Three ways to get more fruit trees growing my tiny garden

Photo by Mochi Mochi:

https://www.pexels.com/photo/girl-standing-and-smelling-fruit-from-tree-18007756/

Three ways to get more fruit trees growing my tiny garden

I am still stuck in my small garden for now. Being there is good practice though. If you learn how to optimise a small space, you will do better with a large one.

I have been thinking about getting some fruit trees growing in my tiny garden. I not only love fresh fruit but I totally love the spring blossoms on fruit trees.

I have about 6 x 4 meter space with one 4 meter wall getting full sun. About a third of that space is paved. With the best place being the 4 meter wall, this will take some doing.

The best three options.

I sat down to some research. I'm not going to try anything on a hit and miss basis. Trees takes a while to get to their full potential. Waiting for months only find out it's not working is not going to sit well with me.

I came across three possible methods.

I looked at using pots. I've done this before so I know this could work.

I also looked at fruit trees that were espaliered along a wall. When I worked Armed Response I saw this on fruit farms. I didn't pay much attention back then but it may work.

The third option is planting multiple trees in one hole. I never got to see this up close but I think it's a good idea.

Using pots to plant your trees

I am a great fan of using pots because it gives mobility. When you use pots you can redesign your garden for better use of space and to look better by simply moving the pots.

You can also lift the pots off the ground, reducing the shade from a wall, giving your tree full sun.

Trees in pots can be pruned into some interesting designs too. My favorite is trimming it in to a standard. This gives you a long uprite trunk. This would allow for the planting of other plants below without your tree cutting their sunlight.

To espalier your tree.

The French came up with this method, hence the name. This is great for growing trees close to a wall.

You can plant the tree close to a wall. Then take a cane, tie it to the trunk, keeping it level. Do this where there are two branches growing sideways. Then tie the branches to the cane to train them to grow straight and level. Starting at the lowest branches, space your canes about a foot apart. Now trim away any branches growing to the front and back and any branches on the sides not tied to the cane.

This would give you a nice flat growing tree. It works very well for lining driveways and walls.

Putting more trees in one hole.

This works for a small garden that is not so really tiny. You can plant four to five fruit trees in a hole of 1 x 1 meter.

This is a tight squeeze. Pruning regularly to keep the trees from getting tangled up and getting damaged is a must.

I don't have any firsthand experience with this. From my research I gather that quite a few gardeners are happy with the results.

How about combining it.

This is part of the fun. None of these methods have to be a stand-alone idea. You can get bigger pots and put in more than one tree. You can put your pots in a line and espalier them. You can get really creative. It's your garden. You can do what works for you.