Chris and Carole then looked at the peach trees (variety ‘Melred’) which were being grown as part of Victorian nurseryman Thomas Rivers’ approach (seen in Programme 11). This method was published in his book published in 1850 ‘The Orchard House: On the Cultivation of Fruit Trees in Pots Under Glass’.
To recap, he developed this technique so that 12-15 large and better quality fruits could be grown on one small tree in a single pot in a small space.
The technique was to:
Count 11 buds up from the bottom of the main stem of the peach tree;
Cut off the main stem at the 12th bud up or thereabouts;
Shorten side shoots to 8-9 inches to a good bud; if there are no buds on the side shoots, take them off completely. What you aim to do is to generate plenty of wood this season, and the plant will fruit on this wood next season;
Thin fruits by a third as they develop;
Rivers recommended thinning 3 dozen to 1 dozen. To pot up the peach tree, a growing medium of 2 parts John Innes no 2, 1 part horse manure (well rotted) and a good helping of sharp sand was mixed up and added around the plant in the containers.
Two types of pots were used at Beechgrove. Chris used a bottomless terracotta pot, which had had its bottom ground down so that the roots would grow through the hole to mimic the way that Rivers grew his fruit trees. The pot had been turned regularly once planted so that the roots are broken to stimulate growth, effectively, bonsai-ing the plant. Carole used a modern air-pot.
Chris and Carole planted up their prepared peach trees into the pots, ensuring that there were crocks in the bottom and that the compost was a level in the top of the pot to allow a watering ring. These were watered regularly once they had been put back in the fruit house. In October the trees will be thinned by a third and the compost would be refreshed.
At this point, Chris’s peach tree was looking slightly more stressed whereas Carole’s still had green foliage but they both peaches needed to be pruned. You should count 6 buds out from the vertical stem and then prune. This will encourage fruiting spurs for next year.
If you are interested in further information about this technique you can access an online version of Rivers’ book here: http://archive.org/stream/orchardhouseorc03rive goog#page/n6/mode/2up
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Beechgrove Thomas Rivers’ approach-variety ‘Melred’
Chris and Carole then looked at the peach trees (variety ‘Melred’) which were being grown as part of Victorian nurseryman Thomas Rivers’ approach (seen in Programme 11). This method was published in his book published in 1850 ‘The Orchard House: On the Cultivation of Fruit Trees in Pots Under Glass’.
To recap, he developed this technique so that 12-15 large and better quality fruits could be grown on one small tree in a single pot in a small space.
The technique was to:
Rivers recommended thinning 3 dozen to 1 dozen. To pot up the peach tree, a growing medium of 2 parts John Innes no 2, 1 part horse manure (well rotted) and a good helping of sharp sand was mixed up and added around the plant in the containers.
Two types of pots were used at Beechgrove. Chris used a bottomless terracotta pot, which had had its bottom ground down so that the roots would grow through the hole to mimic the way that Rivers grew his fruit trees. The pot had been turned regularly once planted so that the roots are broken to stimulate growth, effectively, bonsai-ing the plant. Carole used a modern air-pot.
Chris and Carole planted up their prepared peach trees into the pots, ensuring that there were crocks in the bottom and that the compost was a level in the top of the pot to allow a watering ring. These were watered regularly once they had been put back in the fruit house. In October the trees will be thinned by a third and the compost would be refreshed.
For more information on air-pots check: - http://www.superoots.com/air_intro.htm
At this point, Chris’s peach tree was looking slightly more stressed whereas Carole’s still had green foliage but they both peaches needed to be pruned. You should count 6 buds out from the vertical stem and then prune. This will encourage fruiting spurs for next year.
If you are interested in further information about this technique you can access an online version of Rivers’ book here: http://archive.org/stream/orchardhouseorc03rive goog#page/n6/mode/2up
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