Fruits Small Varieties
Fruits Small Varieties
If you’re short on space but still want a bountiful harvest, small fruit varieties are your secret weapon. Compact fruit bushes and dwarf shrubs pack big flavor into tiny footprints, making them perfect for patios, balconies, or tight garden beds. From tart blueberries to sweet currants and raspberries, these compact plants don’t just deliver fruit—they bring ornamental beauty, seasonal color, and a wildlife-friendly vibe to your landscape.
Blueberry (General Notes)
- Soil Needs: Requires acidic soil; amend with soil sulfur
- Water Needs: Prefers consistently moist soil.
Northblue:
- Fruit: Dark blue, large, attractive berries with good flavor.
- Growth Habit: Compact, grows 20–30 inches tall. Upright form.
- Foliage: Glossy dark green leaves that turn bright red in fall.
- Pollination: Self-fruitful, but produces larger crops when planted with another variety.
- Zone: Hardy to Zone 4.
Pink Lemonade:
- Fruit: Starts pale green, ripens to deep pink; glossy, firm, and mildly sweet.
- Growth Habit: Grows 4–5 feet tall and 4–5 feet wide.
- Foliage: Leaves turn orange and red in fall.
- Bloom: Pinkish-white, bell-shaped flowers in spring.
- Pollination: Self-fruitful.
- Zone: Hardy to Zone 4.
Patriot:
- Fruit: Very large, firm berries that form in tight clusters; slightly flatter shape with excellent flavor.
- Growth Habit: Upright, open, and vigorous.
- Foliage: Dark green summer foliage with fiery orange fall color.
- Bloom: Early ripening variety.
- Pollination: Self-fruitful.
- Zone: Hardy to Zone 4.
Bush Cherry
Nanking.
- Fruit: Small, tasty red fruits approximately 1/3″ in size; excellent for fresh eating, jams, and jellies.
- Growth Habit: Grows into an 8–10′ tall shrub; works well as a hedge.
- Foliage: Attractive foliage through the season.
- Bloom: Showy white flowers with a pink blush appear in early spring.
- Pollination: Self-fruitful.
- Zone: Hardy to Zone 2.
Currant
Red Lake
- Fruit: Clusters of large, bright red berries produced on 2–3-year-old wood; excellent for jams and jellies.
- Growth Habit: Semi-erect, vigorous, and very productive. Grows 3–6′ tall.
- Foliage: Healthy, robust foliage throughout the season.
- Bloom: Produces fruiting wood on second- and third-year canes.
- Pollination: Self-fruitful.
- Zone: Hardy to Zone 3.
Gooseberry
Pixwell
- Fruit: Excellent for pies and preserves; flavorful berries borne reliably starting the first year.
- Growth Habit: Compact, hardy plant with fewer thorns than most; matures to 3–4′ tall and 3–4′ wide; plant 5′ apart.
- Foliage: Durable foliage that thrives in average soil with minimal care.
- Bloom: Begins producing fruit very early in its life, often in the first year.
- Pollination: Self-fruitful.
- Zone: Hardy to Zone 3.
| Fruit | Planting Distance between Rows* |
Planting Distance between Plants* |
When Harvest Begins |
Years to Full Crop | Life of Plants | Mature Height (in ft.) | Estimated Annual Yield per Plant** |
Suggested No. of Plants for a Family of 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Asparagus | 3-5 ft. | 1 ft. | 1 year | 3 years | 20+ years | 4 ft. | 1/4-1/2 lb. | 20-25 |
| Rhubarb | 3-5 ft. | 2 ft. | 1 yr. | 2 years | 20+ years | 3 ft. | 10 lbs. | 4-6 |
| Strawberries (hills) | 1 to 1-1/2 ft. | 1/2 to 1 ft. | 60 days | – | 1-3 yrs. | 1 ft. | 1/2 qt. | 100 |
| Strawberries (matted) | 3-4 ft. | 1 to 1/2 ft. | 1 yr. | 1 yr. | 3-8 yrs. | 1 ft. | 1/2-1 qt. | 150 |
| Currants | 6-8 ft. | 4 ft. | 2 yrs. | 4 yrs. | 12-15 yrs. | 3-4 ft. | 3-4 qts. | 4-6 |
| Gooseberries | 6-8 ft. | 4 ft. | 2 yrs. | 4 yrs. | 12-15 yrs. | 3-4 ft. | 4-5 qts. | 4-6 |
| Raspberries Red | 6-8 ft. | 1-2 ft. | 1 yr. | 3 yrs. | 8-15 yrs. | 4-5 ft. | 1 1/2 qts. | 25-50 |
| Everbearing | 8 ft. | 2-3 ft. | 6 mo. | 2 yrs. | 8-15 yrs. | 4-5 ft. | 1 qt./summer | 25-50 |
| – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 1/2 qt./fall | 25-50 |
| Raspberries Black | 6-8 ft. | 2 1/2 ft. | 1 yr. | 3 yrs. | 8-10 yrs. | 4-5 ft. | 1 qt. | 25-50 |
| Blackberries Erect | 6-8 ft. | 3 ft. | 1 yr. | 2 yrs. | 10-12 yrs. | 4-5 ft. | 1 qt. | 25-50 |
| Blackberries Trailing | 6-8 ft. | 6-10 ft. | 1 yr. | 2 yrs. | 8-10 yrs. | 6-8 ft. | 4-10 qts. | 8-10 |
| Blueberries | 8-10 ft. | 6-8 ft. | 2 yrs. | 5 yrs. | 20+ yrs. | 6-10 ft. | 3-4 qts. | 8-10 |
| Grapes | 8-10 ft. | 8-10 ft. | 3 yrs. | 5 yrs. | 20+ yrs. | 6 ft. | 1/4-1/2 bushel | 5-10 |
* Minimum Suggested Spacing
** At full bearing age, with good care.
Small Fruit Planting Chart
|
Fruit |
Planting Distance* | When Harvest Begins | Years to full crop | Life of Plants | Mature Height | Estimated Yield per plant** | Suggested No. of plants for family of 5 | |
|
Between Rows |
Between Plants |
|||||||
| (in ft.) | (in ft.) | (in years) | (years) | (in feet) | (annual) | |||
| Asparagus | 05-Mar | 1 | 1 | 3 | 20+ | 4 | 1/4-1/2 pound | 25-20 |
| Rhubarb | 3-5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 20+ | 3 | 10 pounds | 4-6 |
| Strawberries (hills) | 1 to 1-1/2 | 1 to 1/2 | 60 days | – | 1-3 | 1 | 1/2 quart | 100 |
| Strawberries (matted) | 3-4 | 1 to 1/2 | 1 | 1 | 3-8 | 1 | 1/2-1 qt. Per | 150 |
| Currants | 6-8 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 12-15 | 3-4 | 3-4 quarts | 4-6 |
| Gooseberries | 6-8 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 12-15 | 3-4 | 4-5 quarts | 4-6 |
| Raspberries Red | 6-8 | 1-2 | 1 | 3 | 8-15 | 4-5 | 1 1/2 quarts | 25-50 |
| Everbearing | 8 | 2-3 | 1/2 | 2 | 8-15 | 4-5 | 1 quart-summer | 25-50 |
| 1/2 quart-fall | 25-50 | |||||||
| Raspberries Black | 6-8 | 2 1/2 | 1 | 3 | 8-10 | 4-5 | 1 quart | 25-50 |
| Blackberries Erect | 6-8 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 10-12 | 4-5 | 1 quart | 25-50 |
| Trailing | 6-8 | 6-10 | 1 | 2 | 8-10 | 6-8 | 4-10 quarts | 8-10 |
| Blueberries | 8-10 | 6/8 | 2 | 5 | 20+ | 6-10 | 3-4 quarts | 8-10 |
| Grapes | 8-10 | 8/10 | 3 | 5 | 20+ | 6 | 1/4-1/2 bushel | 5-10 |