Fruit Trees for North Dakota

These are the cold hardy fruit trees, berries and vines that grow in North Dakota, picked against real winter lows, not an average. Across the 11 areas we've mapped in North Dakota, the cold to plan for runs from −33°F on the warmest ground around Beulah, Hazen, Garrison and Lake Sakakawea to −48°F in the cold pockets around Bottineau, Rugby and the Turtle Mountains. Pick your area below and the list trims itself to what has come through that cold. Everything here ships bare root in spring 2027.

What fruit trees grow in North Dakota?

The best fruit trees for North Dakota are the ones that have already lived through the cold your spot gets. On typical North Dakota ground (−41°F, the middle of our mapped areas), 75 of the plants we're selling for spring 2027 have come through that cold: apples like Honeycrisp, Prairie Sensation, Frostbite and Haralson; pears like Larinskaya, Krazulya and Summercrisp; plums like Native American plum, Prairie Red and Mount Royal; tart and bush cherries like Romeo, Juliet and Nanking; apricots like Westcot and Manchurian. Berry bushes are the safest bet anywhere in the state.

Peaches are a stretch on most of the ground we've mapped in North Dakota. Siberian C peach has come through −35°F, so it's worth a try on the warmest ground in Beulah, Hazen, Garrison and Lake Sakakawea; Fargo, Grand Forks and the Red River Valley; and Jamestown and Valley City. It ripens late, so give it your sunniest spot. Plant them up on a bench or slope, never the low spot.

For your exact address, the cold hardiness calculator gives you the number to plan for and every plant we grow that has survived it.

North Dakota growing zones for fruit trees

Most of the ground we've mapped in North Dakota falls in MFTC zones 2 and 3, with the warmest spots in zone 3b (−33°F) and the coldest bottoms down in zone 2a (−48°F). That's colder than USDA's map, and it's on purpose: USDA's zone comes from an average winter's coldest night, ours from the bad winter a tree has to live through. Every plant we sell is zoned to the coldest temperature it has actually survived. Here's each area we've mapped, with the planning low for most of its ground and the range from its warmest benches to its coldest bottoms.

Shopping by zone instead? Start with our zone 2 fruit trees and zone 3 fruit trees. A few spots on each map run a zone colder than the town next door, and that's what the maps are for.

Bottineau, Rugby and the Turtle Mountains. On February 13, 2021, Bottineau hit −51°F while Rugby read −36°F. Bottineau plans for −48°F, Rugby −47°F and Belcourt −45°F, and the old Lake Souris floor around Willow City runs coldest of all.

Beulah, Hazen, Garrison and Lake Sakakawea. In the January 2009 cold snap, the old Garrison station read −48°F while Underwood, about 19 miles away on the upland, read −29°F.

See every North Dakota map on our North Dakota microclimate maps page.

Native fruit we grow

If you're after native fruit, huckleberry, Native American plum, American elderberry, Montana black currant and serviceberry are the ones we grow. They feed birds and wildlife and shrug off cold that would kill a lot of grafted trees.

Getting fruit trees to make it in North Dakota

Cold is only part of it. Plant on a slope or bench, not the bottom of a draw, since cold air drains downhill and pools in the low spots on a still night, and that's where blossoms get frosted. Give trees shelter from the wind, put them on drip so the soil never dries out through the summer, then taper it off from mid August so they harden off before the first hard freeze. Paint the trunks white against sunscald (how we do it) and put a quarter inch hardware cloth guard, at least two feet tall, around each trunk for voles and ground squirrels.

Rootstock matters as much as the variety. In the coldest ground we graft onto hardy standard rootstocks, and our rootstock guide explains the tradeoffs. Most apples, pears, plums and sweet cherries need a second variety blooming at the same time to pollenize them; our pollination maps show which ones pair up. Short on room for two? Westcot apricot, Romeo dwarf cherry and Mount Royal plum are self fertile, and so is everything in our self fertile fruit trees collection.

Ordering bare root trees for North Dakota

Everything on this page ships bare root in spring 2027, dormant, with the roots wrapped in moist sawdust and a vapor barrier, so you can plant as soon as your ground can be worked. Put your order in over the winter, since the best sellers run out. Not sure what to pick? Fill out our We Pick Your Trees form and we'll put a list together for your spot, or email us through the contact page with where you are and what you want to grow. Every plant is guaranteed to bud out (details in our FAQ).

Questions people ask about fruit trees in North Dakota

Can you grow fruit trees in North Dakota?

Yes. The trick is picking varieties zoned to the cold your spot actually gets. Our maps put most of the North Dakota ground we've mapped at −41°F for planning, and 75 of the plants we're selling for spring 2027 have come through that, from hardy apples and pears to plums, tart cherries and berries.

What are the best apple trees for North Dakota?

For most of the North Dakota ground we've mapped we'd start with Honeycrisp, Prairie Sensation, Frostbite, Haralson and Carroll. Each has come through −41°F or colder. In the coldest pockets, around Bottineau, Rugby and the Turtle Mountains (−48°F), Prairie Sensation and Carroll still clear it; the others want better ground.

What growing zone is North Dakota for fruit trees?

Most of the ground we've mapped in North Dakota is MFTC zones 2 to 3, running from −33°F on the warmest ground around Beulah, Hazen, Garrison and Lake Sakakawea down to −48°F around Bottineau, Rugby and the Turtle Mountains. USDA's map reads warmer because it's built on an average winter, not the bad one.

Can cherry trees grow in North Dakota?

Tart and bush cherries, yes: Romeo dwarf cherry, Juliet dwarf cherry and Nanking cherry all fit most of the North Dakota ground we've mapped. Sweet cherries are a long shot. The hardiest we sell, like Lapins sweet cherry, have come through −35°F, and not much North Dakota ground plans that warm.

Can you grow peaches in North Dakota?

On the warmest ground, yes. Siberian C peach has come through −35°F, so it's worth a try on the warmest ground in Beulah, Hazen, Garrison and Lake Sakakawea; Fargo, Grand Forks and the Red River Valley; and Jamestown and Valley City. It ripens late, so give it your sunniest spot.

Where is the warmest ground for fruit trees in North Dakota?

On our maps the warmest growing ground is Riverdale in Beulah, Hazen, Garrison and Lake Sakakawea (−33°F), then Prairiewood and Bluemont Lakes (south Fargo) in Fargo, Grand Forks and the Red River Valley (−33°F) and Kloze in Jamestown and Valley City (−33°F). Those numbers are the planning lows, the cold a tree there has to live through in a bad winter.

Where are the coldest frost pockets in North Dakota?

The coldest spots on our North Dakota maps are Willow City in Bottineau, Rugby and the Turtle Mountains (−48°F), Velva in Minot and the Souris River (−48°F), and Froid in Williston and Sidney (MonDak) (−47°F). Low ground like that is where cold air pools on a still night, so it runs colder than the town nearby.

What's the coldest temperature on North Dakota's microclimate maps?

The coldest reading on our North Dakota maps is −60°F at Parshall on February 15, 1936, on the Stanley, New Town and the north shore of Lake Sakakawea map.

When is the last frost in North Dakota?

It depends a lot on where you are. On the maps that give a typical last 32°F spring frost, it runs from May 10 at the Devils Lake North Dakota station (Devils Lake) to May 20 at Beulah (Beulah, Hazen, Garrison and Lake Sakakawea). Open the map for your area to see the station closest to you.

How long is the growing season in North Dakota?

Our maps put the frost free season anywhere from about 118 days at Beulah (Beulah, Hazen, Garrison and Lake Sakakawea) to about 150 days at the Devils Lake North Dakota station (Devils Lake). That's why the area you're in matters as much as the state.

When should I plant fruit trees in North Dakota?

In spring, as soon as the ground thaws and can be worked, while the trees are still dormant. We ship bare root in spring 2027 so the trees arrive dormant and ready to go in the ground.

Do you ship bare root fruit trees to North Dakota?

Yes. We ship bare root trees, berries and vines to North Dakota every spring, and you can also pick up in Missoula, Montana, if you choose that at checkout.

Fruit trees for other states

Alaska, Colorado, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, Wyoming. Or start from the fruit trees by state page.