Orchard

Orchard

An orchard is an intentional planting of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit or nut-producing trees which are grown for commercial production. Orchards are also sometimes a feature of large gardens, where they serve an aesthetic as well as a productive purpose. A fruit garden is generally synonymous with an orchard, although it is set on a smaller non-commercial scale and may emphasize berry shrubs in preference to fruit trees.

Types of Orchards

Most orchards are planted for a single variety of fruit. While the importance of introducing biodiversity is recognized in forest development, it appears to be under-utilized in orchard design. Incorporating a wide variety of genetic diversity into an orchard design helps to reduce disease and pest pressures.

Commercial Orchards

In the commercial orchards, trees are usually spaced to maximize tree density, but this is not the case in home or urban settings, where trees are often planted for beauty and other benefits in addition to fruit.

Home Orchards

An orchard's layout is the technique of planting the crops in a proper system. There are different methods of planting and thus different layouts. Some of these layout types include:

• Square method
• Rectangular method
• Quincunx method
• Triangular method
• Hexagonal method
• Contour method
• For different varieties, these systems may vary to some extent.

Orchard Management

Orchards are often managed by gardeners who have specific skills in orchard design and tree care. The management of orchards includes many activities such as:

• Pruning
• Pest and disease management
• Fertilization
• Irrigation
• Harvesting

See Also

• Fruit tree
• Fruit tree pruning
• Fruit tree propagation
• Fruit tree forms
• List of fruit trees

References

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