Fruit Growing - The Basics
Ok, fellow gardeners and budding gardeners, here we go again: Every year I urge people to grow more fruit in Ireland, because we are importing way to much apples, pears, plums, and various soft fruit. By learning the skills of pruning, planting and propagation we could attain near self-sufficiency! Don’t discount the idea, even grapes, kiwis, figs, apricots and peaches can be grown in a polytunnel. There’s always a way and I have seen fruit trees growing on tower block balconies and on a roof. And growing fruit is in many ways easier than growing vegetables, although it requires a bit more preparation and planning and forward thinking.
When you take the plunge into fruit growing there are 2 areas to consider:
1. SITE CONSIDERATIONS
The foundation of your enterprise. You are preparing the ground for plants to grow for decades. Get your site right before going further. All fruit trees need a sunny, sheltered site to thrive with well- draining soil. Avoid overly limey or acidic soils and aim for a pH of 6 to 7.
SHELTER – fruit areas of any size need protection from storms and cold winds for growth and to ensure good pollination. Use either tall wind break netting and/or plant a hedge to protect from all prevailing and cold wind directions and create a sun trap on your site. The hedge itself can be a low cost/low maintenance productive feature if you include species such as elders, hazel &cobnuts. Plant at least a year ahead of fruit plants if starting from scratch.
DRAINAGE No fruit trees like their roots sitting in water. To test, dig a hole 30cm wide by 30cm deep and fill with water. If the hole doesn’t empty by at least 3cm an hour drainage improvement is required. It may be that soil compaction is an issue but if the problem is caused because of a very heavy soil type or impermeable subsoil then you can arrange to have land drains installed and/or contour your site into a series of gentle sloping mounds then plant and stake your trees well on the tops.
SOIL Ideally, fruit trees like a brown loam with an underlying permeable sub soil but we know we don’t always have that. I highly recommend getting a full soil test done before planting so any required nutrients get added, pH adjusted and the soil structure improved with compost, manures and fertilisers before planting takes place. FAB Labs in Waterford and Southern Scientific in Kerry both operate a very good value service by post. Check online.
Display at on e of The Organic Centre Apple Days
2. CHOOSE THE RIGHT ROOTSTOCK
Pick the right rootstock for your needs. Rootstocks control the size of the tree, its suitability for soil types, its yield and its disease resistance. Apple trees are grafted onto rootstocks with an M or MM prefix. Varieties grafted onto M27 or M9 dwarf rootstock will typically have a height and spread of 2 to 3m. Those on M26 or MM106 between 3.5 and 6m and those on MM111, 5.5m +. Trees on M27 or M9 require permanent staking and M9 has become the rootstock of choice for commercial production
Trees on M26 and MM106 are the all-rounders, living 50+ years, suitable to a range of soils, tolerating grass and weeds after 4-5 years and stakes are only necessary for 2-3 years. It will be 3 -4 years before you see much fruit but yields 50kg+ at maturity.
MM111 is the rootstock for poor drainage/low fertility land although it may not attain its full size on poor ground it will produce reasonable results. Stake for just 2 years but it will be 6 years before you’ll see significant fruit.
3. PLANTING AND AFTER CARE - Working on the Relationship with your tree
Ok. So we’re now ready to plant our carefully selected trees and bushes on our well prepared site.
Here are a few tips.
Respect planting distances. These are determined by rootstock type. Those on dwarf rootstock will need 3m spacing. The largest may need up to 7m. Don’t plant large growing trees too close together. You will end up hacking the growth back as they intertwine. The space in between can be used for other crops for years until the trees fill the space.
Don’t plant too close to your windbreak hedge/fence and plunge your trees into the shade. Ensure they are placed where they can potentially receive at least 8 hours direct sun during the season.
Make planting holes at least 40 cm wide and 25cm deep. In the West of Ireland, where soils are very shallow and low in nutrient we typically add about 25 – 30% of the planting mixture as compost or rotted manure. In more fertile locations less would be needed. There’s no need to oversupply nitrates to young trees. We also add some seaweed powder and a pH raiser such as calcified seaweed to the planting mixture.
Fix a strong stake into the planting hole for bare-root trees before adding the planting mix. Slightly off-centre towards the south west to counter prevailing winds. For a container grown tree you will have to stake after planting. We suggest a 6 -10cm stake for dwarf trees which need staking throughout their whole lives.
Use a flexible rubber tree tie which can expand for fixing the tree to the stake. This avoids damaging the trunk.
To avoid the regrowth of weeds and grass use mulch or a membrane on your prepared area. Keep your tree free of competition for nutrients. We prefer a mulch of straw/hay; something that biodegrades and improves the humus content of the soil but allows it to breath.
Keeping the tree roots competition- free for the early years, combined with correct pruning, will ensure trees get away to the best possible start and develop the structure for a long fruiting life. From around 4-5 years medium and large stock trees can usually begin to cope with grass and weed competition but dwarf trees will need to continue to be maintained this way for their entire lifespan.
4. Pruning
Pruning or tree care often scares the new grower more than anything else. Here I only offer tips which should help you. Get a quality book/manual and try to see someone experienced in action. Here are a few key rules and tips to start formative pruning.
Tools & Hygiene –Pruning is surgery. Buy good quality secateurs and a pruning saw that make clean cuts. Don’t spread diseases. When moving from tree to tree or after pruning a diseased branch sterilise your tools with surgical spirits.
Correct cuts – The cut should slope as shown.
Winter & Summer Pruning – Have different effects. Winter pruning increases new branch production and slows down flower/fruit formation. Best time is late January to mid- February. Summer pruning slows branch growth and encourages flower/fruit formation. This comes into its own from 3 years after planting.
Pruning to buds – once you can identify what you’re looking at you can start to prune to buds with some confidence of results.
5. Shaping your tree by pruning
Here is some advice and tips for shaping your tree to allow for good production.
Shaping your tree: We are detailing here the creation of the bush type tree which has a crown of 6-8 main branches, evenly spaced with an open centre. This is very common for trees and soft fruit bushes and allows good air and light circulation. It is also important to help ripen fruit and minimise disease build ups. We suggest the following actions:
Year 1 (Winter) – If you have a 1yr old tree and you plant in winter all you need do is prune it to a bud at a height right for the rootstock. A dwarf tree between 50- 60cms; a larger tree, between 80cms to 1.3m. The top 3 or 4 buds at the top of the remaining stem will form vigorous branches. You shouldn’t need to prune anything more until the following winter.
Year 2 - Select the strongest 3 or 4 branches to develop. Cut them back to about half of their length to a point where there are 2 leaf buds both pointing in directions facing up and away from the centre of the tree. If you have any laterals or lower branches left on the trunk leave them until the following winter.
Year 3 - You should now have a tree with 6 – 8 identifiable leading branches plus several side branches (laterals) and possibly the odd fruit bud here and there. Now thinking becomes a little more involved and at this stage we recommend you have do some reading or get advice on some of our courses.
You should prune all your new leaders, half of them by another 50% to outward buds and the others by perhaps 30%. You want to keep new growth coming upward and out from the centre of the tree but allow each to maintain its own distinct space with good air and light circulation.
Aside from these formative techniques it’s always necessary to prune out very weak or diseased growth as a priority. Canker infected stems should be removed whenever you find it, regardless of season.
If you follow these guidelines and remember to ensure that every branch has its own distinct space and equal access to air and light you will have established the foundations of healthy growth for the more mature and productive phase or a fruit tree or bush’s life.
Note: I am hugely indebted to my friend and former colleague Phil Wheal in compiling these notes.
My favourite book is ‘The Fruit Tree Handbook’ by Ben Pike on Green Books. It covers everything you’ll need.
