Tree Planning Reference

Spacing, by fruit and rootstock

Fruit	Rootstock	Mature spread	In-row spacing	Row spacing	Trees / acre	Trees / 1,000 sq ft
Apple	Dwarf	9 ft	9 ft	13.5 ft	359	8
Apple	Semi-dwarf	14 ft	14 ft	21 ft	148	3
Apple	Standard (full-size)	22 ft	22 ft	33 ft	60	1
Pear	Dwarf	9 ft	9 ft	13.5 ft	359	8
Pear	Semi-dwarf	14 ft	14 ft	21 ft	148	3
Pear	Standard (full-size)	22 ft	22 ft	33 ft	60	1
Peach	Dwarf	7.65 ft	7.65 ft	11.48 ft	496	11
Peach	Semi-dwarf	11.9 ft	11.9 ft	17.85 ft	205	4
Peach	Standard (full-size)	18.7 ft	18.7 ft	28.05 ft	83	1
Plum	Dwarf	7.65 ft	7.65 ft	11.48 ft	496	11
Plum	Semi-dwarf	11.9 ft	11.9 ft	17.85 ft	205	4
Plum	Standard (full-size)	18.7 ft	18.7 ft	28.05 ft	83	1
Cherry	Dwarf	7.65 ft	7.65 ft	11.48 ft	496	11
Cherry	Semi-dwarf	11.9 ft	11.9 ft	17.85 ft	205	4
Cherry	Standard (full-size)	18.7 ft	18.7 ft	28.05 ft	83	1
Fig	Dwarf	7.65 ft	7.65 ft	11.48 ft	496	11
Fig	Semi-dwarf	11.9 ft	11.9 ft	17.85 ft	205	4
Fig	Standard (full-size)	18.7 ft	18.7 ft	28.05 ft	83	1

Yield at maturity and pruning window

Fruit	Rootstock	First crop	Full maturity	Mature yield	Primary pruning	Secondary pruning
Apple	Dwarf	Year 2	Year 5	90 lbs/tree	Feb–Mar Late-winter dormant prune	—
Apple	Semi-dwarf	Year 3	Year 7	200 lbs/tree	Feb–Mar Late-winter dormant prune	—
Apple	Standard (full-size)	Year 5	Year 10	400 lbs/tree	Feb–Mar Late-winter dormant prune	—
Pear	Dwarf	Year 3	Year 6	80 lbs/tree	Feb–Mar Late-winter dormant prune	—
Pear	Semi-dwarf	Year 4	Year 8	180 lbs/tree	Feb–Mar Late-winter dormant prune	—
Pear	Standard (full-size)	Year 5	Year 10	350 lbs/tree	Feb–Mar Late-winter dormant prune	—
Peach	Dwarf	Year 2	Year 4	60 lbs/tree	Feb–Mar Late-winter dormant prune	Jul–Aug Post-harvest light prune
Peach	Semi-dwarf	Year 2	Year 4	110 lbs/tree	Feb–Mar Late-winter dormant prune	Jul–Aug Post-harvest light prune
Peach	Standard (full-size)	Year 3	Year 5	150 lbs/tree	Feb–Mar Late-winter dormant prune	Jul–Aug Post-harvest light prune
Plum	Dwarf	Year 2	Year 4	50 lbs/tree	Feb–Mar Late-winter dormant prune	Jul–Aug Post-harvest light prune
Plum	Semi-dwarf	Year 3	Year 5	100 lbs/tree	Feb–Mar Late-winter dormant prune	Jul–Aug Post-harvest light prune
Plum	Standard (full-size)	Year 4	Year 6	150 lbs/tree	Feb–Mar Late-winter dormant prune	Jul–Aug Post-harvest light prune
Cherry	Dwarf	Year 3	Year 5	30 lbs/tree	Mar–Apr Early-spring dormant prune	Jul–Aug Post-harvest light prune
Cherry	Semi-dwarf	Year 4	Year 6	60 lbs/tree	Mar–Apr Early-spring dormant prune	Jul–Aug Post-harvest light prune
Cherry	Standard (full-size)	Year 5	Year 7	100 lbs/tree	Mar–Apr Early-spring dormant prune	Jul–Aug Post-harvest light prune
Fig	Dwarf	Year 2	Year 3	40 lbs/tree	Jan–Feb Deep-winter dormant prune	—
Fig	Semi-dwarf	Year 2	Year 3	70 lbs/tree	Jan–Feb Deep-winter dormant prune	—
Fig	Standard (full-size)	Year 3	Year 4	100 lbs/tree	Jan–Feb Deep-winter dormant prune	—

Pruning windows shown are Northern Hemisphere months. Southern Hemisphere growers: shift every window shown here by six months, or check the Pruning Calendar directly with your hemisphere selected.

How this table is built

Every figure in both tables above comes from calling the same three functions the standalone calculators run: estimateTreeSpacing(), estimateYieldPerTree(), and getPruningWindow(). The only hand-set decision on this page is which of the spacing calculator’s four broad fruit categories (pome, stone fruit, citrus, berry) each of the six specific fruits below maps onto — apple and pear are pome fruit; peach, plum, and cherry are stone fruit; fig has no dedicated category of its own, so it’s mapped to stone fruit as the closest fit. Nothing about the actual feet, pounds, or months is hand-maintained — if any of the three calculators’ math changes, this table changes with it automatically.

The mature-yield figure is deliberately read from each fruit and rootstock’s own years-to-maturity, rather than restating a separate constant, so it’s the calculator’s ramp evaluated at the point it plateaus — the same number the Fruit Yield Estimator would show if you entered that exact tree age yourself. The trees-per-1,000-sq-ft column applies the identical spacing-rectangle arithmetic the calculator uses for trees-per-acre, just against a smaller, backyard-scale plot.

Educational estimates only. Real mature size, bearing age, and yield vary by cultivar, climate, soil, and pruning; treat every figure here as a planning starting point, not a guarantee for a specific tree.

Use it with

Tree Spacing Calculator — get an exact spacing recommendation for one fruit and rootstock combination, plus trees per acre for your own plot size.
Fruit Yield Estimator — project yield at any tree age, not just at full maturity, and scale it to however many trees you have.
Pruning Calendar — get the pruning window for your fruit type in either hemisphere, with the full primary and secondary window explained.
Planning a Small Orchard That Stays Manageable — the guide version of this table, walking through a real small-yard planting plan.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does fig show the same spacing figures as peach, plum, and cherry?

The Tree Spacing Calculator groups fruit into four broad categories — pome, stone fruit, citrus, and berry — rather than one row per specific fruit. Fig isn't botanically a stone fruit, but it has no dedicated category of its own in that calculator and matures at a broadly similar scale to peach and plum on an equivalent rootstock, so this reference maps it to the stone-fruit category as the closest available fit. That mapping decision is the only hand-set thing in this table — every number after it comes from actually calling the calculator functions.

Where does the "mature yield" figure come from?

It's the output of the same estimateYieldPerTree() function the Fruit Yield Estimator uses, called at each fruit and rootstock's own years-to-maturity — the point where that tool's linear ramp plateaus. It isn't a separate hardcoded figure; it's the calculator's own ramp evaluated at its own endpoint.

What is the "trees per 1,000 sq ft" column, and how is it different from trees per acre?

Both use the identical rectangle-area math: an area divided by the in-row spacing times the row spacing one tree occupies. Trees-per-acre uses the standard 43,560 sq ft in an acre; trees-per-1,000-sq-ft uses a much smaller, backyard-scale reference plot so the number means something if you aren't planting on acreage. Neither accounts for access paths, irregular plot shapes, or space already used by a house, shed, or driveway.

Why do peach and plum share identical spacing and near-identical bearing ages?

Both are stone fruit in the spacing calculator's category system, and both were given closely matched profiles in the yield estimator and pruning calendar, since backyard guidance for the two overlaps heavily in practice. Where they genuinely differ — mature yield, for instance — the table reflects that; where the underlying tools treat them the same, so does this reference.

Should I plant right up to the trees-per-acre or trees-per-plot figure this table shows?

Treat it as a ceiling, not a target. It assumes a clean rectangular grid with no access paths, no space lost to a shed or fence line, and no allowance for working around the trees once they're mature. A real planting plan almost always fits somewhat fewer trees than the pure arithmetic suggests.