There was I, moaning on to Ken Muir -

[tim]

- about his 'Bountiful' not pollinating my 4 little 'Sunsets'. Doesn't flower at the same time.

But, on closer inspection, we haven't done so badly this year! And we've already had a goodly number of windfalls.

That's Bountiful in the middle.

[tim]

[wardy]

They look scrumptious!  Are the apples on M9 rootstocks?  I plan to buy fruit for a big space on my lotty and arrange them along the fence line like you have.  I just wondered about the size of the trees though as I don't want anything sprawling like I have at home.  I had a dwarf M27 but that's too small I think for the cut and thrust of the lotty  :)

And finally do you get all the fruit from Ken Muir?

[Crash]

They look good enough to eat... How old are your trees?

[tim]

wardy - don't know - I think they were minarettes.

Crash - about 7 years, I think.

[spacehopper]

We're going to get MM106 rootstock, as we are going to put fruit trees in a new (hopefully) plot with chickens. I think they grow to 12 feet and fruit in three years. Tall enough for us to pick the apples and the chickens not to! They'll get the windfall apples, a tasty snack for a chicken.  :)

[spacehopper]

Nice apples by the way Tim  ;D

[Palustris]

Our hens climb into the trees to get the apples.

[tim]

Good God - whatever next? Pigs fly too!!

[Palustris]

Hope not, they would create an awful mess. But when we had a visit from a fox, the Friesans disappeared. We found them sat at the top of the Perry pear tree, 60 feet up!

[tim]

Friesan cows??!

[Palustris]

Friesian hens dear boy! Though the thought of friesian cows up the pear tree is quite intirguing!

[tim]

You've spoilt my dream!