Planting your new fruit tree.
It is important to plant your tree properly to ensure it gets off to a good start. If you have planted a new tree this year please make sure it’s well watered during the hot weather.
Dig a hole 2 – 3 feet across and 18 inches deep. Plant the tree in this, in a mixture of
50% well rotted manure and 50% the soil you took out.
Firm the tree well in.
If you are planting in a windy place, you may need to stake the tree.
Use a stake approximately one and a half inches square and secure the tree to it with a proper tree tie. Make sure that the tree does not rub on the stake.
Remove the stake at the end of the second year at the latest.
Watering is not necessary in the winter, but you may need to do this in the early summer during a dry spell.
Do not allow the grass to grow round the tree in the first few years as this will compete for nutrients and stunt the tree’s growth.
Mulch the area round the trunk with woodchip or old carpet. This will suppress weed growth and help to retain nutrients.
During the late winter, feed the tree with a barrow load of well rotted manure
Pruning Your Tree.
The aim of pruning is to create a well formed tree, with well spaced branches which are not overcrowded.
This allows plenty of light to enter to ripen the fruit and also encourages good air circulation which reduces the spread of disease.
It is important to get this right from the beginning, as it is very difficult to put mistakes right later on.
Use sharp tools which make a clean cut, this will heal quickly and be less likely to become infected with disease.
All pruning should be carried out in the winter months, ie between November and February, when the tree is dormant and it is easier to see the shape of the tree then.
Cut the side branches back by a half to two thirds. Cut back to an outward facing bud, to encourage growth away from the centre of the tree.
Remove any damaged or broken branches, as well as any low down on the trunk.
In the case of a maiden, i.e. one year old tree cut the main stem off at 3ft from the ground
- Pruning Diagram
Cordon Apples & Pears Advice
Planting & Aftercare
Select a sunny part of the garden. Trees can be planted 2 feet apart or more. They should be tied to a fence, trellis or frame to support them. This should be 6 feet high with posts approximately 6 feet apart. Wires or laths should run horizontally 12” apart.
The trees should be planted sloping at 45° in a mixture of 50% garden soil and 50% well-rotted manure. Tie them to the wires but remember to check the ties at least once a year to make sure they are not too tight.
Give a top dressing of manure to each tree in late winter. Mulch with wood chip or old carpet and make sure the trees do not dry out in early summer. They are most vulnerable in the first year.
Pruning
This is done in late August. New vertical shoots will have grown from buds on the side shoots; prune them back so that each has only 3 buds remaining. Use sharp secateurs which make a clean cut. Repeat this every year. Prune the main shoots back to 6” above the top wire.
For more information, consult the Royal Horticultural Society’s books – The Fruit Garden Displayed, or the RHS Book of Pruning and Training.
Copyright Julian Brandram, November 2007.
