Fruit Trees!

[Headfry]

I would like some advice please and some fellow 'grapes' views.
Can you put fruit trees on your allotment plot?
My view, for what it's worth is ...... If I had a choice of Plot A with fruit trees on it or Plot B with none....I would want Plot A please!
So why am I met with - much sucking in of air through teeth and - "ooooh aye you should not put fruit rees on plots"!

[pukka.tukka]

Hi

Our lotty does not like fruit trees on the plots becuase usually thats all that are on the plot with grass around the trees.

Also fruit trees can grow rather large and can cast showdow on to other stuff growing.

I have two apple trees and a blueberry tree/bush growing in pots at home and raspberry, gooseberry and blackberry at the lotty.

[OverWyreGrower]

Maybe its because most trees don't fruit for a few years, so they're not producing anything for maybe 5 years?

Ken Muir http://kenmuir.co.uk have some good "minarette" type fruit trees, which are good for smaller gardens. They are "slender, columnar fruit trees which bear their fruits on short spurs along the length of a vertical stem rather than on long spreading branches"

My sister has a couple of apple minarettes in her very small garden, they take up hardly any room..

[Lesley Jay]

Headfry every allotment site is different. Some do allow fruit trees and others don't. You need to read the rules and regulations for your site.

[Nicos]

I have fruit trees aswell as bushes.
The bottom 1/4 of our lottie has a greenhouse, shed, lawned area (cut fortnightly)which has a cherry, pear, plum,eating apple, cooking apple growing in it,and a peach tree in the greenhouse.
They are kept to a maximum height of 8 feet and planted so they don't cast any shade on the lotties on either side.
We also have a cobnut tree planted at the near end, next to the compost heap and gate ( again no shade to the neighbours).
I think if you can show that you would be considerate of your neighbours,and choose dwarf or preferably pixy rootstock then I can't see any problem1
Mind you....rules is rules sometimes when it comes to allotments!

This is where I bought my trees from as they have a huge selection, but they ain't cheap!
http://www.blackmoor.co.uk/product_i...roducts_id=494

(you might be given the OK for cordoned trees though???)

[Flummery]

On ours we weren't supposed to have fruit bushes - but people did! The rules said that there must be nothing permanent on the plot - which would include rhubarb! I think this was so that if the council decided to put up an estate they would have an empty site after giving you a season's notice. (Rat-bags!)

[pigletwillie]

Our new plot comes with three fab plum trees, soon to be joined by 8 new trees to make half of the plot an orchard.

A mature fruit tree is worth its weight in gold as fruit is so expensive and has multiple uses aside from eating as is.

Go for the trees.

[Headfry]

Thanks PW my view too. I shall see what happens