I am going to be planting a High Density plot this coming spring. The goal of this is to cram lots of trees into a small space and keep them pretty short (8-10 feet max) So that they can be covered to protect from late frosts which are a big problem on my site.
So here is the question is it better to:
1: plant dwarfed trees (i.e. bud 9) which will produce faster but require more care and expense (irrigation, weed control, Trellising or serious staking)
OR
2: plant larger growing root stock (i.e. Bud 118 EMLA 7 or 111) which will be freestanding and less fickle, and control their size with pruning
the pragmatist in me says I should do both, and then phase out the smaller trees as the larger ones start producing more.
My biggest problem is finding a resource on how best to prune larger trees into a high density planting
Thanks for any thoughts
John
P.S. this is a market orchard in the making in S.E. Ohio