Hi I'm looking for a little advice!
We have a very small field (on our farm) that used to be an orchard, and I am hoping to replant it this Autumn/Spring.
It is next to our dilapidated yard ( currently only one usable stable ) so I would be hoping that in future the orchard may occasionally be used for turning out ponies or horses.
So I was wondering whether I should plant the tallest-growing kind of apple trees? Or which rootstocks would be suitable?
How many years would we have to wait before allowing horses/ponies tongraze there?
Would we still need to protect our trees?
I think there used to be four large trees in it. When I paced it out I thought I might fit six large trees. Dh may let me extend the field slightly into another, to enlarge the orchard to accommodate a few more - perhaps another four would fit...
Obviously if I could plant smaller trees I could fit more, but do you think they would withstand grazing horses/ponies?
Looking forward to all advice/experience. Thanks!
Thanks :-)