Basu: I currently only hand irrigate, not a lot: only when things are getting to the point where they HAVE to have water. Eventually I plant to have a better set up, but probably drip irrigation and swale irrigation (a more natural alternative) along with other alternative forms of irrigation. I will say that if your land slopes away from your home, I wouldn't worry about leveling the land too much. Be thankful. My entire property, the water goes TOWARDS all buildings (especially since neighbor removed her gutters). It's been a huge problem and a very $$$: we get more frequent torrential rains now than when I moved here 15 years ago: meaning it doesn't rain as often, but when it does: boy, lookout!! it's hard to deal with. I have purchased some plants from Johnson's but I have found their current catalog lacks any of the wonderful cultural information their previous catalogs has, but their website still seems the same. Their orchard supply has many organic or low toxicity sprays for conventional fruit, but you'd still have to do it unless you find the "magic tree" (yes, sometimes they exist!!). You also have to hope that the climate works in your favor and flowering for fruit happens when the bees are able to do their work. It's becoming more variable with climate change. New and alternative fruits (for this climate) often flower during warmer periods, and provide a new source of fruit during challenging times.

Gina, I do not have an OSH that close - the closest one is in WLA on Bundy near Olympic. We used to go there a lot when we lived in Venice, and then we were close to Sawtelle and Olympic and the Japanese shops/restaurants over there. Our closest nursery (besides HD, which is 1.1 away) is Armstrong's, and it's a bit pricey, but I did buy the wine barrel planters there because they were in much better shape than the ones at HD. If you want more rose bushes, you could have some of mine - we've been trying to get rid of them because they are difficult to control, plus they clash with our overall scheme. I've never had a mulberry, and I think I do not have room for one. Don't they make a mess? I saw yuzu orange trees at San Gabriel Nursery, but I do not know what to do with the oranges. I know you can use the juice in Ponzu, but I find that regular lemon juice and/or lime juice works well enough. My kaffir lime tree now has a lot of fruit on it, and I do not expect to be using that either. Annie, it sounds like you have a wonderful orchard planned, but it will certainly keep you very busy during harvest season. Right now, only our apple tree seems to get a whole lot of fruit ripe at just one time - the citrus trees produce fruit for most months of the year, which is very convenient. I'm afraid my grapes won't be very sweet because our summers are not hot, but the grapes at the Centinella Adobe were very sweet, and the vines were huge. I might try the Bonsai method on the cherimoya, once it gets established. We planted that and the Meyer lemon yesterday when I got home from work, and so my planting is done for a while now. Kevin is now used to the idea that we have six wine barrel planters lined up on the concrete across from the hot tub. They significantly increase our planting area, and I had planned to fill that area with some kind of planters from the very beginning. I took pictures yesterday and will try to post some today or this evening. Lars

I must say starting an orchard as a first for growing edibles is bold. I would encourage you to contact your county agrilife extension service and see if they have any information that would help you be successful. Plum, pears, and peaches are commonly grown in your area. I use to live in the Dallas area and do not remember anyone growing apples or cherries. The close space fruit tree growing seems to work best in dry climates like California. I would pay attention to what scottfsmith on this forum writes since he has similar humid conditions like you have. Someone closer to home is Neil Sperry. I think he still has a call in show on one of the Dallas radio stations on Saturday. He talks more about flowers than fruits but is knowledgeable on both. You will need to watch out for fire blight on the apples and pears. Peaches and plums are bad about getting brown rot. This forum has been very interesting for me seeing what everyone is growing and if I have a chance to grow them in southeast Texas. It has saved me money and time by finding out what might be possible and what would be a waste of resources. Just remember, all of us have made mistakes and over time we can be successful growing something.

CC Thanks! gumby - yes, the 5ft decision wasn't easy. I practiced digging/planting/pruning in the middle of the first bed to make sure I'm ok with it before I built the rest. It helps me a lot that I have a place to sit/step on and reach in. Trellis support (aka el conduit) is still in pieces. I planted rattlesnake and garden of eden pole beans and they will be the first to need it, but not in the next several weeks, I don't think. I should have some their trellis ready by then. defrost - yes I can use a board if I need to, and except for tomatoes, I will keep all my tall plants on the north (top) side of the beds to keep them from shading the rest of the bed. If it turns out it is a big problem, I'll just rearrange them. It will likely be a weekend project to do it. Everything except the blackberries (not here yet), strawberries (last fall), blueberries(last fall), garlic (last fall), pawpaws(not here) and figs(not here) was planted during the week. I can't wait to see things grow in these new beds! Next I'm starting to prepare my tomatoes and peppers. In a couple of weeks I'll plant some more lettuce in the bottom left bed and maybe some more spring crops. It might get too hot for them, but we'll see. The rest of the open area will be mostly tomatoes and peppers, okra and some eggplant.