Fruit trees and bushes to order this winter

[Laura Hillier]

Hi Everyone,

It is never to early to start planning in the gardening world! Looking towards crops you would like to grow next year, what fruit bushes/trees will you be making sure you order?

Answers may be edited and published in the November issue of GYO.

Laura

[leonmc0708]

I have got a new plot and its going to be mostly (allotment rules permitting) fruit. I have my eye on a small orchard one side with apples, pears, cherries and damson tree's and a fruit cage on the other with Blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, gooseberries and loganberries in. Cant actually wait !

[Andypandi]

I have a new garden this year that I am currently trying to tame. Once I get rid of the numerous out of control shrubs I want to replace them with a plum and cherry tree. I don't want them to get out of hand though so they will be on small root stocks. I have a beautiful fig tree that I love as it is so lovely to look at as well as productive; what else could be better in your garden!

[KarlB924]

This year I discovered that the poundshop "blackcurrant" and "redcurrant" I bought last year are actually both blackcurrants, so a redcurrant is top of my list! I'm currently growing Strawberry (several varieties), Raspberry, Blackcurrant, Whitecurrant and Goji berry. I'm also considering getting a blueberry or two.

[hellybore]

I am planning on buying a fig tree for my garden, and a Siberian pea tree (saw that one in Martin Crawford's "Forest Gardening" - looks pretty and with edible pods too!). At the allotment I'm thinking of adding a cherry tree - so far have cooking and eating apples, and a couple of recently rejuvenated plums which have yet to fruit. As for soft fruit, my kindly allotment neighbour is layering his blackberry plant for me after I admired the fat juicy looking fruit on it - can't wait!

[mothhawk]

I'm planning to buy an apple tree - "Annie Elizabeth". Several reasons why:
1. It's a cooker but sweet enough to use as an eater too
2. It was developed one street away from the house where I used to live in Leicester (but in 1857 - a bit before my time)
3. So it's a Leicestershire apple and will do well here.
4. My grandmother was Annie, and her mother was Elizabeth - how could I not choose it?

[FB.]

I'm currently pondering whether to:

1. order a few dozen ungrafted MM111 and M25 rootstocks to graft some more apple trees this winter or next summer (for growing-up and planting-out in 2-3 years time).

- or -

2. Save a couple of years of time and get in an early order (to ensure they haven't run out of stock of the best or rarest varieties) to buy some well-grown bare-root trees mail-order from one of my preferred, reputable nurseries - buying trees from well-regarded nurseries is always a good idea - some nurseries have poorer quality stock.

-

Buying-in ready-grafted trees is appealing because many of my existing trees are on MM106 rootstock and are not growing well; MM106 doesn't do well in my soil/climate, so I may not have much good quality wood for taking grafts even if I wanted to. So I might have to trek around to find graftwood. Time, effort and petrol costs might work out more expensive that just buying some ready-grafted trees.

[Paulieb]

I've got a couple of trees bushes already on order from a highly recommended nursery (Keepers). 2 apples (Bloody ploughman + Chivers delight) and 2 cherries (Lapins + Sunburst) and a gooseberry.

Can't wait to get the apples and cherries growing into various forms, and they are fairly uncommon varieties.

I know its cheaper to get the poundshop 'bushes', but I really think there is something to be said for spending a bit more on a bigger plant and getting a bigger crop a year or two earlier, especially considering the price of fruit these days.

[running_muttley]

I wouldn't rush to buy a goji berry. I've had some for several years and they look aweful and hardly fruit. I need to replace some raspberries, I'm tempted to try some black ones. Also might relocate or replace my Japenese wineberry as it's lost somewhere between my blackcurrent bushes.

[DuncanM]

I've just taken delivery of 2 redlove era apple trees, very interested in making a cider from them in a couple of years time (as the juice doesn't oxidise apparently and stays vibrant red).

[ancee]

^^ That sounds Lovely!

[darcyvuqua]

My wife brought some strawberry and tomato plants to grow at our greenhouse! Cant wait to see the variety of sizes they grow in.

??? Tomatoes ???


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[Snailfox]

I bought some bare-root gooseberries plants (Invicta and Hinnomaki Red) and a few strawberry plants for the sake of comparing varieties (Cambridge favourite, Red Gauntlet and Pegasus). I'm actually really looking forward to the gooseberries.. but who knows how they will do in their first year... I'm hoping for at least one fruit fool..

[AllInContainers]

I'm really going for it with the fruit this year. Last year I just had apple, cherry, fig, blueberry and kiwi in pots. I've still got all those, but am adding a whole raft of other containerised fruits. So far I have received medlar, elder (black beauty), jostaberry, purple filbert, barberry, decaisnea fargesii (blue sausage fruit), and a dwarf pomegranate. I'm just waiting on my persimmon and partridge berry plants now. Oh, hang on ... I did have a young blackcurrant and some raspberry canes last year too, and still got those!

Still on the fruit vein but veering away from trees/bushes, I'm also adding mini white alpine strawberries, giant red strawberries, and also found seeds for blue and black varieties too. Also, the pot that had my mangetout in last year, will be home to passionfruit from now on, and I have some seeds for wonderberry and golden pearls which is a sibling variety to wonderberry

Considering my entire back yard is only 8m x 4m, I'll really have to keep these all in check to give me the room for everything else I'm adding

[Marie99]

I'm really going for it with the fruit this year. Last year I just had apple, cherry, fig, blueberry and kiwi in pots. I've still got all those, but am adding a whole raft of other containerised fruits. So far I have received medlar, elder (black beauty), jostaberry, purple filbert, barberry, decaisnea fargesii (blue sausage fruit), and a dwarf pomegranate. I'm just waiting on my persimmon and partridge berry plants now. Oh, hang on ... I did have a young blackcurrant and some raspberry canes last year too, and still got those!

Still on the fruit vein but veering away from trees/bushes, I'm also adding mini white alpine strawberries, giant red strawberries, and also found seeds for blue and black varieties too. Also, the pot that had my mangetout in last year, will be home to passionfruit from now on, and I have some seeds for wonderberry and golden pearls which is a sibling variety to wonderberry

Considering my entire back yard is only 8m x 4m, I'll really have to keep these all in check to give me the room for everything else I'm adding

How did you over winter your fruits in pots this year M x