Watering Your Fruit Tree

Now the weather is warming up it is important to ensure you regularly water your fruit trees, particularly any new trees, to ensure that their roots establish in their new home. Watering is probably the most important thing you can do to support new trees during their first season.  On average a bucket of water once a week is adequate, applied slowly so that it percolates through the soil.  If the weather is particularly warm or dry you may need to increase this to 2 or 3 times a week.

Handy Hint - Little and often is the best way to water your fruit trees, allowing the soil to dry out a little in between each session.  If you allow the ground to become too water-logged this can be just as damaging to the tree as not watering it at all!

Several methods of watering can be used, including soaker hoses, watering stakes or simply using a watering can.  The main thing to remember is that the water needs to soak through the soil to the roots of the tree. It is ok if the top of the soil is dry so long as it is damp underneath. Creating a moat around the base of the tree is often a good way to prevent water from washing away from the tree, ensuring your watering is more efficient.






Handy Hint - Mulch placed a few inches from the trunk of the tree can help keep the soil moist and cool; it also stops water evaporating as quickly from the soil.  However it is important to make sure that you are careful when using mulch as it can damage the tree is not used correctly.  The mulch must not touch the tree trunk and it must be very well rotted to ensure there are no toxins left in it which could poison the tree. In addition you need to make sure the mulch is put on lightly to allow air to filter through it, otherwise it may encourage rot or pests around the tree. 

Following the first year you do not need to be quite as attentive to the tree, however it is still wise to water it just before, during and just after the main blossoming period and around harvest time.  The more effectively you water your fruit tree the stronger it will grow and the better the fruit will be that it produces.

 

Ever heard of a medlar fruit?

Normally grown in Southwest Asia or Southeast Europe, the medlar has been around for over 3000 years and has been enjoyed by many including the Romans, Greek and slightly more recently Shakespeareans.

It is a strange fruit, with the appearance of a large rosehip and is available in the winter, which makes it very popular when other fruits are not around.  Historically medlars have been used to make sweet treats called ‘medlar cheese’ whereas nowadays they are used in jellies, chutneys and tarts.

Against our natural expectation the fruit is best eaten when it has been ‘bletted’, which means it has browned as a result of rot (a bit like eating a mouldy cheese like stilton). Straight from the tree the fruit can be a bit tart, but it sweetens as it blets. There is a small window during which you can eat the fruit and although they can be a bit fiddly with their seeds, it is worth every mouthful!

Although they aren’t often grown commercially these days, medlars were a very popular British fruit in years gone by and can still flourish in our UK climate. They can be grown as large bushes or small trees in a sunny, sheltered spot and have a delightful white blossom in the autumn. So why not try growing one yourself? See our range of medlar trees here


#medlar #fruittrees #unusualfruit

Training Fruit Trees

Training Techniques

Fruit can be trained in to several different shapes including cordon, espalier, step-over and arch.   All of these shapes create a delicate feature out of a wild tree; they allow the fruit trees to fit along borders, fences, walls and walkways.

 

                             

       Cordon                  Espalier                 Step-over             Arch

The practice of training fruit trees means that they grow more slowly creating a stronger tree with tougher branches. When fully ripened the wood produces a greater number of flowers than the more gentle growth of untrained trees and as a result training entices more fruit from the tree whilst creating a beautiful feature for the garden.

Most fruits trees and bushes can be trained. The most popular species include apple trees, pear trees, fig trees, cherry trees and apricot trees along with gooseberry, blackcurrant and redcurrant bushes.

Pre-trained trees can be purchased, however it is more adventurous trying your hand at doing the training yourself. To do this you will need to start with a maiden, one year old tree which has a light feathering of branches starting to sprout.  It is also best to find a tree that has been grafted on to a dwarf rootstock so that its growth can be managed more effectively than one grown on a vigorous rootstock.

You can then train the tree to whatever shape you like by tying the main growth point from each branch on to a frame. The frame can represent whatever final shape you are looking to create, though it is advised not to try something too complicated the first time round. It is important to keep any side shoots pruned back over the winter to about 3 shoots per branch to encourage the tougher branches to grow more.  It is these branches that will produce a greater number of flowers in the spring. 

To care for your trained tree it is best to do any shaping and pruning in the winter so that you can enjoy the blossoms and then fruit crop through the spring, summer and autumn.

#fruittrees #trainedfruit #orchard #gardeningtips