Plant Trees

Early autumn is a great time to be planting fruit trees and bushes in your garden. The ground is moist but still warm which means that the roots will grow quickly to establish the plants in the ground. Planting now also means that there is more chance of getting a better crop of fruit in the first season. This is because there is less stress placed on the plants compared to when they are trying to put on more growth in the spring.

Growing fruit is a great project for all ages and abilities and can be very rewarding. Even if you only have a small garden or even just a patio great results can even be achieved. Here’s our top tips for growing trees:

How to plant a tree in 5 simple steps

1. Dig a hole 1.5x width and height of your pot
2. Dust the roots of your tree and the base layer of compost with a tree & shrub feed – we recommend the Vitax Tree & Shrub Plant Feed with Mycorrhizal Fungi to help roots quickly establish
3. Backfill the hole once the tree is in place with a 50/50 compost and soil mix – we recommend Miracle Gro Rose, Tree & Shrub Compost
4. Secure your tree with a tree stake at a 45 degree angle into the direction of prevailing wind & tie
5. Give your tree a healthy watering, keep in mind the weather forecast so to not water log your tree

And there we have it your perfectly planted Autumn Tree ready to thrive for Spring! Save this video for when you get round to planting

Trees

Many people love the thought of growing their own fruit trees but are often confused or put off by many of the technical terms used to describe them or grow them. Many of our trees have a comprehensive description attached, or our team are happy to explain the difference for each one. 

Root Stock

This can be very confusing because of all the different terms used. What makes it even worse is each variety of tree uses a different code.  The root stock effects the overall size of how big the tree will grow to, so to simplify ask for either dwarf, medium, or vigorous (there are also many others in between). The type of root stock will have no effect on the appearance, size or taste of the fruit.

Fruit Bushes

Fruit bushes are generally much easier to grow.  Most are self-fertile but if you have two or more you will always be guaranteed a much better taste and a better yield. For best results plant in a good well drained soil and provide plenty of light, as this helps ripen the fruit. Also try to avoid growing them against walls and fences as this can cause bad air circulation around the plants leading to disease problems. A great idea is to set up a wall of fruit bushes, this not only adds interest to your garden but can be used to divide up your garden and add height to borders.