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
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
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
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
