Cheap fruit bushes in Wilkinson's, want to grow in pots against north facing fence

[IndigoElectron]

Hi there. I'm new to gardening and am very excited about getting started. I've got a small back garden and one of my plans is to get some rectangular planters and grow some soft fruit next to one of our fences. I have a few questions. What should I put in the planters? Is compost okay or do I need topsoil, since the bushes will be there for more than one year? Do I need to add fertiliser, such as fish blood and bone? The fence is north facing, so which fruit will grow there? And finally, Wilkinsons have some cheap fruit bushes, blackberries, blueberries, blackcurrants, raspberries and loganberries. Am I asking for trouble buying plants this cheap? Thanks!

[Bigmallly]

A compost /soil mix should be fine for all the bushes except Blueberry. They are an acid loving plant so need to be grown in Ericaceous compost.

[WendyC]

The cane fruits should be ok against your fence but the blackcurrant might want a bit more sun to ripen. Do you have to plant in troughs? They will grow so much better in the ground and you are committing yourself to daily watering, at least, in the summer. Are your troughs good and deep?

[IndigoElectron]

Thanks both for your replies.

Bigmally, what mix should I am for, is 50:50 about right?

Wendy, that part of the garden is concrete so I do need to use some sort of pot. The height of the trough I was planning to buy is 25cm, it's 30cm deep and 70cm wide. I haven't bought the troughs yet so I could use round planters instead, the biggest one I have found is 55cm diameter and 43cm deep. Or there is a square planter 31.5 cm height, 40cm deep and 40cm wide. I just thought troughs would sit more neatly against the fence.

So the cheap fruit bushes won't necessarily be a disaster then? :-)

[rustylady]

Blackberries and loganberries will need fan training along your fence.

[IndigoElectron]

Thanks Rustylady. How long before I would need to do that after planting? They need to be planted soon I think but the fence could do with painting first.

[rustylady]

Thanks Rustylady. How long before I would need to do that after planting? They need to be planted soon I think but the fence could do with painting first.

They will produce long canes when they start growing properly this year. You tie these as horizontal as possible along the fence or wire support and they will carry fruit next year.

[simon12]

I am no expert but I noticed in Wilkinsons yesterday they had apple trees that had blossom on them, so they are not dormant like they should be so there plants may need to be adjusted to outdoor temperatures. Also I bought 4 raspberry canes there last year and only 1 grew at all.

[yummersetter]

My opinion on cheap trees . . . these are long lived plants, so I would buy the best not the cheapest. It can take several years of care before you know it was a false economy, and you don't get that time back.

[IndigoElectron]

Thanks all. It might not be worth the risk for the sake of a few quid. I've been looking at Blackmoor Nurseries, and while they look great, they supply some plants in too large a quantity for my needs (e.g. their raspberry collection has 10 canes of each variety). Thompson and Morgan have some good offers on at the moment, are they any good?

[simon12]

If you google "Thompson & Morgan review" it doesn't look like there much good. I have only used there seeds which seem fine. Near me all the garden centres and nurseries have Blackmoor labelled fruit plants they sell individually.

[IndigoElectron]

Gosh, I see what you mean! Might give them a miss then.

[IndigoElectron]

Okay, I've looked at my garden again and realised there is actually room to plant fruit bushes in the south facing border, which is obviously better than my original plan. Bearing this in mind, I think I will try out the cheap Wilkinson's plants - if they don't grow I haven't lost much money, whereas if they were in containers, it would have cost me a lot more for the compost etc.

One thing I am a bit confused about - I've had a look at this site:
Grow your own raspberries / RHS Gardening

and it says to plant the raspberry canes around 45cm apart, but if using pots plant 3 canes in a 30cm pot. Why is it okay to grow them so close together in pots but not in the ground? What will happen if I plant them closer together in the ground? And how many canes do people usually plant?

Thanks!

[Dorothy rouse]

Just to add to the discussion, I've used T & M, got 3 patio fruit trees last year, and they are fine, were in pots on patio, now moved up to plot, so no complaints from me.

[wbmkk]

, they supply some plants in too large a quantity for my needs (e.g. their raspberry collection has 10 canes of each variety)

I was at Aldi yesterday and they had 3 raspberry canes for £2.50 (or thereabouts) I bought 3 autumn bliss, as a standby for my Polka ones, which I put in the ground a few weeks ago.

Their apple trees were only £3.99, so I bought two of those too. At that price, it would have been daft not to.