Poor Quality rootstocks

Very skinny stock, had to find an equally weedy bit of scionwood to match



Poor amount of root







Again, not much root, with nasty split at the bottom of the wood







As I left it too late to order stocks from Frank Matthews, I ended up ordering them from a new supplier, Blackmoor nurseries. I have to say I was very disappointed with the quality of the rootstocks. The pears in particular were very weedy, they only matched the width of average-sized scions within a few inches of the root, much lower than I would normally like to position a graft. One was completely dead, and a few had minimal roots. The single apple stock of m111 had barely any root, and this was also split down the middle, annoying as I really want this one to succeed as my stock tree for my new variety.

I won't be buying from them again!

Grafting session

Just a few photos to illustrate my grafting method (namely the 'whip and tongue' technique.

I found this page on whip and tongue grafting, which made me laugh. I don't think the author would have much time for the way I do things! The instructions are quite good, apart from the bit about twine and sealing wax - I've tried that when I first started and believe me, crappy, cheap, low-tack duck tape and clothes pegs are much easier!

Last pears - Santa Claus

We are down to our last 3 pears of 2011, Santa Claus which has proved to be the longest keeping. Although they have shrivelled, they are still remarkably firm and crisp, just beginning to soften slightly now. Considering that we are almost in April, the flavour is remarkably good - not as fine as the few that ripened earlier but still of a quality that is welcome at this time of year. Next year I will wrap them in tissue paper to stop them drying out so much, now that I know that they take quite so long to mature.

3rd National Scionwood swap day - Stowe nr Buckingham

3rd National Scionwood swap day 2pm- 5pm where you will be able to swap your scion wood or buy pieces for only a £1
to help cover the events expenses. Trees can be grafted to order on m27,M9,M116 M106 or M111. scion wood already promised to arrive includes Bramley, SturmerPippin, D'Arcy Spice, Brownlees' Russet, James Grieve, Queen Cox, Egremont Russet, Ashmead's Kernel, Chivers Delight, Lord Lambourne, St. Edmund's Pippin, Worcester Pearmain, Norfolk Royal, Margil and Costard. Lord Derby, Charles Ross, Court pendu plat.........and many many more.

Both events take place at The Estate Office, Home Farm, (1st left down the hill past the Green Security PortaKabin) at National Trust Stowe Landscape Gardens., nr Buckingham. Tel 01295 810516 /0795000 6813 or email johoward@metronet.co.uk

Expensive morning

Finally got round to ordering this year's rootstocks and fruit. Frank Matthews had sold out, apparently they had full orders before Christmas so, note to self, remember to order early. Have ordered them from Blackmoor, a nursery I haven't tried before. I had intended to buy a couple of plums on the new VVA-1 dwarfing plum stock, but within the last week they had sold out. I decided to buy them from Keepers as I don't want to waste any more time as it takes so long for any tree to come into cropping, and I've not actually grafted or bought any new trees for quite a few years now, so am really just catching up. All in all, a rather expensive morning.

Pruning - Josephine de Malines

This is an example of what not to do. I'd rather forgotten about my Josephine de Malines. It in a slightly out the way place, behind my polytunnel, and was initially a very weak grower which I left to its own devices for too long. When it eventually started to produce, the weight of the fruit bend and distorted some of the main branches, which then started to produce water shoots where the branches had bent, and the result is a complete mess.

The first thing to do was take out any misplaced or crossing branches and try to re-establish a better framework for the tree. I'd would have liked to maintain a Y shape but the right fork was unfortunately sticking out at almost a right angle so had to come off. I left the bottom of the branch with one of last years shoots which I'll stake into a position to re-establish the Y shape; if it doesn't develop properly, I'll take it off where it joins the main stem and grow as a small, if slightly curvy, half-standard. The weak growth means this variety tends to form a 'weeping' shape naturally, so I hope it won't get too tall, but the tendency to bend under fruit weight does mean that we need to monitor it and support branches with heavy fruit if necessary.

Pruning - cordons

Pruning time again, starting with the cordons. Each year I mean to do a proper 'before and after', but usually end up doing it on the spur of a spare moment, and forget. Not great photos, but enough to show the principles of spur pruning. Basically the aim is to take off virtually all the extension growth of the previous year, by which I mean all long shoots. Most of these will need taking off either where they spring from the main stem, or just above the nearest fruiting/flowering bud (which are always a little plumper than those destined to go on to make just leaves.

The photos and details show just how much growth needs removing. If you look carefully at the second closeup, you will see that I have only left two short, stubby, knobbly little branches (spurs), one each on the right and the left. These are fruiting spurs, which will hopefully flower and produce fruit. All other growth is removed cleanly, flush to the stem with a saw (a fairly fine ordinary one, much to the annoyance of my husband).

The only time I leave any extension growth is where it springs from a 'knobbly' wood that looks like it will produce buds directly in the future, even if it currently only has a current shoot with a leaf bud. I usual prune to 2-3 buds beyond the thickened, wrinkled bit. Hopefully next year fruit buds will appear directly from the base, and the new spur can be pruned to a fruiting bud as usual. Cutting directly into this basal proto-spur before it has produced a fruit bud tends to make it produce more vegetative growth.

New variety promotion - some further information

I posted a query about this on Joan Morgan's excellent Fruit Forum, the answers were pretty much in line with what I'd thought, that sponsorship from a commercial nursery is probably the only way forward. Also link a useful precedent, Christmas Pippin.

Roast Quinces with Mallard

Tried out the afore-mentioned roast quince recipe as an accompaniment to a roast, rather than as a desert. I was pleasantly surprised, the combination was far more successful than when we tried it as a desert dish. Having stewed the fruit to the red stage, we roasted it around a mallard (stuffed with pieces of cassia and the odd shallot and garlic clove, glazing the bird of medlar jelly. The roast quince absorbed the flavour of the duck and the somewhat grainy, gritty texture that slightly spoils its desert qualities gave the quince segments a satisfyingly meaty texture. I would certainly do it again, it would go particularly well with Barbary Duck (except that we don't eat them as I never bring myself to eat Muscovies!).

Good reference book - The American Fruit culturist by John Thomas

Just found this while googling the qualities of obscure pear varieties. Only available as print-on-demand by Amazon, but much of the useful information available on the sample

The American Fruit Culturist - Select List of Fruits