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no fruit on trees

I planted apple, pear, cherry, and plum trees several years ago but get no fruit can any one help

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  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,138

    Hello Philip image, can you give us an idea of whereabouts you are (so we can consider the possibility of frost damaging blossom) and also the names of the varieties of the trees, as it may be that you don't have the appropriate pollinating varieties close by.

    Do the trees have blossom each year?


    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • I live 12 miles from Aberystwyth at about 300M above sea level. The trees were bought to complement each others pollinating time. They produce flowers most years

  • As long asyou have at least two of each species (ie two varieties of apple, two pears etc) then they should pollinate each other if you have chosen compatible varieties (apples will only pollinate other apples etc.)  However, at 1000 feet above sea level, the problem is likely to be lack of pollinators at blossoming time.  Try hand-pollinating using a small, soft brush, like a make-up brush.  You will need to gently push it into as many flowers on one (say) apple tree before moving on to the other apple, then switch back to the first tree again and re-do it.  After that move on to the pears, then cherries etc.  It would be worth trying to encourage pollinating insects (especially native bees) to overwinter in your garden by creating 'bee hotels' (google that for ideas).  Having a pile or two made of short logs, branches and covered with leaves etc in sheltered corners of your garden is a natural way of creating such a habitat.  To get the pollinators to choose your garden to overwinter in, you will also need to grow as many species of 'pollinator friendly' flowers as you can throughout the year.  In general they don't like windy sites so surrounding your garden with hedges, shrubs etc will help create the right sort of micro-climate.

    A trowel in the hand is worth a thousand lost under a bush.
  • Thanks Bob the gardener I'll try the hand pollinating technique this year and see if that helps.

  • Also bear in mind weather. Wind at flowering time will strip the flowers resulting in no flowers. A problem I have with some pears and a quince.

  • Phillip, are they in pots? Or are you gardening on very dry soil? I noticed with the trees i had in pots, they dried out very quickly, especially as the blossom often opens when the nicest spring weather arrives, because of the stress the trees dropped thier blossom.

    As per what the others said, shelter from wind is a big thing too image
  • Thanks for all your comments I have planted a hedge on the windward side of the garden but is only about 1M tall at present will take another year or 2 to get more established

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