What am i going to do with those...?

RobbieG83 · « **on:** February 24, 2012, 18:46 »

Well today i went to a nice farmers auction and bagged myself a lovely Briggs & Stratton lawnmower for Ł20 absolute bargain shes a beaut!!...

...but thats not why im writing when i came home this afternoon i had three nice fruit trees in my kitchen a really nice golden delicious apple a braeburn and a pear...
...my immediate reaction was "Where the hell am i going to plant those" as my garden is nowhere near big enough to plant them

now for the question

can i plant them in large containers on my patio and still get a decent sized crop? im aware they probably wont fruit this year or next help me please because it would be a shame to waste them as they were a gift

Mrs Bee · « **Reply #1 on:** February 24, 2012, 19:04 »

OOPS! The pull of the auction!

I am not sure if they will be OK in pots. Some places sell fruit trees specially for pots on the patio but I think they are grafted on dwarf rootstock.

I would say that they are unlikely to thrive and give a good crop unless anyone out there has tried it with any success.

Are you sure you haven't got space in your garden?

gobs · « **Reply #2 on:** February 24, 2012, 19:50 »

You need to find out what rootstock they are. If can't, they will need to go into the garden. And even if you can, quite often so still.

sunshineband · « **Reply #3 on:** February 24, 2012, 20:01 »

Does it give a clue about rootstocks or eventual size on the labels?

Trillium · « **Reply #4 on:** February 24, 2012, 20:33 »

I was just thinking that, Sunny. If they're dwarf stock, they can survive in large tubs. If not, they can live in large tubs for another year but then must go into the ground because the root systems will be large no matter what you do and cropping will not happen because of this stress.

Growster... · « **Reply #5 on:** February 25, 2012, 06:06 »

How about up against a south facing wall?

Make an espalier?

Benandbill · « **Reply #6 on:** February 25, 2012, 06:45 »

Hmm, tricky indeed. If you find they are indeed too big, keep your favourite and give the others away to a good home. Maybe your local allotment's notice board for a swap for a small bush or sale at a bargain. If you got them at such a bargain price it shouldn't hurt too much to cut your losses.

RobbieG83 · « **Reply #7 on:** February 25, 2012, 15:10 »

@ benandbill thats just the thing they were a gift so i didnt pay a penny
but they were from a friend who knows very little about gardening and i think they are on M2 rootstock so way too big for my humble garden and that kind of rules out pots aswell

sunshineband · « **Reply #8 on:** February 25, 2012, 19:41 »

What a shame

M2s are likely to grow to around 4-4.5 m I think

Growster's suggestion could be explored further maybe .....

sazzy123 · « **Reply #9 on:** February 25, 2012, 22:24 »

I was bought a plum tree and it would have grown way too big for my garden i thought id stick it in a big pot instead of letting it go to waste...... 1 year later i had 23 plums of it! Not bad.... its in its 3rd year now in the pot, its fed, watered and trimmed and so far it has been worth potting! if i get another few years with it potted great, if it starts to look sorry for itself ill re home it.......so far very healthy nothing to loose!

stompy · « **Reply #10 on:** February 26, 2012, 11:36 »

Go and do a bit of guerilla gardening and plant them in a park or somewhere like that.

RobbieG83 · « **Reply #11 on:** February 26, 2012, 18:32 »

@stompy i like the idea of that i might just do it, or alternatively i could donate them to a local hospice if they let me

TheSpartacat · « **Reply #12 on:** February 26, 2012, 18:50 »

Quote from: stompy on February 26, 2012, 11:36

Go and do a bit of guerilla gardening and plant them in a park or somewhere like that.

I love that idea

What am i going to do with those...?

RobbieG83

What am i going to do with those...?

Mrs Bee

Re: What am i going to do with those...?

gobs

Re: What am i going to do with those...?

sunshineband

Re: What am i going to do with those...?

Trillium

Re: What am i going to do with those...?

Growster...

Re: What am i going to do with those...?

Benandbill

Re: What am i going to do with those...?

RobbieG83

Re: What am i going to do with those...?

sunshineband

Re: What am i going to do with those...?

sazzy123

Re: What am i going to do with those...?

stompy

Re: What am i going to do with those...?

RobbieG83

Re: What am i going to do with those...?

TheSpartacat

Re: What am i going to do with those...?