Cultivation

Video Guides

SITE SELECTION

When planting and tending your tree please bear in mind the following:

Apple trees prefer a deep loamy, well-drained, slightly acid soil preferably on a south-facing slope. It would be best to give the tree as good a soil and site as possible.

Allow plenty of air movement around and through the tree. A warm airy site will help reduce the likelihood of scab forming on the fruit and canker from causing dieback of the wood.

Both these fungi need humidity to flourish.

Avoid frost pockets when choosing your site.

Very few apple varieties are self-fertile; they need another different variety that flowers at the same time to cross-pollinate. Obviously you have more chance of success if there are several potential pollinators nearby.

Root Stocks

All fruit trees aree grafted onto rootstocks. The rootstocks determine tree size. Bigger trees are more robust and produce more fruit, but take up more space. Always choose a bigger rootstock if you need extra anchorage, or your soil is poor (very wet, dry or rocky). Small trees can't compete with grass & weeds. If we assume that the Bardsey tree grows with average vigour, then the table below will give you an idea of how big your trees will eventually be and when they will come into fruition.

Root stock	Height & Spread (in ft)	Age when tree will bear	Anchorage	Staking	Grass on orchard floor
M27 Apple	4	2	Very poor	Entire life of tree	Needs clean soil
M9 Apple	7	3	Poor	Entire life of tree	Needs clean soil
M26 Apple Pixy Plum Quince C (Pear)	10	3	Fair	First 4 years	Short grass OK once established
MM106 Apple St Julian Plum Quince A Pear	15	4	Good	First 2 years	Long grass OK once established
M25 Apple	22	7	Very good	N/A	No problem

The following 2 links are about the best information you can get that is readily available on the internet:

Growing Apple Trees in the Home Garden
The best site on the web explains how to train a centre leader tree to the most light efficient shape

TRAINING & PRUNING APPLE TREES -
Ecological Agriculture Projects
This is the best site on the web for theory - very technical but well worth the challenge.

PLANTING, TRAINING, PRUNING, PICKING, STORAGE

Ask any 10 orchardists about any of the above and you will get 10 different answers!

Rather than add an eleventh I suggest you read:

THE FRUIT EXPERT by Dr.Hessayon @ £4.95.......a good cheap basic book with very clear diagrams

FRUIT by Harry Baker @ £8.99......A thoroughly comprehensive guide from the RHS with excellent precise line drawings

TRAINING & PRUNING OF APPLE AND PEAR TREES@ $29.95 by CG FORSHEY
available only via the internet. Extremely detailed and academic, it is paraphrased on the web site TRAINING & PRUNING OF APPLE TREES