Belgian Fence Apple Trees: Need Pollinators
I've been talking about a Belgian Fence Espalier since we saw a nice setup at Disneyland in a couple of spots. In my mind, I'm going to likely want to use fruit trees like Apple trees because the ones at Disneyland are made from Pyracantha - which I think is not hardy down to our zone 5b.
There are a couple of spots that I'm thinking of/considering for the placement of the Belgian Fence. The first is kind of as the 'backdrop' for that priority area #3 along the fence. This is southern-facing. You can see the approximate location in the red arrows below.
The second spot is on the south side of our house where we've planted the pair of Disneyland Roses. This is a somewhat narrow spot that having a set of trees clinging to the house would work well. We also have a big space of blank wall.
As for impact, I'm thinking that the first spot - next to the Frans Fontaines is of higher 'impact' in terms of being visible from our house and patio, but it is also a little more shaded.
In doing the research about the placement of apple trees for this Belgian Fence (or...maybe Rose of Sharon??), I've discovered that you can't just pick any apple trees if you want fruit. This may be information that all of you know, but it was news to me: there are certain apple trees that pollinate OTHER apple trees.
For instance, I know that everyone loves HoneyCrisp Apples, so I figured...wouldn't it be nice to grow some HoneyCrisps as part of the Belgian Fence? This listing of a HoneyCrisp bareroot tree shows a handful of pollinators that you'd need to plant including Golden Delicious, Red Rome and Liberty Apple. So, based on that info, if I were to plant eight fruit trees for the espalier, I think at least one of them would have to be one of these pollinators, right?
I mentioned that I watched the fruit trees from last Fall stay around $15 a piece and they didn't seem to drop down to under $10. I'll be watching the nursery closely this Spring to see if I can find a deal on fruit trees knowing that I'll be buying at least eight of them - including some combination of pollinators.
There are a couple of spots that I'm thinking of/considering for the placement of the Belgian Fence. The first is kind of as the 'backdrop' for that priority area #3 along the fence. This is southern-facing. You can see the approximate location in the red arrows below.
The second spot is on the south side of our house where we've planted the pair of Disneyland Roses. This is a somewhat narrow spot that having a set of trees clinging to the house would work well. We also have a big space of blank wall.
As for impact, I'm thinking that the first spot - next to the Frans Fontaines is of higher 'impact' in terms of being visible from our house and patio, but it is also a little more shaded.
In doing the research about the placement of apple trees for this Belgian Fence (or...maybe Rose of Sharon??), I've discovered that you can't just pick any apple trees if you want fruit. This may be information that all of you know, but it was news to me: there are certain apple trees that pollinate OTHER apple trees.
For instance, I know that everyone loves HoneyCrisp Apples, so I figured...wouldn't it be nice to grow some HoneyCrisps as part of the Belgian Fence? This listing of a HoneyCrisp bareroot tree shows a handful of pollinators that you'd need to plant including Golden Delicious, Red Rome and Liberty Apple. So, based on that info, if I were to plant eight fruit trees for the espalier, I think at least one of them would have to be one of these pollinators, right?
I mentioned that I watched the fruit trees from last Fall stay around $15 a piece and they didn't seem to drop down to under $10. I'll be watching the nursery closely this Spring to see if I can find a deal on fruit trees knowing that I'll be buying at least eight of them - including some combination of pollinators.
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