Variety advice & recommendations

[Small pumpkin]

we will soon have space for 2 new fruit trees. Have no idea what though! Would like one to be a nice eating apple. Things to be considered nothing that grows to big, must like cold, wet, windy weather, must cope well with neglect (not very good at pruning ). No plums thanks we have 3 and they do quite well.
I would like a nectarine but really don't think it would like to live on the Isle of Mull

[Greenleaves]

Might be worth sending a PM to FB?

[veggiechicken]

I can guarantee that FB will see this and be along soon with some advice.
How about a pear?

[clod]

Hey, how exciting to have a chance to plant new fruits - one of my favourite things anyway!

And having so many to chooose from can be tricky. I also expect FB will help - he certainly seems to know his onions when it comes to fruit!

Last time I did it I spend hours going through "The Book of Apples" by Joan Morgan and Alison Richards (Ebury Press), which lists and descibes hundreds (literally) of varieties. I ended up with a Striped Norfolk Beefing, which I'd never heard of, but this isn't everyone's idea of fun. It's still newish and hasn't yet fruited (I haven't let it).

Might be worth contacting local associations, hort socs, etc, and there are now a lot of Orchard Groups around trying to save old varieties before they're lost. These folk are likely to be best placed to tell you what will suit the local conditions, as well as a host of other info.

On the subject of planting trees I see the latest advice is to dig square planting holes rather than circular ones, as the roots grow out from the hole more easily.

An old gardener told me once that people used to bury a dead sheep under newly planted fruit for long term fertilising! I've no idea how helpful it might be, and I've never heard of it since, but perhaps it might be worth burying a fleece...unless you have a dead sheep!

Good luck!

[FB.]

I think the Isle of Mull will be an unusual set of growing conditions.
How cold does it get in winter? How warm does it get in summer?
How much soil depth? What's underneath?
How well and how quickly do other bushes and trees grow?
Lots of salty sea-spray perhaps?
Does anyone nearby successfully grow any apple trees?
Will pollination be a problem?
How big are your plum trees, do you know which rootstock they're on, and how long did it take them to reach their size?

[FB.]

An old gardener told me once that people used to bury a dead sheep under newly planted fruit for long term fertilising! I've no idea how helpful it might be, and I've never heard of it since, but perhaps it might be worth burying a fleece...unless you have a dead sheep!

The sheep is probably just a very concentrated form of compost/manure.
Meat (or fish) of almost any type is high in protein, and protein is very high in nitrogen, and nitrogen makes plants grow.
Plus the sheep's meat will contain lots of other useful nutrients, and some parts of the sheep will take a long time to decompose, resulting in what is equivalent to slow-release fertiliser.

Nowadays the powdered Fish, Blood & Bone fertilisers will probably do a similar job.

[Kirk]

Interesting location: Mull is a big island so unless you are overlooking the see then spray can be ignored, my family is from Redcar and sea front houses grow apples happily.

You have the gulf stream to warm the area but it is (lets say) damp, and at that latitude your length of day/night varies more then for us Southeners.

So I did the simple thing: Threw "scottish apples" into Google.
This is from Clyde Valley Orchids

There is a link to a list of Scottish Apples on the page which may be useful. If you want to sort of dig further then look up those apples on something like the National Fruit Collection list and dig out their characteristics and transpose those onto modern apples. Might then work out a modern apple that suits. I would go get 2 or 3 of the old Scottish varieties myself. They are much more interesting.

Also Orange Pippin has this: Fruit trees for North West Scotland - fruit trees for sale

[Small pumpkin]

I think the Isle of Mull will be an unusual set of growing conditions.
How cold does it get in winter? How warm does it get in summer?
How much soil depth? What's underneath?
How well and how quickly do other bushes and trees grow?
Lots of salty sea-spray perhaps?
Does anyone nearby successfully grow any apple trees?
Will pollination be a problem?
How big are your plum trees, do you know which rootstock they're on, and how long did it take them to reach their size?

As kirk said

Interesting location: Mull is a big island so unless you are overlooking the see then spray can be ignored, my family is from Redcar and sea front houses grow apples happily.
You have the gulf stream to warm the area but it is (lets say) damp, and at that latitude your length of day/night varies more then for us Southeners.

So basically winter not necessarily colder than anywhere else, but wetter & windier. Summer, there is a high chance it's a good 5 degrees colder than down south. Soil depth about 1ft then it starts getting rocky. Other bushes that grow well on the island fuchsia & rhododendrons do very well. Maybe to well! Not close enough for sea spray, but it's an exposed site. Other apple trees been grow successfully, that would be about 5meters away from where I want my new one to go. The orchard has been growing for about 18 years. Planted by the landlord who kept records of what variety she had. Unfortunately the last tenant misplaced/lost these records. So landlord can't remember and I haven't got a clue! What I do know is we have 3 plum trees, I think Victoria ( well they taste like it). 1 crab apple, doing well, 1 pear, we've just been told by landlord we can take down as it isn't doing much and apparently never has. What fruit it does produce is always very hard. You can only make chutney or jam from them. 2 allegedly eating apples, one produces very well, but not a nice eating apple very very tart. The other apple will be coming down as it's been ring barked by bunnies!!! But it's never done as well and they are not a nice eater!
Pollination isn't a problem, the wind blowing all the blossom off is. Not a lot anyone can do about that.
Hope that helps.

[FB.]

The 'not nice tasting' might be because those varieties prefer more sun and warmth.
I've mentioned before that I put a Golden Delicious in semi-shade and it stopped flowering (therefore no fruit) and grew only very slowly.

So I would suggest only shortlisting varieties which have been proven to grow and crop well in a cool, damp, dull climate.
But beware that varieties which are common also tend to be the most likely to suffer from pests and diseases caught from identical trees nearby.

The plants you mention growing in your area point to acid soil, so be alert for any problems associated with acidic soils.

I think a variety such as Scrumptious might do well and produce good tasty fruit. It can suffer badly from codling maggots and woolly aphids down here, but those pests won't do so well in your climate.

Other summer-ripening (July-August, possibly September), sweet-tasting apples will have a reasonable chance too. But be wary of sharp-tasting apples because lack of sun and lack of warmth will make them even sharper to the point of being only useful for cooking.

Worcester Pearmain might do well - ripens mid-season and is sweet-tasting, but it's a common variety and can suffer from diseases passed on by other peoples Worcester Pearmain trees nearby.

Your best rootstock choices would probably be MM106, M116 or M26.

[BUFFS]

we get the same sort of weather and temperatures and by far the best of the apples has been the James Grieve which has produced a decent tasty crop even with the poor summer we have just had, braeburn gave up the ghost after 4/5yrs but the bramley, trained as an espalier goes from strength to strength, pears are a complete waste of time, money and effort. I have peaches and apricots (dwarf, bought from "the range" for £8 and £6) growing and fruiting in a north-facing greenhouse (old chook house), they do not like being outside in our wet climate, but with the exception of this dour year the temperatures have not been a problem, even the farmers have had problems this year with the cold temps so I know its not just me...

[Small pumpkin]

Thank You all.
Very helpful. Going to have a look at some of those varieties now.