Just thought I owe an update. Bought few bare root from HomeBase (Cherry - Stella, Victoria Plum, Conference Pear). All of them have started growing well. Stella, even produced some flowers!!!
It's not complicated. Before the Ice Age Britain was part of the European continent. As the ice melted, not only did the land rise as the weight reduced but water levels rose and flooded the lowland which now makes the English Channel and North Sea. This happened fast enough to mean there was a very limited number of creatures and plants that made it across before the water stopped them in their tracks.
Rabbits, lavender, apples, garlic etc were all introduced by the Romans so a mere 2 millennia ago. Here is what the RHS has discovered in researching plants for pollinators and comparing native species to introductions - https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?PID=970
Posts
“It's still magic even if you know how it's done.”
The wilder plums are very pretty early in the year.