Fruit Trees advise

Apples are one of the easiest tree fruits to grow and would be the best choice for a beginner or a less-than-ideal location. Even if you can only grow one tree, there are usually apple trees in nearby gardens that can act as pollinators.

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Pears are much less common in the UK (and not many can resist the canker diseases of wet areas), so you can't rely on there being a suitable pollinator in a nearby garden; you'll either need a self-fertile variety (although self-pollinated fruits are often smaller, mis-shapen and lower quality) or you'll need a suitable pollinator.
Pears flower a few weeks earlier than apples, so can have their blossom or fruitlets killed by a late frost.
Pears are generally poor keepers, so you won't want to grow too many.

Conference is one of the better choices, being partially-self-fertile and also capable of producing seedless fruits without pollination. Self-pollinated or seedless Conference pears tend to be rather bent.

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If you opt for an apple, don't grow a variety which you find in the shops.
The common UK varieties have been grown for so long that the diseases have evolved to attack them very efficiently and are widespread across the UK.
Commercial orchards just pour on the chemicals (sometimes a couple of dozen sprays a year), but that's not as easy for a home grower.
But don't despair because there are some "old" "forgotten" varieties from centuries past, with strong resistance to diseases (because they had to be resistant without sprays!).
Shop-bought apples from overseas often will not ripen properly in the UK climate.

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Chosing an apple variety that is suitable will need you to think about:

1. What do you want to use the apples for? Eating? Cooking?

2. What time of year do you want them to ripen?

3. Do you want to eat/cook straight from the tree, or do you want to pack some in boxes for use through the winter?

4. Which diseases are likely to be troublesome in your area? (adding a location to your profile would be very helpful)

5. Do you have a preference for attractive fruits or attractive blossoms?
(often the tastiest and most disease-resistant fruits are the ugly old russet types, from before the time when humans tried to selectively breed for looks)

6. How large do you want your tree to get? Apples can be grown on a variety of rootstocks which control the mature size - some as small as 4ft. Other fruit varieties (pears, plums) have less variety in terms of size controlling roots.

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Whatever you do, don't rush into it or you might end up with a disappointment.

Also looking for advice so I've butted in. I have a gap as a result of losing a Lilac tree over winter. I'd like to put in an apple tree. Position is on top of a slope, gets sun from early morning till about mid-day and then from mid afternoon to dusk, soil is London clay but does not get waterlogged. I'd like a good eater which stores well and height could be up to 10-12 feet.

For a tree of 10-12 feet, you'd be best with MM106 rootstock.
MM106 is a good rootstock, but it is quite prone to root rots in saturated/waterlogged soils.
However, MM106 also dislikes light/sandy/droughty soils; the roots simply won't grow in soils that dry out quickly.
MM106 also forms quite nicely shaped trees that have partial resistance to woolly aphid.

M26 rootstock could be used to calm-down the more vigorous varieties (often triploid varieties), or where the soil is very fertile and vigour would be excessive with MM106.
But M26 roots are more brittle than MM106, so not as suitable for good anchorage.
M26 will often develop a rather one-sided root system and subsequently a slightly one-sided tree (although this can be corrected by pruning).
Fruit quality from trees on M26 is sometimes not as good as MM106.
M26 also lacks the woolly aphid resistance of MM106.

If your soil is quite poor, or otherwise difficult growing conditions - or if you plan to grow a low-vigour variety that needs a bit of a boost - MM111 rootstock would be a good choice.


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Apples with very long storage properties are often hard and acid when picked, but ripen during storage. I have a particular interest in long-keeping apples, to extend the season.
After many years of experimenting - after considering a variety of factors such as taste, storage, pests, diseases, frost resistance, excellent pollinators and so on - I am currently growing the following as half-standard trees:

Early-season (August-September), generally poor keepers, must be eaten within a week or two of picking:

Beauty of Bath
Laxton's Epicure
James Grieve
Worcester Pearmain

Earlies often suffer quite heavy losses to insect/worm/maggot pests (never eat a home-grown early apple without cutting it into quarters first!).
But earlies can draw the attention away from later apples.

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Mid-season (September-October), reasonable keepers (keep until Christmas), can be used straight from the tree:

Ard Cairn Russet
Bountiful
Jupiter
Spartan

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Late-season (October-November), very-long-keepers (will store until Easter or longer in a shed; may not be ready to eat raw until the new year, but can be used as cookers when first picked):

Belle de Boskoop
Coeur de Boeuf
Court Pendu Plat
Crawley Beauty
D'Arcy Spice
Edward VII
Hambledon Deux Ans
Miltn Wnder
Norfolk Beefing
Tydeman's Late Orange

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Other fairly good varieties (varied seasons of use), which I don't grow as half-standards (but have grown well as bushes or cordons) include:
Annie Elizabeth
Beauty of Bath
Brownlees Russet
Discovery
Egremont Russet
Fiesta (Red Pippin)
Grenadier
Howgate Wonder
Red Devil
Reverend Wilks
Saturn

If you would like more detailed information on some of those varieties - including their strengths and weaknesses (no apple variety is perfect) or where to find somewhere that sells them - please ask.

Thanks for that FB. I've heard good things about Tydeman's Late Orange. Looking at your list Crawley Beauty caught my eye but I have never come across it.

Tydeman's Late Orange is quite a good tree - someone asked about it maybe a month ago; here's a link to the topic:

http://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gra...nge_54623.html

The National Fruit Collection page for T.L.O. is here:

Search NFC

I have never seen TLO such a deep red; mine are usually a dull brick-orange over green. I wonder if the NFC's colour balance is "off" (or maybe enhanced to make the fruit look more attractive!).

There are many pics of TLO on the 'net, but most seem to over-state the colour.

The picture in this link is one of the closest, but still an example of a particularly well-coloured specimen!
Apple - Tydeman's Late Orange - tasting notes, identification, review this apple tree


The picture of TLO in Dr.Hessayon's "Fruit Expert" book (ISBN 0-903-50531-2) is one of the most true-to-life that I've seen, but I disagree with much of what Dr.Hessayon says about apples!

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Crawley Beauty has good resistance to pests and diseases.
It is also very late-flowering (so doesn't get frosted), self-fertile, produces huge amounts of blossom and a is very heavy and reliable cropper.
The fruit is quite attractive and lasts quite well in storage.

The perfect apple?
Sadly, no.
The flavour of the fruit is nothing special; average at best (that's probably why the pests don't usually damage them!).

But its strong resistance to problems makes it a useful "backup" when frosts, pests or diseases have taken their toll on other varieties.

OK, here's a quick list of my experiences with most of the varieties listed above........
Score out of five (5 is very good/very late, 4 is quite good/quite late, 3 is average/middle, 2 is quite poor/quite early, 1 is very poor/very early etc).

But don't hold me responsible if they behave differently in your soil or climate!
Some varieties are more prone to problems in certain areas due to differences in soil nutrients and climate - especially areas where the variety is common and the diseases have had decades of time to become well-adapted to attack it.




Beauty of Bath
Scab 4
Mildew 4
Canker 3
Pests 2
Flowering time 2
Frost 2
Pollinator 4
Fruit quality 3
Crop size 4
Reliability 2
Storage 1
Vigour 4

Laxton's Epicure:
Scab 3
Mildew 3
Canker 3
Pests 3
Flowering time 3
Frost 4
Pollinator 3
Fruit quality 4
Crop size 4
Reliability 5
Storage 1
Vigour 2

James Grieve
Scab 3
Mildew 5
Canker 2
Pests 4
Flowering time 1-2 (long flowering)
Frost 5
Pollinator 4
Fruit quality 4
Crop size 5
Reliability 5
Storage 2
Vigour 3

Plum Vite:
Scab 5
Mildew 3
Canker 4
Pests 2
Flowering time 2
Frost 2
Pollinator 3
Fruit quality 3
Crop size 3
Reliability 3
Storage 1
Vigour 4

Worcester Pearmain
Scab 3
Mildew 5
Canker 2
Pests 2
Flowering time 3
Frost 5
Pollinator 5
Fruit quality 4
Crop size 4
Reliability 5
Storage 2
Vigour 2

Ard Cairn Russet
Scab 4
Mildew 3
Canker 3
Pests 4
Flowering time 3
Frost 3
Pollinator 3
Fruit quality 4
Crop size 3
Reliability 3
Storage 3
Vigour 3

Bountiful
Scab 3
Mildew 5
Canker 3
Pests 4
Flowering time 2-3 (long flowering)
Frost 4
Pollinator 4
Fruit quality 2
Crop size 5
Reliability 5
Storage 3
Vigour 2

Jupiter
Scab 4
Mildew 4
Canker 3
Pests 4
Flowering time 3
Frost 3
Pollinator 1 (triploid)
Fruit quality 4
Crop size 5
Reliability 2
Storage 3
Vigour 4

Spartan
Scab 4
Mildew 5
Canker 3
Pests 5
Flowering time 3
Frost 4
Pollinator 5
Fruit quality 3
Crop size 4
Reliability 4
Storage 3
Vigour 3

Belle de Boskoop
Scab 5
Mildew 4
Canker 4
Pests 4
Flowering time 2
Frost 3
Pollinator 1 (triploid)
Fruit quality 4
Crop size 3
Reliability 3
Storage 5
Vigour 4

Court Pendu Plat
Scab 4
Mildew 4
Canker 3
Pests 4
Flowering time 5
Frost 4
Pollinator 1
Fruit quality 4
Crop size 3
Reliability 4
Storage 4
Vigour 1

Crawley Beauty
Scab 4
Mildew 5
Canker 4
Pests 5
Flowering time 5
Frost 4
Pollinator 1
Fruit quality 2
Crop size 5
Reliability 4
Storage 4
Vigour 2

D’Arcy Spice
Scab 4
Mildew 5
Canker 4
Pests 4
Flowering time 2
Frost 5
Pollinator 2
Fruit quality 4
Crop size 3
Reliability 2
Storage 5
Vigour 1

Edward VII
Scab 4
Mildew 3
Canker 3
Pests 3
Flowering time 4
Frost 4
Pollinator 2
Fruit quality 5
Crop size 3
Reliability 3
Storage 5
Vigour 3

Norfolk Beefing
Scab 4
Mildew 3
Canker 3
Pests 3
Flowering time 3
Frost 3
Pollinator 3
Fruit quality 5
Crop size 4
Reliability 3
Storage 5
Vigour 4

Tydeman’s Late Orange
Scab 4
Mildew 5
Canker 3
Pests 3
Flowering time 3
Frost 5
Pollinator 4
Fruit quality 4
Crop size 4
Reliability 4
Storage 4
Vigour 4

Annie Elizabeth
Scab 4
Mildew 3
Canker 4
Pests 4
Flowering time 4
Frost 4
Pollinator 2
Fruit quality 4
Crop size 4
Reliability 4
Storage 5
Vigour 4

Beauty of Bath
Scab 4
Mildew 4
Canker 3
Pests 2
Flowering time 2
Frost 2
Pollinator 3
Fruit quality 3
Crop size 3
Reliability 2
Storage 1
Vigour 4

Brownlees Russet
Scab 4
Mildew 5
Canker 4
Pests 4
Flowering time 2
Frost 2
Pollinator 2
Fruit quality 4
Crop size 3
Reliability 3
Storage 4
Vigour 2

Discovery
Scab 4
Mildew 5
Canker 3
Pests 2
Flowering time 2
Frost 5
Pollinator 4
Fruit quality 4
Crop size 4
Reliability 4
Storage 2
Vigour 2

Egremont Russet
Scab 4
Mildew 4
Canker 4
Pests 4
Flowering time 2
Frost 4
Pollinator 2
Fruit quality 5
Crop size 4
Reliability 3
Storage 3
Vigour 2

Fiesta
Scab 3
Mildew 4
Canker 2
Pests 5
Flowering time 3
Frost 5
Pollinator 4
Fruit quality 3
Crop size 5
Reliability 4
Storage 3
Vigour 2

Grenadier
Scab 5
Mildew 4
Canker 5
Pests 4
Flowering time 3
Frost 3
Pollinator 4
Fruit quality 5
Crop size 5
Reliability 4
Storage 2
Vigour 2

Howgate Wonder
Scab 3
Mildew 4
Canker 3
Pests 4
Flowering time 3
Frost 4
Pollinator 3
Fruit quality 3
Crop size 5
Reliability 4
Storage 4
Vigour 4

Red Devil
Scab 4
Mildew 5
Canker 3
Pests 2
Flowering time 2
Frost 4
Pollinator 4
Fruit quality 4
Crop size 4
Reliability 4
Storage 2
Vigour 2

Reverend Wilks
Scab 4
Mildew 5
Canker 4
Pests 4
Flowering time 2
Frost 3
Pollinator 2
Fruit quality 5
Crop size 4
Reliability 2
Storage 2
Vigour 1

Saturn
Scab 5
Mildew 4
Canker 3
Pests 3
Flowering time 2
Frost 3
Pollinator 5
Fruit quality 4
Crop size 5
Reliability 4
Storage 3
Vigour 3

I found a few old pictures of fruits on my own trees/bushes/fans/cordons etc - including Crawley Beauty and Tydeman's Late Orange.


Crawley Beauty, late summer




Tydeman's Late Orange, late summer


Tydeman's Late Orange, late September; well-ripened specimen on a South-facing Fan-trained - hence the deep colour

Thanks FB that's an awful lot of useful information. The pictures are great. I'm pretty sure we will go for the Tydeman's Late Orange.