Plant associations - Fruit Trees

A local orchardist used to plant a nitrogen fixing ground cover under his apple trees, but took it out when it seemed that the trees were getting more nitrogen than they should have for fruit production. He said he did get a wonderful canopy of foliage though. :\
 
Thank you, @Nyboy! Learning something new every day. Still, I suspect someone would seriously consider calling the men in white jackets if I ordered a mulberry tree.

I do like them and we harvest both colors. Like coal in Newcastle and ice in the Arctic, mulberries are not something I'd ever thought to order out for.
 
most of my trees are still young but i do have between each tree a garden bed that is about 5-6' in depth and probably about 12' long between each tree. well, that is the plan when i have everything laid out the way i want it. i only have 3 beds so far done like this and i plan for more. but gardening & landscaping for me takes years to have everything the way i would like it.

right now i have between a few pear trees my garlic patch, i've done a potato patch one year, some brassica-sprouts, cabbage, kales, collards last year and onions too. i know allums are good around fruit trees. i thought i read it in a companion planting book.
 
@Nyboy, does that ever-bearing mulberry have a variety name? A friend made mulberry ice cream last summer and it was fantastic, so good that I immediately added mulberry to my "someday orchard" list.

I have a slightly different version of the original question-- does anybody grow fruit trees in containers with companion plants? I rent and have limited space so like to use every inch I can, and having something other than bare dirt keeps the squirrels from digging in and making an acorn-filled mess. I grew peas up mine this winter while they were leafless, which worked well, and this summer am trying lentils, dwarf peas and dwarf tomatoes (both 6" tall). Sounds like small alliums might work well. I tried herbs before but most of them turned out to be monsters that converted the top 6" of the containers to a solid mass of roots!
 
@sea-kangaroo mine is a Illiniois everbearing from Burnt ridge nursery. They have a dwarf mulberry but only hardy zone 7 to 10. The Illiniois is hardy for my zone 6. check out burnt ridges mulberry section they have good descriptions
 
My fruit trees by our home are surrounded and under planted with common comfrey, chives, different clovers, catmint and rhubarb. The new orchard will be under planted and surrounded with comfrey, clover and rhubarb.

Ginny
 
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