Topic: Pistachio trees

[elhuerto]

My wife has just bought me two pistachio trees (male and female, about 5 years old). It's something I've wanted for a while but they're not particularly cheap so never took the plunge. Growing conditions here (northern Spain) are ideal and I've seen plenty of orchards just south of here.

I'm a tad worried though and want to get things right. I've done a lot of reading and everything seems pretty straightforward, nothing special required, regular pruning etc but can't find too much about watering. I understand it's not a tree grown in the UK but I know there are members from all over and was just wondering on the off chance if anyone had any experience - my plan was to use the drip irrigation I have for other trees but I've read that it's better to provide a weekly good soak. Hoping that's not essential. I'd welcome any tips really - just wanting to keep my trees and wife happy really :-)

Cheers!

[Obelixx]

I bought a single pistachio plant at a fair last May, just because I liked the foliage.  Then I got home and discovered I need one of each to get nuts and I have no idea if mine is a girl or a boy.  Not really a problem for me.

They like a fertile sandy loam with good drainage and prefer an occasional soaking to regular drip drip.  They need a cold spell but don't like hard frosts below about 8C and like to be warm in summer.   I'm keeping mine in a pot for a couple of years as this is a new garden in a large, untamed plot so we're practically starting from scratch to make new beds for veggies, fruits and ornamentals.  I'm assuming that since kiwis and grapevines do well in this climate my pistachio will be happy too.

[elhuerto]

That's more or less what I read although I understand they will tolerate more cold in winter - good luck with it all the same :-)

[Paulh]

At the risk of being too obvious:

Nuts!

Taking the pistachio!

More seriously, I hope they work for you. I'd have no chance on my cold clay soil in the Chiltern hills.

[Vinlander]

I'm assuming that since kiwis and grapevines do well in this climate my pistachio will be happy too.

Kiwis and grapes are perfectly happy in the UK - though I agree they'd be happier 5^o further south - I'm trying to think of something that dies here without a dedicated house but doesn't further south. Nectarines are not a good comparison because despite being tricky here they are actually quite hardy.

I'd say citrus - does anyone nearby grow reasonable mandarins or lemons outside? Though even lemons are hardier than 8C.

A medium-hardy citrus would be a better sign - any neighbours with more tender hobby trees (like sweet orange) doing OK outside?

Cheers.