the same tables are reproduced as individual PDFs and also in the California Master Gardener Handbook (2015)

UC Davis variety recommendations

Good fresh but especially good for drying. Yellow skin and amber flesh

Adriatic

Huge fruit, pale pink skin; similar to Wonderful

Ambrosia

Apache

A cultivar from northern Spain that produces a very high quality fruity oil. Fruit is small. Very fruitful. One of the most cold tolerant

Arbequina

Large-fruited cultivar, the most cold-hardy of all table cultivars in California. Large fruit, Oil is very aromatic

Ascolano

Blenheim sport (mutation). Ripens in late summer to fall

Autumn Royal

Medium sized. White flesh. Freestone, low-chill cultivar

Babcock

Barton

Baru

Green skin, amber flesh, heart shaped. Poor keeper. Japanese plum

Beauty

The most dependable cultivar for the home orchard. Purple-black skin with red flesh

Black Mission

Large, very flavorful, used for eating fresh and drying

Blenheim

Bradley

Large fruit. Excellent quality. Purple-green skin. Red flesh

Brown Turkey

Red skin and flesh. Self-fertile. Holds well

Burgundy

Excellent quality. Nut well sealed in the shell. Excellent pollinzer

Carmel

Champion

Choctaw

Greenish brown to brown russet skin. Coarse, tasty flesh

Chojuro

The industry standard and the overall best choice. Large fruited. Excellent quality. Parentage unknown

Colossal

Comanche

A cultivar from southern Italy that ripens very late. Very high oil content and very high in poly-phenols. Regular bearing but sensitive to cold

Coratina

Native species, not a cultivar. Very small, very flavorful fruit. Must be eaten when soft

Diospyros virginiana

A cross of American and Chinese cultivars. Medium-small nuts. Sweet, and blight resistant. Late flowering

Dunstan

Excellent flavor. Yellow-red blush. Semifreestone, low-chill cultivar

Earligrande

Eldorado

Eurobella

Very sweet, almost seedless fruit. Red skin, clear juice. Good for coastal areas

Eversweet

Large, brightly-colored yellow freestone. Late

Fantasia

Excellent quality. Large, firm, yellow, clingstone

Flamekist

Large, excellent flavor. Yellow, freestone. Midseason

Flavortop

Italian cultivar with a high oil content that is very aromatic, floral, and grassy. Not adapted to hot desert areas. Cold-sensitive

Frantoio

Black skin. Firm, amber flesh. Mild flavor. Japanese plum

Friar

Large, flat; orange-red color. Flesh is firm like an apple and nonastringent when ripe. Cross-pollination is no required, but when present, fruit will have seed. Trees are smaller, requiring 14-16ft. Fruit loses astringency at maturity while still firm and crunchy

Fuyu

Small to medium sized, conic red apple with excellent flavor and keeping qualities. The best cultivar for the early season

Gala

Large, great flavor. White flesh. Freestone

Goldmine

Deep crimson fruit color. Matures early but needs heat

Granada

Large, deep orange-red, acorn-shaped fruit. Flesh turns brown around the seed and must be very soft to eat. Does not need cross-pollination. Trees get large and require 20 ft. Fruit is astringent until very ripe and soft

Hachiya

Brown skin, juicy white flesh with a sweet aromatic flavor

Hosui

Hyakume

Italian Everbearing

Female. Smaller nuts. Fewer blanks. More splits. Pistachio may not produce well in most areas of southern California

Joley

Requires high temperatures and a long growing season to perform well. Yellow-green fruit with amber flesh. Produces both a breba and a second crop with moderate pruning

Kadota

Green-yellow skin and flesh. Japanese plum

Kelsey

Female. Best nut-producing cultivar. Pistachio may not produce well in most areas of southern California

Kerman

Laroda

Italian cultivar used in olive oil blends with Frantoio. Ripens a little earlier than other cultivars. Cold-hardy

Leccino

The main cultivar used for the black California-style olive. Low, spreading, medium-sized tree, early-maturing fruit with a medium oil content. Trees are susceptible to cold injury, peacock spot, and olive knot

Manzanillo

Green-yellow skin. Red flesh. Large, heart shaped. Japanese plum

Mariposa

Italian cultivar used in olive oil blends. Very flavorful, spicy oil

Maurino

May Grand

Late-blooming; productive tree. Hard shell, short kernel

Mission

Medium-sized fruit, high oil content, cold-hardy, susceptible to foliar diseases

Excellent flavor, ripens unevenly, highly colored

Moorpark

Large, soft-shelled nut. Long, flat kernel. Good pollenizer

Ne Plus

Very large, juicy fruit with an aromatic flavor

Niiataka

The most popular paper-shelled cultivar. Interfruitful with Price, Mission, Carmel

Nonpareil

Performs well only in cool coastal areas. Purple-bronze fruit with amber flesh. Very prolific

Osborn

Medium-sized fruit. Red skin, golden flesh. Freestone, low-chill cultivar

Panamint

Italian cultivar used in olive oil blends. Also used as a pollenizer. Cold-hardy

Pendolino

Male. Good for pollination. Pistachio may not produce well in most areas of southern California

Peters

Spanish cultivar used for oil and table fruit. Very high in polyphenols and oil. Very fruity. Ripens early, easy to harvest. Cold-hardy

Picual

The preferred cultivar. Pineapple flavor. White flesh. Golden skin. Low-chill fruit

Pineapple

Very similar to Nonpareil. A good pollenizer

Price

Red Beauty

Large, excellent flavor. Stores well. Late

Red Gold

Very large fruit. Yellow flesh. Freestone

Rio Oso Gem

Old favorite white freestone with excellent flavor and low-chilling requirement

Rose

Matures late (with Wondeful) but not as sweet or colorful as Wonderful. All fruit matures at once

Ruby Red

Purple skin. Amber flesh. Excellent flavor. Japanese plum

Santa Rosa

Red skin and flesh. Small, round. Japanese plum

Satsuma

Not a named cultivar. Each tree is genetically different. Unknown fruit quality. Unknown tree shape and fruit size. Only known rootstock

Seedling

September Red

Largest fruit. Very susceptible to olive fly. Produces an interesting, herbal-flavored oil

Sevillano

Smaller, good-quality nuts. Pistachio may not produce well in most areas of southern California

Sfax

Shawnee

Brown russet skin; firm, crisp flesh; very aromatic flavor

Shinko

Medium-sized nut. Good pollenizer for colossal, but shell splits are a problem

Silverleaf

Sioux

Large fruit with brown pubescence. Light, tender flesh. Yellow skin. Low-chill fruit

Smyrna

Requires cross-pollination by the Capri fig female wasp to produce a crop. Capri figs containing female wasps may be difficult to locate for backyard tree fruit producers

Smyrna-type

Early-season white freestone, juicy and tasty

Snow Queen

One of the best. Large, yellow, freestone

Summer Grand

Orange-yellow flesh. Golden skin. Rich flavor. Low-chill cultivar

Sweet Orange

Large fruit, heavy producer. Mild flavor. Used for canning

Tilton

Blooms early. Use Ya Li as pollenizer. Chinese type (pear shape). Light green color, crisp, tasty flesh

Tsu Li

Pale yellow, coarse flesh. Orange skin turns red when cooked

Van Deman

Western Schley

Good for coastal locations. Large fruit. Yellow-green, thin skin. Strawberry flesh. Ripens when others won't

White Genoa

Wichita

Large, deep red fruit. Large, juicy, red kernels. Small seed. Matures late. Juice is made into grenadine syrup

Wonderful

Blooms early. Use Tsu Li as pollenizer. Chinese type (pear shape). Light, shiny yellow color, crisp, tasty flesh

Locations

Chart (Southern California)

Plants (Southern California)