Boron Resistant Fruit Trees?

Discussion in 'Fruit and Nut Trees' started by webstaunton, May 7, 2006.

  1. webstaunton

    webstaunton Member

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    Location:
    Medford, Or. USA
    Greetings...

    I have a question... Does anyone know where I can get information on fruit trees that are Boron resistant. Possibly a list that is available? Our well water has a significant levels of boron in it. Some vegetation does ok some dies and I hate to invest in certain fruit trees and then watch them slowly die.

    Much Thanks
     
  2. mr.shep

    mr.shep Well-Known Member 10 Years

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    Location:
    San Joaquin Valley, California
    It is not so much a matter of which Fruit Trees cannot
    handle amounts of Boron, a lot depends on how much
    Boron is in the water such as parts per million or parts
    per billion and what our soil types are, the limitations
    of the soil, how much organic matter we have in the
    soil and the soil and water pH. I've set up an Apple
    orchard for a friend on the outskirts of Medford back
    in the late 80's, a few miles North of the city that also
    had some Boron in the well water. If we can keep the
    soil pH lowered in the saline range, whereby his heavy
    clay soil originally had a pH of 9.7 then we can deal
    with excessive Boron emanating from the water but
    we must first work on lowering the pH of the soil prior
    to planting and at the same time apply humic or humus
    forms of organic matter to our soils to be part of our
    buffer against extended amounts, over time of Boron.

    Good drainage is essential if we have too much Boron
    in our water as it is the salt build up that hurts us much
    more than excessive Boron will as we have a hard time
    breaking up the bound oxidized form of a Boron salt.
    What I am saying is you will need to aerate your soil
    often to help you deal with the Boron coming from
    your water. You need to find out how much Boron
    is in your water as well as how much Boron is in your
    soil and what form that Boron is in. I'd recommend
    you have your water tested for pH and minerals and
    have your soil analyzed for pH and for chemical and
    nutrient content as well as organic constituents in the
    soil and percentage of their content. I am not talking
    about a having a basic soil test done, I am referencing
    you having a more complete soil analysis done on your
    site.

    A lot depends on which Fruit Trees you want to grow
    and which forms such as standards, semi-dwarfs and
    dwarfed forms you want to have as your climate in
    Medford is conducive to allow you to grow a variety
    of Fruit Trees there. Some will do better than others
    but that is relatively true most everywhere. A list of
    which plants near you have failed and which plants
    seem to do okay for you and your close by vicinity
    will help determine which Fruit Trees you can grow.
    I do not mean to apply what people can grow well
    on the East side of town with the North side either.
    You have to think in terms of where you are and
    what your neighbors can grow okay where all of
    you are and which plants are notorious for failing
    where you are located and better yet what were the
    reasons why those plants failed such as too much
    alkalinity, not enough water, too much chlorinated
    fertilizers applied, etc..

    Boron was used as a trace element additive for Fruit
    & Nut Trees, even for Grape commercial granulated
    fertilizers for many years. I've used dissolved in water
    Boraxo soap (2 ounces per gallon of water) as
    a standalone late Spring application on Apples,
    Pears, Almonds, Peaches, Plums, Nectarines,
    Apricots, Cherries, Walnuts, Figs, Pistachios,
    Pecans, Grapes, Berries and a variety of Citrus
    for many years without any visible toxic symptoms
    seen on my plants. What we do not want to do
    with Boron is apply it along with high levels of
    Calcium as then what we think is a Boron toxicity
    may actually be a Calcium toxicity, which is why
    I never used Calcium nitrate as my main fertilizer
    in late Winter, early Spring if I knew I was going
    to apply Boron later in the year.

    Boron by itself does not kill a plant per say as too
    much Boron will in more cases cause a noticeable
    stunting of the growth. Too much Boron in
    conjunction with something else such as too much
    applied Calcium, too much Chlorine, too much
    residual herbicide residue or too bound oxygen in
    a soil can kill a plant either over time or relatively
    soon, depending on the plant.

    I suggest you get your soil analyzed and your water
    tested and then contact people either at OSU in
    Corvallis or through the Cooperative Extension and
    ask them what Fruit Trees they think you can grow
    in Medford based on your results.

    Jim
     
    Last edited: May 23, 2006
  3. joe sherman

    joe sherman Member

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    Location:
    san francisco, CA USA
    I am seeking an answer to the very same question. Is there a local number to call in Northern California to get suggestions on what fruit trees to plant where the well water has a high boron content? Any ideas on what ornamentals can be planted as well?
    Joe
     
  4. mr.shep

    mr.shep Well-Known Member 10 Years

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    Location:
    San Joaquin Valley, California
    I suggest you contact your County Cooperative
    Extension office in San Francisco. The phone
    number will be in any local area phone book.
    Look under County of San Francisco and the
    University of California Cooperative Extension.

    Jim
     

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