Festooning!

[Bigmallly]

Thanks Lottie.................Maybe when Mr LD is more mobile hey?

[Ladyslip]

What a great post and idea!! We have some young fruit trees at the back of the poly.....I call it my mini orchard and dad laughs his socks off at me.....however......love the idea of festooning......be far easier to maintain and harvest......I shall look at this when they've done fruiting this year :-D

[Bigmallly]

2016 Update

Just thought I would post a pic of just one branch to confirm the increase in yield. So much so, I have had to support the branch due to the weight.

[happyhumph]

Interesting thread, will be festooning a plum at some point.

[Bigmallly]

Festooning is still the way to go. So much so that I've had to prop up the branches due to the weight of fruit:

............................

[nickdub]

Looking very good indeed - what varieties are they ?

[Bigmallly]

Looking very good indeed - what varieties are they ?

No idea Nick, it was here when I moved in. They are dessert apples. I've just bought a steam juicer so looking forward to bottling lots of apple juice.

[nickdub]

OK - well the main thing is to get a good crop, which looks to be where you are headed. If you care to post a few photos of the fruit when its ripe, including ones cut in half, I'm sure we'd all enjoy having a go at identifying them :-)

[Craig_C]

No idea Nick, it was here when I moved in. They are dessert apples. I've just bought a steam juicer so looking forward to bottling lots of apple juice.

I now have "Steam Juicer" envy!

[It never rains..it pours]

Having brought and planted a half price (but from good source) bareroot Jubilee/St Julien A plum in Feb 2019, but couldnt cut main trunk down more than they had already at 5ft for delivery as only buds on top 1/4. They proceeded to grow like mad and ended up with two 4.5ft vertical whips and couple a bit shorter. As wanted a controlled height tree, have just festooned the tall two in a heart shape and will do the other two when a bit longer
Any problems with this weeping plum plan ?

[nickdub]

Having brought and planted a half price (but from good source) bareroot Jubilee/St Julien A plum in Feb 2019, but couldnt cut main trunk down more than they had already at 5ft for delivery as only buds on top 1/4. They proceeded to grow like mad and ended up with two 4.5ft vertical whips and couple a bit shorter. As wanted a controlled height tree, have just festooned the tall two in a heart shape and will do the other two when a bit longer
Any problems with this weeping plum plan ?

No problem with it as a plan - it ought to work a treat to an extent - that extent being whether after a few years the plum tree sneaks out of control for a bit and you end up with a full size tree - not necessarily a disaster if that does happen :-)

[Babru]

This is an interesting thread, as I'm planning my fruit area this year. Bigmally's pictures show attractive, weeping-shaped trees, and as mine will be in my garden I'd like something nice looking (and easy to pick).

[It never rains..it pours]

Nickdub, thank you for the reply and advice, yes at worst I have a small chainsaw on the 4 in 1. Perhaps when time permits you would kindly advise on the "Suttons £5 trees offer - ENDED" thread how your Parkers trees did one year on

Babru, Im trying to achieve the idea Bigmally posted on another thread, but symetric ie heart shapes. It does say pixy rootstock which I dont have but think its too weak for conditions here anyway
https://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gr...festooning.jpg

Also seems to my untrained eye, there is less strain on the young tree trunk if pulled to opposing branch rather than pulled down by a weight

[nickdub]

You're very welcome - festooning is an underrated option for getting good fruit bud development - nicking and notching are also useful very often with young trees- as for the shape to aim for, I'd say if you start with a very whippy shoot something approaching a semi-circle ifs about right

Can't remember precisely where I buy things from these days but the most recent apple I bought fruited OK - not sure of the variety exactly - my main concern is to get some wire netting in the right places so the deer don't destroy it - once the tree is bigger I will relax a bit.

I've got a couple of cherry trees which really I should have planted out by now - not been up to doing much outside due to flu etc.