Fruit Salad Gardens

Imagine going out on to your deck or patio, balcony or the backyard in the morning to pick the ingredients you need to create a delicious fresh fruit salad for breakfast.

These days many of our favourite fruit salad ingredients can be grown in pots, as most are now created in dwarf style, from citrus to blueberries the variety is large.

Citrus plants are the big winners with mandarin, orange, lemon and lime all available in the dwarf varieties, we have also seen hybrids of mandarin/lime and sweet variations of the lemon with the introduction of the Lemonade tree.

I don’t know about you, but I like my fruit salad full of colour and bursting with flavour, and that’s where our dwarf blueberries and mulberry pants are a great fit, as they can also be grown in pots along with your citrus trees on your balcony, deck or patio. And to add to the textures and flavours of that fresh fruit salad, we even have dwarf macadamia trees which will provide an abundance of yummy macadamia nuts to sprinkle on top.

We are spoiled for choice here at Bamboo Down Under, as we currently have such a large range of fruit trees in-stock, with the majority of them dwarf style, perfect for pots and fantastic value with citrus trees starting from as little as $15 each and blueberries only $18 a pot. In addition to that, you will also find other fruit salad favourites like bananas trees, pineapple plants, mango trees and grapevines, all ready to convert your garden into a fruit salad masterpiece.

Looking after your fruit salad garden is very important, but not that difficult, as all you need is reasonable sized pots, say around 400mm, although some are happy in a 300mm size. Next, a good quality potting mix that contains some slow-release fertiliser. Maybe add some mushroom compost to give it a bit of body. Grab some fully organic liquid fertiliser such as Searles 5 in 1, to use every few weeks, and lastly a nice mulch for the top, like sugar cane, to insulate the soil. Of course, these beauties will still need reasonable sun to be happy, so a spot where they will get about half a day’s worth of sunshine would be nice.

As far as insect control, a good horticultural oil mixed with water in a spray bottle and sprayed on your babies from time to time will take care of most of the nasties before they do any damage. We recommend a paraffin oil because it’s less greasy than white oil.

And, here’s a little tip, a product called Fruit Blend, which is a natural rock minerals product, which can make all the difference to the growth and quality of your plant. We stock it in 4kg tubs or bigger bags! And a little product goes a long way.

So, now you can create a delicious fruit salad, with the fruits picked fresh from your very own mini orchard, conveniently located on your deck, balcony, patio or in the backyard.

For more information, and expert advice drop in and see the team at Bamboo Down Under, your local family-owned garden centre!