Fruit trees

Newbiegardner · January 2023

I am looking to plant an apple tree trained against a fence and pear tree near it against my shed but a bit worried as I’ve read that they need to be near a pollinator. Any advice ?

Newbiegardner · January 2023

I live in Liverpool, We are looking to eat the fruit. I was thinking about conference pear and Braeburn apple ?

chicky · January 2023

All apple and pear trees do best with a pollinating partner - that is another tree (different variety) that flowers at about the same time. The link below explains it well for apples, and there is a table for pears on the same site

https://www.ashridgetrees.co.uk/gardening-advice/fruit-tree-advice/apple-tree-pollination1

Your Braeburn is a late flowerer (Group E) so will need another in group D or E or F to pollinate it. Even supposedly self fertile trees do much better with a partner.

If you don’t have room for 4 trees, maybe you could go for just 2 apples or 2 pears? Or grow the extra 2 as stepovers which take up very little room - you can even use them to edge a border.

Newbiegardner · January 2023

Sadly I don’t have room for 4 trees and really wanted one apple and one pear, will do more reading, I still have a few months before we start work on the garden thankfully !

Pete.8 · January 2023

As an alternative to Conference have you considered Concorde.
It's a cross between Conference and Comice and is delicious!
Far superior to Conference and also self-fertile.
https://www.chrisbowers.co.uk/product/pear-concorde/

If there are plenty of gardens where you live, chances are some will have apple trees, so pollination partners for apples in such a location is usually not a concern.

Newbiegardner · January 2023

I think our neighbour has an apple tree so hopefully that will help, I’ve not looked at concord but will definitely take a look ! Thanks so much

Dovefromabove · January 2023

We have a Concorde pear grown as an espalier ... we have no other pear trees and I don't know of any in neighbouring gardens ... we get a good crop from ours and the fruit are much superior to Conference. Large and juicy, without going soft as soon as you look at them as some pears do. Ours produced its first fruit four years after we'd planted it, which we were very pleased with.

Newbiegardner · January 2023

We do currently have a pear tree in the garden that we inherited when we moved in but it’s all bent out of shape and the fruit just never ripens so it’s a real waste of space for us (no clue what type it is either). I’m hoping if I start it off I might be able to keep it in shape. I saw a lovely tree that was trained against what I can only describe as a trident so would be leaning towards that sort of training (especially as I want it to hide an end of a shed) 🤞

Dovefromabove · January 2023

Pears don’t ripen on the tree … you need to pick them when the stem ‘cracks’ when you lift the fruit … then the pears ripen in the fruit bowl over the next few days.

If you leave pears to ripen on the tree they just rot from the inside.

Newbiegardner · January 2023

I read somewhere that they should come away easily when ready with a light twist … not our tree you twist it twice and it’s still there .. tried September and all through October these things don’t budge 🙇‍♀️

purplerallim · January 2023

I too have a Concord pear, but it's is only two years old. Bought at about 4ft tall, in what they call goblet shaped, so takes up little room. It did give us six pears this year.
As for apples how about a duo tree. Two varieties on one rootstock, just make sure you get a dwarf rootstock to keep the size down @NewbieGardener

Fruit trees

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