DroughtAnnual plants have shallow roots and need to be watered more frequently than trees with deeper roots.
Sun-cracked Soil
"There's a Drought on, Charlie Brown!"
If your house has a yard, you may have been thinking about planting a garden this summer and maybe growing another kind of fruit such as watermelons or tomatoes. One reason that a fruit tree is a better choice this year is because California is in drought. A droughtDrought
A long period of time when there is much less rainfall than normal. means that there has not been enough rain for several years and no one knows when there will be enough rain again. A drought means that people keep telling each other, "don't waste water!" All living things — plants and animals, including people — need to have water to drink to keep on living. People also use water to keep themselves, their clothes and the places they live in clean. There are other important uses for water which are not so easy to see.
One important use for water which is easy to see is growing food. Some kinds of food take less running water than others. Tomatoes and watermelons are called "annual"annual
Annual plants have a lifespan of just one year. Therefore, they must be replanted from new seeds each year. plants. This means that every year that you want to grow a tomato you must start a new plant from a new seed. By the end of the growing season, the young seedling will grow up into a plant that will bear tomatoes, then it will die and the next year you start all over again. The roots of annual plants do not grow very deep and you must water them constantly, from the time you plant the seed until the time that you pick the tomato. Fruit trees are called "perennial"Perennial
Perennial plants live more than one year and therefore only need to be planted once.. This means that they last for more than one year. In its first year of growth, a fruit tree will also need lots of water. But, as it grows older and its roots grow deeper it will be able to water itself from water that is already in the ground. Fruit trees will also take less of your energy to grow than will an annual plant because you will plant it only once, but it will give you fruit to eat year after year.
PreviousThe Right Tree
The best kind of fruit tree to plant is one that is well-suited to your local climate and therefore does not need a lot of extra help to grow. 
HomeAll about Fruit Trees
Here you can learn about fruit trees and why planting them in your neighborhood is such a good idea. NextParts of a Tree
Each part of a tree: the roots, leaves, branches and fruit all perform very special functions to help the tree to survive.