Bargain dwarf fruit trees?

[Janna]

My mum wants to buy a lot of dwarf fruit trees for her new veg garden. I was wondering if anyone can recommend a good place to buy them as the prices seem to vary hugely and last time I bought trees through the internet they arrived very unhealthy. She is in somerset so anywhere around there or online would be great.

[The Bear]

Hi Janna

I've used Urban Allotments recently and I can't speak more highly of them. You can see some of their dwarf fruit trees here.

Growing Fruit Trees & Bushes in Pots & Containers, Dwarf Fruit Trees

Give them a call and ask for Rachael I'm sure she will do you a deal.

Kind regards

David

[FB.]

I have two recommendations for home growers who want trees in open ground and who do not wish to feed and spray:

Don't use dwarf rootstocks.

Don't choose the widely-grown, disease-prone or hot-climate-dependent varieties on the shelves in the shops.

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Dwarf roots mean slow-growing and often rather weak trees which don't cope well unless the growing conditions are perfect. Most gardens soils are far from perfect. A perfect soil is deep, moisture-retentive but not waterlogging and even then it usually needs annual heavy working with manure to keep up the nutrients and water retention.

Even for containers, although dwarf is fine if you look after them properly (they need a lot of water; every day in mid-summer) I would go for a semi-dwarf rootstock (rather than a dwarf) because they will tolerate a few forgotten waterings, the odd broken branch and generally have a better supply of nutrients coming up from the stronger roots to help them stay healthy and more resistant to pests and disease.

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Different varieties grow at different rates. It is entirely possible to graft a slow-growing and quick-to-fruit variety onto a vigorous rootstock and find that it produces more fruit at an earlier age than a dwarf-rooted but less young-fruiting variety.
I can get a small crop from a M25 (very vigorous) rootstocked tree in the season or two after planting, but a dwarf rootstoecked tree will take a few more years before its slow-growng roots cover a large enough area to support good-sized and good-quality fruit.

In my experience; the importance of a good strong set of roots can't be over-stated. The strength of the roots determines the lifespan, resilience and health of the tree.
This is especially true where the soil is not ideal; the roots provide all the trees needs and without adequate roots the tree is a lost cause. Strong roots establish much quicker and allow the tree to seek-out water and nutrients even in the poorest conditions. M25 rootstock trees are usually fully established and self-sufficient just a few months after planting, whereas a dwarf takes a few years and even then is not fully self-sufficient due to needing regular feeding.

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Personally, for apples I would recommend M26 rootstock for semi-dwarf trees of 1-2 metres in size (depending on variety and pruning/training) and MM111 for vigorous trees of 2-4 metres in size (depending on variety and pruning/training).
Pears on Quince A and plums on St.Julien A (1.5-3 metres depending on variety and pruning).
The size guide is wide because there is considerable variation the the growth rate and mature size of different varieties. Bramely, for instance, grows very fast and takes a long time to start fruiting, so would be at the top of the size guide, while Golden Delicious would be in the middle size and Reverend Wilks would be at the small end of the scale (and the smallest/slow-growing varieties are often the first to start fruiting).

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I would recommend:
The biggest, strongest, healthiest trees I've ever seen:
> Keepers Nursery <

Also good quality here:
> Adams Apples <

There are a lot of other nurseries out there selling substandard trees.