Fruit trees on boggy clay?

[Catname]

I’d like to plant some fruit trees on small rootstock (apple, plum, cherry) but the part of the garden I’d like to use is heavy clay which gets completely waterlogged in winter and is hard pan in summer (well, assuming it’s not raining every day).

I’m aware this is not ideal so I was wondering about creating a large bank of turf/soil/tree chippings/manure/leaf mould/compost and planting on top of that to keep the roots out of the worst of the wet soil at least until they are well established.

Is this a viable idea and can anyone recommend varieties that will be more likely to flourish in the NE of England - preferably self fertile too 😊

I built up the beds about 4 inches above the surrounding level. Apples are doing fine, even though the Cornish Aromatic is flooded periodically.

https://thenorthernfruitgroup.com/2023/01/09/fruit-trees-for-a-northern-garden/ I note that none if mine are on this list So also consult a nursery listing, eg Orange Pippin. If you’re wanting more than one apple, don’t restrict yourself by going for self fertile, just make sure your chosen varieties are in the same flower group and can pollinate each other.

Thanks for confirming@MereDintofPandiculation. We have some very old apple trees in our garden and the next but I think they might be too far away (100ft and round the other side of the house) to have any new ones reliably pollinated. I’m very pleased to see Victoria Plums are on the list 😊

I've got a Victoria Plum on the same sort of soil as you describe and it's a really heavy cropper. Also put in a greengage that is suitable for northern bits of the UK and that is lovely.

The apples are less reliable but I think that's more down to my pruning than anything else.

My apples crop less heavily than they should but still give me about 200lb a year. But don't make my mistake "Ok, you can't grow apples on clay, so I'll use a less dwarfing rootstock than I'd otherwise have used, to give them a bit more oomph". "Oomph" is one thing they certainly aren't in need of!

I was thinking perhaps I've written this myself until I read NE. Also heavy clay and wanting to plant some fruit trees. No real advice, but I've recently joined gardners corner which has a wealth of advice on their forum.

Great to know that I might get a good crop. I’d not thought about greengages. There are some Damson in the hedgerow next to the pavement near us which the birds love. One of my friends has a fig further north than we are but hers is planted on much drier soil next to the house - I’d love one but it would probably be throwing money away.

How many apple trees do you have to be producing 200lbs of fruit Mere?

We have clay soil and it can be a swap in the winter and a desert in the summer - our apple tree is probably 50 years old and produces apples in abundance. We are in the SE though.

I've got a fig...only had fruit here in North West one year. Love the leaves though.

Eight. But by no means equal! One of them can get up to 120lbs by itself. Sadly, it’s not the nicest one.

I get about 200 figs a year off two trees. Quince, mulberry and medlar are my other fruit trees.

Our house was built on what had been a market garden in the early 60’s. There are aerial photos from the late 40’s which show part of the site given over to an orchard so I’m assuming the apple trees that are still here in our garden/our neighbours’ gardens are probably older and most still produce fruit in spite of not having seen any pruning for over a decade. The one that is closest to where I’m planning has sadly been starved of light by some big conifers that were planted when the plot was sold for development so it never bears any fruit.

I recently heard that figs are very productive when happy, and to give a gift of figs in ancient times was a great insult as it suggested that you were incapable of growing something very easy (in the Mediterranean not the cold and wet North of England) 😊