North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

[Chris Carnevale <c.s.carnevale@gmail.com>]

Hi Steven,

I would add Nanking cherries to the list of early fruiters.  They are
delicious and prolific.

The difference between zones 5 and 7 will make a big difference in what you
can grow, but you may be able to push the zone limit in zone 7 with loquats
and hardy citrus, particularly if you have a protected spot.  Citrus fruits
in winter and many varieties are hardy down to 10-12 degrees, some, some
down to 0 or the negatives.  McKenzie Farms, here in South Carolina, has a
great hardy citrus catalog: http://mckenzie-farms.com/photo.htm.  Loquats
fruit in mid- to late spring.  On the south Atlantic coast, we eat them
sometimes as early as March, but more often April-June.  They are hardy
down to 10 - 15 degrees, but I'm not sure how they would react to colder
weather.

Chris Carnevale
Charleston, SC