Grow Great Almonds in Your Back Yard

Almonds are related to peaches and will grow anywhere peaches will grow. However, almond trees bloom a month sooner, so frost is a very real concern. The only area where a crop is likely to be reliable is the Pacific Coast of the US. Here are some tips to help you grow almond trees in your back yard.

Plant your almond trees about 20 to 30 feet apart. They should be planted in early spring. The soil should be light and sandy. If the soil is too heavy, it will kill the almond tree. Nut trees will have a long taproot. This will make them more difficult to transplant. For this reason, you should start with a small tree. When the tree is mature, it will stand about 15 to 30 feet tall. It will take 3 to 4 years before your almond trees will produce nuts.

When you plant the tree, prune it back quite short. The next spring, it should be pruned leaving 3 or 4 healthy branches at wide angles from each other. The next spring and each spring following, the tree should have the old wood removed. And, if there is any crowding or large branches that cross, they should be pruned, as well. Your almond tree will only need to be fertilized occasionally.

Almond trees need more than one to pollinate and produce nuts. It is best if you have more than one variety of almond tree in your orchard. If planting space is limited in your yard, it is possible to plant two trees in one hole. They will still do well and they will pollinate each other.

You will know it is time to harvest your almond trees when most of the hulls in the center of the tree are split down the middle. Shake the tree until the nuts fall down. After you get your nuts harvested, remove the kernels from the inner shells. They should be allowed to dry for several weeks. Place them in a cool and dry place to dry. Once they have been dried, the nuts will keep for more than a year if you freeze them.

Almonds can be used in many recipes. They are even delicious to eat plain right out of the shell. Hopefully these tips will help you grow lots of delicious almonds in your back yard for you and your family to enjoy.

SOURCE

Editors "Better Homes and Gardens" magazine. "New Garden Book". 1990. Better Homes and Gardens Books. Des Moines, Iowa.