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Edible street trees...what would you plant?


I am looking for ideas for street trees.  I have a few thoughts already but
then I read books of unusual fruit/nut trees and come up with rare ones
that might work, so I thought I'd ask.  Also, some of the ones I'm
considering don't have enough info about them (that I can find anyway) to
tell me if they'd be a good choice.

I live in Oakland, east of San Francisco.  I'm at the western foot of the
hills, just east enough to avoid a lot of the fog, but I don't get as much
heat as I did on the penisula (East Palo Alto).

My street/sidewalk strip is 47 feet long and 5 feet, 4 inches deep.  It is
currently planted with lawn only.  The overhead wires are across the street
so I don't have to worry about them.  The site is on the east side of my
property and gets lots of sun.  I want the trees to provide some privacy
but not feel isolating like a shrub.  I want as little shade cast as
possible so I don't want the tree to be very tall (and dappled shade is a
plus).

Here's what I'm looking for:

	- 8-25 feet tall (10-15 feet is best)
	- appropriate for use as a street tree (no damage to sidewalk from
roots, no nasty falling things)
	- edible fruit or nuts
	- climate adapted; no watering after the first year
	- minimum litter, no sap (a quick fall leaf drop is okay)
	- pluses: not slow growing or slow bearing

I've decided to put in two trees.  One will be a semi-drawf almond (Prunus
dulcis), either an All-in-One, a Garden Prince (if bigger than dwarf), or a
Hall's Hardy.

I have rejected the following: Olive (I want one very very much but have
been convinced that the fruit drop on a street or sidewalk is not worth
it); Bay Laurel (I have one in a container and it will provide all my
cooking needs in a small space); Loquat (I was going to put one in at first
but the leaf drop is annoying and there are already many in my neighborhood
so I just have to make friends to get fruit).

Here are ones I'm considering (or hoping might work): 
	Jujube (Ziziphus Jujuba) but am worried about the root sucker
problems and the fact that it really needs cross pollination.
	Macadamia ...any chance of getting nuts with no summer watering?
It seems the tree itself will be okay without water, but not the harvest.
	Pistachio (Pistacia vera) will this be okay in this coastal
climate?  Are our summers hot enough?
	Filbert/Hazelnut (Corylus) this would be more shrub-like but
prunable to tree form.  Can I get nuts with just one plant? can I graft on
a second? plant 2 in one hole and get it to look nice?

What others?  Even plants I've never heard of are fine (I'll try a
fruit/nut before buying).

Thanks for any input.  Even if you can tell me, yes, I've seen X growing in
the Bay Area on the street, that would be great.

Cyndi
_______________________________________________________________________________
Oakland, California            Zone 9 USDA; Zone 16 Sunset Western Garden Guide
Disabled, chemically sensitive, wheelchair user          Organic Gardening only
_______________________________________________________________________________
"There's nothing wrong with me.  Maybe there's                     Cyndi Norman
something wrong with the universe." (ST:TNG)                   cnorman@best.com
__________________________________________________ http://www.best.com/~cnorman



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