Fruit Trees and Small Gardens

Why do some people – including some garden designers – presume without any evidence to the contrary that growing fruit trees is not possible in small gardens and city gardens?

Now, this blog may start out with a bit of a tirade, but it develops into ideas and practical suggestions for fruit trees and small gardens. And hopefully the questions posed will make you reconsider some of your presumptions about what we can grow in small gardens.

Let’s look at one of those presumptions and the result. Imagine you’re watching a garden makeover show. (NB this isn’t aimed at any one show or designer). Naturally, the clients’ needs and expectations, ie their brief to the TV designer, is the driving force for the new garden design, limited by the framework of garden boundaries and available budget.

Having pushed aside or ignored altogether a useful fruit tree, the aboricultural choice is made. The aforesaid garden designer suggests planting a silver birch or Amelanchier. Usually the tree is to be planted right on the boundary line. Where it will potentially create shade in what was a sunny neighbouring garden and possibly even damage the neighbours’ fence.

But if garden designers are the experts in designing gardens, then they should be ensuring that their clients are benefiting from that expertise. It is up to us to suggest options to our clients that they couldn’t think of (not having the relevant knowledge) or didn’t consider possible. So what are some of the pros and cons of growing a fruit tree in your garden?

apple tickled pink, blossom, fruit tree, kitchen garden

orchard, hardwick hall, fruit trees, walled garden, heritage apples

Fruit Trees and Small Gardens – a Bad Idea?

Now, don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing intrinsically wrong with planting fruit trees for purely ornamental purposes. If the humans do not want the fruit, the garden birds and small mammals will certainly enjoy it! It is the presumption that growing edible fruit, and fruit trees in particular, is not possible or worthwhile in a small garden. And yet it is thought that larger ornamental trees can be grown?

Or perhaps it is not merely the size of the tree, but the perceived amount of time required to care for the tree that is of concern? Larger trees will need a diligent pruning routine, anything from annual to every three years, depending on the species and cultivar. And possibly the services of a tree surgeon will be required to carry out this work.

Yes, fruit trees will potentially need more attention than an ornamental trees. But not as much as many people think they do. Likely chores include: –

annual pruning
feeding and mulching
checking for pests and diseases
leaf picking up in autumn

Which is pretty much the same as it would be for an ornamental tree. What extra gardening chores are needed for a fruit tree?

the obvious one is picking the fruit when its ripe
extra diligence on feeding and watering at the correct times
purchasing a disease resistant variety reduces maintenance
planting two complimentary trees that will pollinate each other, or growing a self-fertile cultivar to resolve the need to hand pollinate

If you hate cherries but love cherry blossom, an ornamental cherry tree may be the answer. But do remember that it still bears fruit, and what the birds don’t eat will fall on your lawn and squish!

Fruit Trees and Small Gardens – a Good Idea?

Well planned out and designed, fruit trees and small gardens can be a marriage made in heaven. They tick lots of the boxes that appear in many clients’ desire lists. For example: –

Seasonal interest – flowers, fruit, autumn leaf colour
Pretty flowers – spring blossom
Wildlife friendly
Short bursts of maintenance rather than an hour or two every week
Safe and non-toxic for the children / grandchildren
Fruit for humans to eat / grow your own
Give shade, depending on size and type of fruit tree
Minimum space taken up
Client’s childhood memories

Let’s get real, you’re unlikely to be self-sufficient in fruit if you only have a small garden. However, there is the satisfaction of picking your own fruit and eating it straight from the tree. Sun warmed peaches…

What you will have is the ability to grow the fruit you like, heritage varieties and decorative forms of fruit trees. You could choose your fruit tree mainly for its decorative features. For example: –

Spring apple blossom may be pure white, in bud and open. Or it may be deep pink in bud, opening to pale pink.
Later in the summer, the furry fruit of quince and stripey pears add a talking point for visitors at your BBQ.
Autumn leaf colour may not be as spectacular as the acers can provide, but many fruit trees will carry warm yellow foliage for a while. For spectacular show, you could grow a persimmon in a warm, sheltered garden. The yellow fruit picked in October is a glorious sight against rich red leaves.

Fruit Trees and Small Gardens – Cultivars, Heritage Varieties, Decorative Forms and Rootstocks

Fruits that can be grown on smaller trees include, for example: –

apples
apricot
cherries
crab apples
damsons
greengages
lemon
medlar
nectarine
orange
peach
pears
plums
quince

Now that’s a reasonable list to choose from! You could also consider nut trees such as hazel and sweet almond. And if you garden in a warm, sheltered location then growing persimmon and pomegranate outdoors should be possible.

Once you’ve decided on the fruit (apple, cherry, etc), you then need to choose a cultivar. Which heritage variety or modern cultivar you choose will depend partly on where in the UK you live. For example, heritage Cumbrian apples such as are grown at Acorn Bank will not necessarily thrive in the warmer, drier region of Sussex. Other fruits like peaches and citrus fruits will need frost protection. It is possible to grow them in northern areas. Dwarfing root stock means they can be grown in pots which can then be taken in to the greenhouse over winter.

Cultivars, Heritage Varieties

If you’re after heritage fruit for as interesting plant to grow and eat, it’s best to grow local. Visit local gardens that have orchards to see a selection. Online, search for a county and a fruit. For example, Black Worcester is an old variety of pear, which may even date back to Roman times. Early Rivers is a 19^th century Kent variety. Of course, you could have a modern cultivar. Apple Greensleeves dates from the 1960s and grows well in containers.

Fruit Trees – Decorative forms

This is a whole blog in itself. Suffice to say, do not feel confused by the difference between cordon, espalier, fan, step-over and so on. They will all need some form of support – a fence, wall or framework.

What is helpful to know here, is that single cordon trees take up the least space. They can be grown vertically – sometimes called minarette, or at a 45-degree angle, which gives a better harvest. They can be grown as close as 2 – 3 feet apart and in containers.

The majority of fruit and nuts can be grown as cordon trees. However, they are better suited to those which fruit along the branch (spur fruiting) rather than at the tip only.

Fruit Trees – Rootstocks

Many fruit trees are grafted onto a rootstock. This enables the eventual size of the tree to be determined. The naming of the rootstocks varies between the types of fruit.

For example, apples use M numbers. M9 is the best known dwarfing rootstock, (6 – 8 ft). M27 is smaller (5 ft) and M26 larger (8 -10 ft) All are suitable for container growing.

Dwarfing rootstock for cherries is Gisela 5; for pears, Quince C, for plums, damsons and gages, you need Pixy.

Of course, you don’t have to have a heritage variety apple tree in a double U cordon just because you have a small garden and decide to grow fruit! A modern disease resistant cultivar as a straight forward spindle bush fruit tree on a dwarfing rootstock is more than acceptable.

and finally…

What if, after reading this, you decide fruit trees and small gardens are not the combination for you? Have a look at the blog links below, where there’s plenty of inspiration for trees for small gardens that are ornamental or edible or both. I also offer a talk for groups about trees for small gardens.

And if you’d like help creating a mini orchard, edible planting design, or have queries regarding your existing garden, do get in touch to ask about our design and consultancy services.

But if you’d prefer hands-on personal help from yours truly, with a mix of practical sessions and theory in our bespoke Gardening Lessons and Courses check out the blog link below plus link for the pdf download with more info

For further gardening advice and inspiration, ideas for pest resistant gardens and more, check out Plews Potting Shed blogs, including the selection below and our monthly Tipsheet You could also come and find us on Instagram Pinterest and Facebook

And on that note, you can have a peek at the progress of my garden renovation, Spitfires and Slow Worms, on Instagram and Facebook You may even get to see it in person later this year / early 2025 as I’m planning a couple of workshops. I had hoped to do that already but house renovations have been as big a thing as garden reno so there hasn’t been the room. Keep an eye on the website and social media for an update.