakes of nutrients at each stage of growth cycle.

Thanks Fruitnut, sheltering them is the only thing that I have not thought of doing. I guess that the light bulb would definitely offer a good heat source to some degree. I have a very long tarp (about 80 feet). I would just have to make sure that the bulb does stays steady and in a very secure location under the shelter. Fruitnut, in your honest opinion, do you think that I could transfer my plum trees to containers in their dormant season and still get a decent harvest come spring? I really want to do this because I love plums and I want to grow my own because they are never satisfactory in the grocery stores or even farmers markets and I am definitely willing to give this a try! I will experiment with the holes in the containers to see if I can get the draining to take 10-15 minutes like yours...thanks so much for all your advice! Also, northwoodswis4-thank you as well, I have 5 nanking cherry trees and they are pretty strong and steady, these trees are close to problem free--but I do inspect them all and I have no intentions on potting these. They seem to tolerate the cold pretty well. I am really just focused on the plums ( 6 trees in total)since they are my favorite fruit!!! Lol.

jFlowerman you really hit the right approach for having fruit trees in containers! !! What a huge difference!! We're in Norco Hills high up with cool breezy winds and hot summers! The black plastic big containers -- 15 to 25 gallons seemed big enough and are but the hot summer sun hitting the black plastic cooked the tree roots so I was dragging pots to bottom shade or wind protection... Then I discovered Paradise Nursery in Riverside and they sold us big boxes -- the ones nurseries use for trees ---wood is light blond so cooler and huge compared to the pots. We bought 3" casters at Home Depot screwed on the casters -one at each corner... four each box and now our trees are ultra healthy and I can slide them into shade or away from wind like magic! Zero effort!!! The nurseries grow the bigger trees in these boxes and my miniatures to standard are easy to prune, cool in the heat and Super attractive on the patio! Buying the soil will cost but getting half a yard for 22.00 for four boxes---plus the 18.50 per box-- is super cheap compared to whiskey barrels or bags of soil in black deco hot pots! And one can always fill boxes half way if desired! hope this helps!

Hi Everyone, I totally agree with Drew 51. I have 25 assorted fruit trees and I have purchased some bareroot and some containerized. I have gotten desired results with both. With the bareroot, you have more access to the roots of the plant in terms of how they should lay-on the otherhand, containerized trees are pretty much structured to the size of the container that they have been placed in. However; once I remove the plant from the container, I gently tap the sides, bottom and top so that the roots can breathe a little and hang out. (Its like going out for a drive after being stuck in the house all day-LOL) Anyway, once I get the roots free from the container and loosen them up in just those areas I mentioned-I replant and all goes well. It can get a little challenging when you have to lay the tree on its side to carefully loosen up the roots but I do this with every containerized tree and I have never lost a plant so far, bareroot or containerized. However, bareroot, I feel like I have more control because I am starting almost from scratch. I can handle the roots a lot more generously because there is nothing but just the roots to deal with. I can mix in whatever growing mediums I need for that specific tree right from the start and stretch out the roots the way they should be-to avoid the curl. And as Drew51 pointed out, its all about the cultivar, size and price that are of the utmost priority; I feel the exact same way as well. Yet, in my experience though, I seem to acquire fruit faster from the containerized trees than the bareroots.