Fruiting plants for the southern region

Eating the fruits of your labor is so incredibly satisfying. Gardening, however, can be a lot of work. But there are some options that require much lower time investments.

The Interfaith Federation of Greater Baton Rouge recently hosted a presentation at the Scotlandville Library. I had the chance to record it so it can be shared with all of you fine folks!

The presentation is by Leo Broders, a Louisiana Master Gardener. In the presentation he walks through all of the options and which ones work best throughout Louisiana, with specific focus on the Baton Rouge region.

In the presentation, two guides are mentioned:

The Louisiana Home Orchard

Louisiana Home and Fruit Production

If you go to a local nursery, you’ll find all of these plants available because February is the best time to plant these beauties.

You’re also going to find these options at your big box stores: CostCo, Walmart, Home Depot, Lowes, etc. Although a lot of those plants will do just fine, do keep in mind that just because it’s available, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s going to grow well here.

Big box stores operate across the country, so they although they are going to do their best to put the right plants in the right region, they are not always going to get it right.

Instead, consider buying from a local nursery, the smaller the better. My favorite place to go in Baton Rouge is the Farmer’s Market. If they don’t have what you’re looking for, just ask. I was able to get a Kaffir lime plant (used heavily in Thai cuisine) from one of the growers simply because my friend asked. They don’t bring everything with them, but if you request it they’ll bring it the following week.

When you can purchase from local growers, you’re encouraging the local growing ecosystem. And hey, being mindful of ecosystems is what growing is all about!