prices

[gullivar33]

Why do these fruit tree supplies charge so much for their trees some firms charge over £20 for a pluim , pear , apple , when you can go down the high street and get a good one from poundstretcher for £5.99 they are good fruits . I have a pear tree with loads of fruit on but came down this morning and found a load of pears on the ground do you think it is ok ?.
Thank you

[devonuk]

Hugely wider choice (a nursery will list 20 pears, you will only find Conference/Concorde/WBC at supermarket), usually better and stronger trees, access to expert advice if it goes wrong, and crucially yoiu will know what rootstock you are dealing with. Supermarkets never tell you this.

Having said that, I do sometimes succumb and have 2 apples a pear and a plum from supermarkets all doing well, as well as a lot of trees from specialist nurseries.

I assume these are tiny pearlets falling off? It may be that they didn't get pollinated - is there another pear nearby?

[muckdiva]

I think some of the root stocks vary too; the supermarket ones will probably be bog standard sizes where specialist nurseries have a range of sizes to suit smaller spaces etc?

[Jungle Jane]

That seems early,my pear tree only has flowers at the moment. What variety is it?

[ameno]

Three main reasons:
1) Supermarket, etc. trees are only ever the very most common, and therefore cheapest, varieties.
2) Supermarket trees are usually smaller, and inevitably in poorer condition (even if they're grown well in the first place, the supermarket definitely don't look after them)
3) Supermarkets trees only ever use the most common, and therefore cheapest, rootstock.

£20 for a bare root fruit tree is about the going rate. You shouldn't be asking "why are they so expensive?", you should be asking "why are the supermarket ones so cheap?"

[gullivar33]

yes another conference about 6ft away , mind you i only put it in november and it not got any flowers on it yet

[devonuk]

Sadly that won't help, both because you need a different variety and because it isn't flowering anyway. Conference is capable of producing some fruit without pollination, though, so you may get some pears, but you will do better in future years with another variety close by.