I'm planting some fruit trees (cordon and single trees)

[Mark Lottie]

This thread is from two merged threads and re-titled


I'm planting a long line of apple cordons and 4 single trees, I will use this thread to document how I did it.

New posts relating to the planting can be seen from page 2 onwards

First two pages are from threads where I asked some questions


original post for this thread

Hi fruit experts

I got a load of trees to plant tomorrow and the frame is already built.

I'm pretty sure I have most of the info I need about planting but wanted to ask two things:

1. Some source like the RHS say prune the leader in the first winter when you plant but more sources say DON'T prune it until it reaches it's final height at the top of the frame. What do you guys reckon?

2. The frame goes East to West, 2 metres behind it to the North is a fence that shields wind from the North, 3 metres to the East side of it is a small wooded area that shields a lot of wind from the West. The wind either goes from East to West or towards the frame from the south. No windbreaks to the East or South. Originally I planned to plant the trees on the south side of the frame, facing the sun with the canes they are tied to on the north side. Thinking about how the wind blows, if I planted the trees on the south side it's possible that the wind from the south blows it backwards towards the canes and may rub the tree against the cane/ties. I will use the rubber figure of 8 ties to connect the trees to the canes along the wires. Would it be better to plant the trees on the north side so that the wind from the south blows the tree away from the cane? Sunlight is only needed by the leaves right? So the cane blocking the sunlight to the stem wont matter as much?

attached is a rough diagram.

[Alison]

I trained mine from the start with initial pruning winter and summer and it worked well. You also need to maximise light / sun so mine have their roots South of the tops if that makes sense so the whole upper side gets maximum sun. How windy is your plot? If very bad you may need to look at other protection.

[Mark Lottie]

It's not too bad, except at the moment with all the storms

yeah, ideally I would have planted them south to north with roots at south and top at north, but this wasnt an option

cheers!

[Mark Lottie]

(Answered) fruit tree planting questions about frost

Hi

Sorry to make a seperate thread so quickly but I need some urgent advice and wanted to catch the attention of those who may have not clicked on the other thread


I've got a load of trees to plant (23 apple, 2 pear, 1 cherry) mainly along a cordon frame

Over night there was a light frost but no rain. Right now we are due sunshine for rest of day and not much wind. The ground at the cordon is damp and the ground is clay based and hasn't been dug in years. When you stick a spade in, it goes in fine and you turn up soil that while damp, crumbles a bit; so not waterlogged.

I want to know if I should plant today or heel them in on a nearby strip that is more loamy and with better drainage and wait until there's a few frost free days and no rain.

Or would you go ahead and plant today or tomorrow? ( no frost or rain forecast in next 24 hours)

Thanks!

[Nicos]

Seeing as no one has replied ...

I really don't know, and if in doubt heel them in until you know for sure..or are they in pots- in which case there's no hurry?

Alternatively...I found this....
Chapter 6: Do the Right Thing: Planting Your Tree | www.treepeople.org

It says if the ground isn't frozen you can plant.
You just need to break up the soil around the outside of the hole to aid drainage.
There's loads of interesting info in that link.

The trees are dormant so you have time on your hands.

[Stan79]

Where in the country are you?

[Nicos]

^^^ good question...could you please put your location into your profile??

[FB.]

If it's not waterlogged and not frozen there's no problem - go ahead and plant them today and/or tomorrow.
You may find it helpful if someone holds each tree in position while you refill the planting holes.

[FB.]

Regarding any pruning - stone fruits are best left until early spring (when the buds start to swell) to avoid the risk of disease.

Apples and pear are best pruned in winter but I prefer not to prune if a hard frost or heavy rain is expected within a few days of pruning because I have a suspicion that it increases the chance of the shoot dying back up to several inches from the pruning cut, making a mess of your pruning technique.

[Mark Lottie]

Thanks for all the help

I'm in greater London, so doesn't get too cold. Or hot really. The frost melted by mid day so that wasn't too much of a concern.

I had a dig around outside and that patch really has poor drainage and at the bottom of a spade's depth is a puddle. I will have to hold off for now as well as improve the drainage around where the trees will go.

I am going to heel them in tomorrow along a temporary frame for support in a less waterlogged bed that is more loamy and has better drainage. Ill also start rotavating and double digging the whole area around it

[rustylady]

Ill also start rotavating and double digging the whole area around it

Rotavate AND double dig? Sounds like overkill to me. Why make life harder than it needs to be?

[Mark Lottie]

I Rotavate to break up the soil and grass, then pile it at the side the. Rotavate again. Less strain on the back I find

Cheers

[boundtothesoil]

Would it be better to plant the trees on the north side so that the wind from the south blows the tree away from the cane[/b]? Sunlight is only needed by the leaves right? So the cane blocking the sunlight to the stem wont matter as much?

I think it is usually recommended to stake the tree so that the prevailing wind blows the tree away from the stake, rather than towards it, in order to minimise rubbing damage.
Once the tree has produced leaves any 'shading' effect of the stake will be negligible.
Over the years, I've found the greatest problems with stakes to be (1) forgetting to loosen the ties when the trunk begins to increase in diameter,and (2 ) inserting the stake too close to the tree in the first place.

[Mark Lottie]

Thanks boundtothesoil, I think I will actually plant it on the north side. Will look a bit weird initially but the important thing is to avoid the tree getting damaged.

Definitely going to set some phone reminders about the ties, but hopefully I should be ok with the canes as they are already up in order to help me with spacing.


I'm not planting them for a while; the weather isn't right yet, so if anyone has any other info; feel free to post it.

I'll put some photos up when it's done.

[Paulieb]

I have a row of cordons that I planted last year and the pruning that I'm following regarding the leader is to take it back to a third of the new growth each winter. This encourages side branches to develop which is what you want for the fruit on a cordon. If you just left it you'd end up with a 6 foot tree with very little branching. There are also summer pruning jobs to restrict the vigour and encourage fruit buds.

There are a couple of good videos by ashridge on YouTube.