This is a good time to plant trees in the Pacific NW. They'll do fine; you'll get cold, wet and muddy.

I have been buying from Burnt Ridge Nursery, and am very happy with their products. They sell dwarf, semi-dwarf, and full-size fruit trees. It will take several years for the trees to get to bearing size. If you are in a hurry, you can buy bigger trees at a local nursery, but it gets expensive.

Burnt Ridge also sells locally grown chestnuts and other nuts, as well as organic jams and jellies. They're all good.

Here is a link that might be useful: burnt ridge

Your best bet is apple trees on fully dwarfing rootstocks. Be sure to choose locally successful varieties. Fully dwarfed trees may need some kind of permanent support, otherwise the weight of the top may pull the tree over in time.

The right kinds of figs are easy in a hot spot but not small-growing unless dwarfed by confining the roots in a tub and/or controlling size with pruning. Birds, rodents or insects spoil much of the crop of some trees, while others do not seem to be that much of a draw. Apple trees will also, of course be liable require some protection from pests and diseases but as far as it goes these are the easiest for the average situation in this region.

Raintree Nursery in Morton is considered to be one of the best. I've always been pretty happy with their stock. If nothing else, get their catalog, which is fun to read.

Also Cloud Mountain Farm in Everson and Hartmans nursery in Puyallup.

Burnt Ridge is a grower and Raintree is for the most part a middleman. Their value is their large selection. However, I have had repeated quality control issues with them over a long period. When an item is offered by both and still in stock I would always try to get it from Burnt Ridge first. Some of their plants can be dinky but others are quite nice. When I was on a tour there some years ago I was impressed by their approach to production of field stock and the results they were getting (as well as their seemingly extensive collection of chestnut and walnut trees, something on a par with the National Collection system plantings of garden plants they have in England - maybe I'm wrong but surely Burnt Ridge has been growing way more kinds of these than they sell).

I am planning to plant 4 dwarf apple trees in my yard too. I did a lot of research and spoke to local nurseries as well as commerical fruit growers in eastern Washington. I found that the best places to buy are Van Well Nursery and C&O Nursery. Both are in Eastern Washington. They sell to individuals and will ship orders as small as 1 tree. I ordered a Gala, Honeycrisp and Jonagold from C&O and they did not have a Cameo, so I ordered 1 Cameo from Van Well Nursery.

They were both very nice and extremely helpful when I called them on the phone.

Their websites are: www.vanwell.net
www.c-onursery.com

Is 'Cameo' suitable for this side of the mountains?

If you want to purchase trees locally, the best time is from late January through March when bareroot trees are available.

Right now, garden centers only have a few leftovers from the early 2008 arrivals. Overall, tired specimens. You'd be better off to wait several months to obtain a fresh, vigorous specimen.

I've gotten all my fruit trees from Burntridge Nursery and I'm very satisfied.
jim

If you want something small you might want to consider Aronia shrubs. There are several varieties of large to dwarf sizes. Aronia is very high in ORAC (antioxidant) value and easy to grow and harvest. For an ornamental edible I like a weeping mulberry, it is a charming weeping tree but also has small tasty fruit. And then there are blueberries, many varieties available (Burnt Ridge has a lot), some of them evergreen with great fall color, and a selection of early to late varieties can keep you in berries all summer up to frost. I also like Fragaria vesca, the alpine strawberry, to fill in spots and add color, and they bear small berries nearly continuously, and don't make runners so they stay neat.

I have two Aronia Viking bushes, two years since planting. They are trouble-free, and made a huge crop of berries this year. The berries never get sweet. You don't eat this berry for flavor. But they are great in dishes where there is already some sweetness. I mix them into pancake mix, and add them to cold cereal. As hemnancy said, they are highly nutritious.

If you feel like taking a trip north to Port Townsend, the North Olympic Fruit Club is having their Fall Fruit Show on October 23 at the Jefferson County Fairgrounds. Tasting tables are a big part of the show. There will be a lot of trees for sale and pies sometimes made with identified fruit. The grower can often tell you which is easy fruit to grow and which is challenging. Best of all are the Fruit "nuts" themselves who can answer any kind of question. There are also speakers presenting on growing and using fruit including permaculture.