planting cherry tree to fan against house wall

[inkblackheart]

Ive bought a morello cherry to grow against the front of the house. It's to go into an internal corner (iyswim). One part of the corner faces North and the other faces West so it gets a bit of evening sun. I'm hoping to plant the cherry in the corner and to fan the branches along the two walls so it won't be a flat fan shape but at right angles (hopefully that makes sense).

Is this a stupid idea that is doomed to fail? If not then how far from the wall should I plant the tree? Any tips for the fanning? So far it only has a few branches anyway. Is this in itself an issue?

No, having only a few branches isn’t an issue. You’d expect training to take a few years.

https://www.rhs.org.uk/fruit/fruit-trees/initial-fan-training

Thank you. What about the right angle issue? I'm hoping that wouldn't make any difference

My biggest tip is to keep on top of all the branches that sprout where you don't want or need them.
Cherries dislike being pruned, so the best thing to do is keep a close eye on it during the growing season and rub off any buds sprouting in the wrong place. That will let the tree put energy into the branches you do want.

I have a Morello cherry, on a dwarfing rootstock and trained against a fence. I keep a roll of agricultural fleece and some pegs in the shed, and each year (apart from the first when I learnt a lesson), just before the cherries start to ripen I peg the fleece over the tree to stop the birds from stripping all the cherries in the early morning on the first day they turn red.

I was very ill for a couple of years, and wasn't able to get down the garden path and keep up with rubbing off the new buds. It didn't take long for tall shoots to sprout, straight up and many feet higher than the 6 foot fence. I was told not to prune it in late winter (when I am often hobbling around with the secateurs and long handled pruning shears) but to wait until the end of August when the tree will be more awake and have a better chance of healing the cuts. Except I was ill again last August, and now the straight branches above the fence are thick and too wide to cut without a saw.

I think I'm going to brutalise them this August (if I'm well enough) and see what happens to the tree. If it can't heal the cuts and succumbs to canker that'll be my excuse to replace it with something that needs a bit less maintenance.

Possibly different growth rates between the two sides. But shouldn't make any difference otherwise.

@stealthsquirrelnutkin You need them in active growth so the prssure of sap makes it difficult for pathogens to enter. August seems a bit late.

Right I'm going to give it a go!

Good luck! We have an espaliered apple and pear tree along our back fence, on a north-east wall. We planted the apple about 5 years ago, and the pear just last year. My DH has fun with tying and pruning new growths to train it along the wires, and I do watch for any bugs or mildew.
I don't thing the corner angle should pose a problem, unless one gets less sun than the other. There's lots of garden books or websites for help.

Don’t do any pruning till May

I seem to have a leading "trunk" and then three branches off. It seems ideal to train two each way but this would include the leading stem. Not sure whether that should stay as a central branch