Space savers

[Holly]

Hello grapes!
This month, it would be great to know how you make the most of your space in the fruit garden. How do you make sure that apple trees, strawberry patches, raspberry canes and indoor fruit can all have their own spot? Do you have to prioritise, or are you lucky enough to have ample room for everything? I'd love to hear your tips for saving space – does anyone have a step-over for example, or do you train your fruit vertically?




Your comments may be edited and printed in the May issue of Grow Your Own.

[Aberdeenplotter]

I have three half sized plots on which I not only grow vegetables but also have a couple of apple trees, half a dozen blackcurrant bushes, three gooseberry bushes, three redcurrant bushes, two rows of raspberries with 10 stools per row in a purpose built fruit cage, a strawberry bed containing 3 dozen plants (two different varieties) and a dozen blueberry bushes. Clearly I have plenty of room but my planting is dictated by other factors in the plot mainly that the strip in which I grow my fruit is affected by onion white rot. I hope to keep the whole strip clear of alliums for at least 15 years before attempting to grow onions there again and a non moveble "crop" such as fruit bearing bushes means I can achieve my long term objective.


I'm everybody's best friend at berry picking time.

[Hans Mum]

i have a half plot devoted to fruit, 9 x current bushes, 10 goosegogs, several fruit trees (dwarfing stock) 4 x blueberries, half a dozen rhubarb crowns, 2 rows of raspberries and loads of strawberries. Hoping to squeeze another couple of different berries in but not sure what yet. Its the only time DD comes to the plot when this lot starts to ripen.

[Alex_Parrott]

I think you just have to be realistic. We all have favourite fruits for example that will obviously take priority. Using dwarf rootstocks or training trees as fans against walls or fences like my cider making apples saves loads of space.

Of course we all make the most of our space despite the size of our plots such as planting strawberries in amongst currants or berries or incorporating fruit such as goji berries or blackberries into our hedgerows.

In my half plot I have managed (so far) to plant 2 fan trained apple trees, 2 gooseberry bushes, 3 currants, a row of a dozen autumn fruiting raspberries a large rhubarb crown and some other strange plant that looks like a cross between a gooseberry and a raspberry that resided there when I took on the plot this winter.

There is no point trying to squeeze to much in as then it becomes counter productive and you will end up with a smaller crop of poor quality fruit. That said, there is always room for one more plant!

[TonyF]

I'm fortunate in having more space than I will even need, but that said, I'm changing all the woods close to the house to an Agro Forest system where I can 'layer' the whole area. Therefore I will have higher canopy fruit and nut trees, mid canopy fruit and nut trees and then bushes, below those the ground covering plants like Himalayan raspberries.

But in the potager, I grow up as well as on the floor. I have two fruit tunnels with fruit plants (grapes, domestic (non-spiny) blackberries and kiwi fruit in boxes about 2 metres apart. And then between each of the fruit boxes I grow melons and other (general) gourds, like cucumbers and cornichons, up the same tunnel, so I grow up as well as along the ground.

Strawberries go under the raspberry and tayberry canes as well as having their own beds.

Companion planting too to save space, quick crops (like lettuces and radishes) under bean wigwams and between slow growing veg.

[fruitylou]

I have recently started training a step over apple tree along the edge of the path separating my flower garden from my kitchen garden in place of a fence so it doesn't take any extra room and serves some additional purpose. I also dot strawbs about in pots wherever I have a little room, as they don't take up alot of space and I can always find room for more strawberries (in my garden and my tum )

[Sara]

Hi everyone,

Thanks for sharing so many great growing ideas. Please keep them coming! We'd love to hear more of your space-saving solutions. Do you only grow crops in pots, for example, or do you have amazing wall-trained or step-over fruit trees?

[Storming Norman]

In order to make best use of space I tend to put fruit in areas that do not really suit veg. So the more shady areas or those against a fence tend to have fruit. Raspberries against a north facing fence seem to cope OK and a blackberry, a fig, and a grape against a west facing fence seem to cope with the slightly drier soil there better.

I have 2 apples and 2 pears on the corners of a pergola across a path and I grow gooseberries on cordons in front of the raspberries. The cordon trees did well and so I am trying some more in a group in my allotment. I'm also going to try some cordon red and white currants this year.

Personally I'm not convinced about step over apples, although they are pretty they just don't seem practical - imagine if you didn't step high enough and kicked off the fruit instead - easily done I bet.