Apple tree help

[Caprimulgus]

Hello, I'd like to plant a small dessert apple tree (2-3m tall) in our smallish garden and am unsure about a few things. Can anyone help?

I've looked on the RHS site, at recommended trees but the 'how to' isn't obviously there.

1. When you buy a tree, is it ready-grafted, so is it sold as a whole tree, 'this variety, that rootstock'?

2. When is the best time of year to plant an apple tree?

3. Pollination; how close does the tree need to be to other apple trees and will any apple tree do, or does it need to be the same / a similar variety?

Thanks so much!

I was at your stage this time last year so have learned quite a lot since and now have a healthy tree that has settled well. I went for Fiesta on M26 root stock (grows up to 2.5 metres) from Blackmoor Nurseries. That variety doesn't appear to be available currently but I can recommend the nursery. They advice on their website to help choose an appropriate variety - I also purchased their booklet on growing fruit which is very helpful.

1. Apple trees come ready grafted on the stock. Some are available on different stock giving a choice of size of tree.

1. If you buy a container grown tree you can plant all year round. For bare root stock planting should be between autumn and spring (end of March really). You'll find quite a few in supermarkets etc. just now.

1. I didn't worry about pollination as I live in a suburban area where fruit trees are common in gardens and local allotment.

I removed the fruit as they began to form on mine as it was in its first year but there would have been quite a few had a let them grow. I also followed advice about pruning (despite having to cut back branches with blossom which seemed a shame at the time) in the hope to establish a strong tree.

Good luck with choosing OP.

pandora Not to derail the thread but when I planted my bareroot pear and cherry trees, they fruited well straight away, but haven't done well since, do you think that's because I didn't remove the fruits? It seems such a shame to do it

I'd love an apple too.

Buy from a nursery not a garden centre, for more choice of variety and rootstock.

All you need is another apple flowering at the same time. Apples are divided into numbered groups according to the time of flowering. So if yours is group 3, another group 3 would be the best pollinator but group 2 or 4 would do.

If you’re relying on pollination by neighbours, you’ve no way of knowing which group they are, you’ll just have to hope.

You can get “family trees” with several varieties grafted on to one rootstock. Less choice of variety though.

@ppeatfruit Allowing a tree to over bear is a good way of shifting it into biennial bearing. All of mine are biennial bearers, they used to be out of synch, so I got the same sized crop each year, but different varieties each year.

Another thing to consider is do you want a dessert apple or an eating apple? Orange Pippin trees has a nice search engine for different varieties and sizes.

Thank you all, this is really helpful.

I think there are probably enough other apple trees around to take a chance on pollination but that depends on how far the pollinators travel. If they'll go up to about a 500m radius I think it will be ok.

Aren't dessert and eating apples the same thing? The RHS divides them into dessert and culinary.

I'm struggling to find a nearby nursery and the garden centres don't seem to sell trees, so may end up going mail order.

Thanks Mere but now they're not even biennials just very half hearted. That's the 'new' ones. I've fed them with old woodash mixed with compost every year too.

We also have wonderful cherry that's probably approx 23 years old and it bears more every other year.

Perhaps i'm just being too impatient.

Una I heard that Cox's Orange Pippin's are one of the most difficult apples to grow. I tried when in London with very little success.

They are my favourite eating apple too.

I bought some fruit trees this winter from Ashridge Trees. They have loads of varieties, lots of information about each and charts showing which ones cross-pollinate. I browsed Blackmoor Nurseries too and I think they also had lots of good info.

It's the end of bareroot season now, bareroot trees are cheaper and there's a much wider range of choice compared to potted trees.

They have guide which covers your questions about rootstocks, pollination info etc here... www.ashridgetrees.co.uk/fruit-trees/apple-trees.

For planting, avoid planting in summer as they may struggle to get their roots established in the heat. Lack of water whilst getting established is the most likely thing to kill them.

I planted mine just over a month ago and I can see signs of life on them now, little green leaves appearing. It's exciting!

The eating apples I went for are Christmas Pippin, Lord Lambourne and Howgate Wonder. I spent months browsing 😆.

Thanks Mere but now they're not even biennials just very half hearted Oh dear, that's disappointing! Maybe you should stop feeding them? And say loudly in their hearing that you're going to replace them if they don't give a good crop this year.

Una I heard that Cox's Orange Pippin's are one of the most difficult apples to grow Yes, they're disease prone and not generally recommended for domestic use, unlike the Orange Pippin website which is flourishing. Have you considered one of its near relatives? Ellison's Orange is one of its children which is considered to have inherited its taste, and William Crump has taste characteristics of both its parent, Cox and Worcester. Googling "parents Cox's Orange" (including the quote marks to search on the entire phrase not the words individually) gives quite a few suggestions.

@TankGirl97 I always feel happy when I see someone has planted something out of the ordinary. My favourites of the 8 varieties I have are Cornish Aromatic, Brownlees Russet, Herrings Pippin, Ashmead's Kernel.

Thanks Mere I'll have a look at my local nursery, the problem being the foreign country we're in, getting anything sent from Eng now is not easy at all ( understatement ). Brexit has effed up almost everything.

Yes, dessert and eating are the same thing

Argh, I've clearly left it too late and now find myself upon the horns of an apple tree variety dilemma: whether to buy one of the few trees still available, or take my time choosing and pre-order for the autumn. I am prone to researching but there is a child involved, who is not so patient.

It looks as though we could buy a Laxton's Superb on either of the rootstocks I think would work, M26 or MM106. Maybe a Fiesta, or a Lord Lambourne. Does anyone have experience or thoughts on any of those?

We're in the English midlands, so not especially cold, though more so than the south coast, increasingly rainy in winter, with some frosts. The tree will be in a SW-facing sunny position.

I was looking at the RHS recommended list and was quite taken with Laxton's Fortune, or maybe Fiesta or Sunset. There are clearly many more options out there.