I have always liked Gala apples - sweet tart and crunchy. An old school pal in a cooler zone has 2 established Galas, and every fall they are loaded with beautiful pink blushed fruit. The owner of a local nursery assured me that galas would do fine in USDA Zone 9b.
Last year, my son dug out the last rotten stump of a redwood, and planted a dwarf Gala for me. I babied the little tree all summer, covering it with a sheet on super hot days, adding compost and giving it extra water.
This spring, it has had fertilizer, diluted fish fertilizer tea and a fruit tree stake. The tree looks happy and healthy. Lovely pink flowers became 14 tiny fruit. Then came the challenging part… the fruit needed to be removed, so that the tree could concentrate its energy on growing.
It took a little resolve. After the snipping, I told my tree “Grow, Gala, grow!”. Cheers.
Under the Solano Sun