franktank232, the trees I got from raintree are on G5(black gold, white gold and kristin) and are doing very well. I also got a dwarf lapins from miller and a kristin on muzzard, the lapins is doing very well also but the full size kristin died ( it was a very very poor tree with almost no roots). I wish i new what root type my lapins is. I chose theis types based on a couple of things: hardyness and self pollenating, kristin is suposed to be the toughest but is not self pollenating. They are very different than apple trees! everything likes to eat there leaves and they do seem to be temperamental we've had quite a drought here and i think it may have helped them, my soil is very heavy but black as cole. I'll be looking for ways to get them though the winter soon. I hope this helps some. I'll try to post some pics soon... tom

In my experience, Evans/Bali is a great cherry for folks in zones 5 & colder - but if you're in zone 6 or warmer, don't bother with it. Photos konrad has posted from his zone 4 setting make it look phenomenal! Have had it here for nearly 20 years (finally pulled it out a year or so back, but there are still a couple of suckers that popped up 30-40 ft away). Yes, it ripens later than Montmorency, but that just allows more time for curculio and other pests to hit it, and it was never as productive as Montmorency. Don't know that I ever saw more than a half-dozen fruits that were worth bothering to pick, and they weren't nearly as plump and tasty as those from the nearby Montmorency. Grew out some row-run Nanking seedlings a number of years back - I'd purchased them for use as dwarfing rootstocks for plums - tiny little fruits with minimal pulp surrounding the pit. Native P.serotina(black cherry) produces larger fruits with more pulp. Maybe I had a less-than-stellar strain, but my impression was, "Why bother with it?" Kinda made me think maybe these bush cherries were for folks in the frigid northland who don't have enough growing degree days to grow a real fruit (tic). lol

My experience is in the Portland and rural Longview areas. Italian prune and Bosc pear are productive and trouble-free. I have some apple trees which do extremely well, except for apple scab. I applied a few pounds of lime per tree two years ago, and the scab disappeared. Not sure if it's just a coincidence. I give my apple trees a deep irrigation in mid-August. It greatly improves fruit size and quality. Cherries are good where there are pollinators. In SW Portland, I got almost no cherries. In rural SW Washington, I get tons of cherries. Chestnut trees are healthy, but the nuts are small. Blueberries, black and red raspberries, hardy kiwis, and Aronias all do extremely well here. Blueberries need a sandy loam soil that does not dry out. The Burnt Ridge catalog is a great local source of info about fruit and nut trees.

I like the idea of suggestions from WSU but I didn't easily find the information. Check out the Oregon State University Extension as well. They are focused on the same climate issues and I have found excellent descriptions of how fruit performs in our area. I checked with the OSU extension site on the raspberries that I bought last year (after I bought them, of course) and sure enough the ones that were predicted to do poorly died. I sent right off for a variety that does well in our area and it is doing fabulously and tastes great. If you have a little patience I suggest any of the apple tastings that nurseries around here often have in the fall. It is one way to find varieties that appeal to you that are not readily available in the supermarket. Even if a tree does well it is no fun if you would rather be eating something else. Portland Nursery is one place that does apple, pear and Asian pear tastings in the fall and there is a huge selection to trial. There are a lot of growers that provide trees suitable for this area like Raintree Nursery so it is just a matter of what you like. And check out C&O Nursery's ripening chart if you want to plant more than one variety of a certain fruit and have them ripen in succession. For example, some apples fruit in July and others keep ripening way into late October. I personally stay away from the really late ones and leave them for the growers in the eastern part of the state. (If I remember correctly C&O also provides a wide range of rootstock so order their catalog and check it out.) I bought whips of "Honey Crisp" apple trees from C&O years ago when no one else was offering the tree. They have done extremely well in the microclimate you describe and are much sweeter and more wonderful than most of the "Honey Crisp" fruit offered in the supermarket. I don't regret planting them since they are so good off the tree even though there is now more of the fruit around. I have fruit trees, berries and vines tucked in everywhere just to keep the racoons and birds happy ;) They leave some for me most of the time. Have fun!