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Found these moorpark apricot trees at of all places a grocery store last night for $19 each.
I've never grown apricots, but I've got plums, peaches, and most other stone fruit. I removed an old blueberry patch that was doing poorly (mainly due to deer destroying it) and planted these three. They're rather cramped (18 feet apart) but if they take off, I'll just have to be on point with pruning over the years. I'm really out of space for anything other than dwarf trees in my backyard, but the idea of a compact orchard fascinates me. At the same time I'm pretty sure a bad run of diseases could wipe me out... but most things seem to be doing well as I'm moving into year 3 of this project.
And if the apricots do not do well, I'm out $60. Big deal.
I'm frustrated that I have to do less pruning than I should mostly due to the incredibly destructive deer I have. Fencing isn't really a viable option, and they're mostly does, fawns, and young shitheads. I could kill them, but more will show up. We're planting wheat in the field next to my yard instead of tobacco this year so hopefully they'll destroy that instead of pressuring my garden. I lost about 800 sqft of strawberries last year due to deer (as in I have literally no plants left now)
My apples are lagging badly in development but everything else is going very well. The apples have uniquely been damaged by the deer more than anything else. They have eaten them down to twigs at times. I should probably just replace the ones in the worst shape, as I fear the damage is done, but we will see...
