Hi to you all. This is not an advert but if any of you out there are thinking of buying any fruit plants this Autumn please check out our new online store.
www.blackmoor.co.uk we have a full range of top quality fruit plants. If you are thinking of ordering then check to see if anyone else on your site needs any fruit plants. If you combine all orders together there is only one delivery charge to pay.
Regards
Jon
Nice website Jon, added to my favourites - always good to find another source of supply :)
Supersprout
Pleasure, if you grow any fruit we do send out by email a monthly newsletter that is not hard sell but offers advice on what to do for the month in the fruit garden. You can sign up for the newsletter from the site.
Regards
Jon
Added to faves and signed up Jon. The c/c is twitching already.
;D
How, exactly, is it not an advertisement?
Hope you at least donate something to the site.
Dave
Not sure how I can donate but I am offering a service that I hope many of your members find useful. I have been growing fruit for 23 years and if I can offer any advice or share some of my knowledge of fruit growing then more than happy to help.
Regards
Jon
Contact Dan; I don't know what it would cost to put an ad on the site, but it would be more relevant than some of the stuff I see!
You've got a nice selection there, incidentally.
lol @ Dave. Exactly what I thought, but faint heart never won any business eh ?
If you don't mind Jon, I'm preparing a list of questions !
Would you prefer to be contacted on here (to share the info with everyone else) or through your site ?
And as SS said, never hurts to find another supplier.
;D
MrsKp
I dont mind if you contact me direct or if it is on here. If its direct you might get a slightly quicker responce but I really do not mind either way.
Jon
Thanks Jon, I'll get scribbling.
;D
Look forward to your questions
Jon
please share them on here KP - I am an avid fruit grower and would love to read :)
I would like to grow a crab apple so I can make jelly next year. Can you advise a good one please?
The best crab apple variety for making jelly is without a doubt John Downie - Perhaps the best fruiting crab apple. White flowers in April followed by large conical bright orange-red fruits. A very refreshing flavour. Ideal for jelly. Highly recommended.
This link will show you the fruits from our site
http://www.blackmoor.co.uk/index.php?osCsid=284f8e5aa0db8ce70e77c7f2b85d0057&osCsid=284f8e5aa0db8ce70e77c7f2b85d0057&cPath=135
Regards
Jon
Thanks for that. How long would I have to wait for fruit if I bought one of those? Can they be trimmed to make a hedge? So many questions!!! I have mature apple trees in the garden and just fancy something different. At the planning stage for a new hedge/fence and thinking of crab apple and damsons so that the hedge is productive - is this realistic?
Cheers, and happy gardening,
Shirley
What's your opinion of Charles Ross apples? I have a small tree, and I'm beginning to think it may have been a mistake. The apples are a nice size, sweet, and it's very prolific, which is useful while the trees are small, but the texture is quite soggy compared to my other varieties. I can see it coming out one of these days.
Have you had any problems with plums in the drought? Most of my trees have been fine - my plot's on very low-lying land by a stream - but a Victoria dropped all its leaves and nearly died; I still don't know whether it's going to pull through.
I have a Charles Ross, yes prolific, tend to use it mainly for cooking with, makes great apple sauce
No problems with plums this year - early variety Opal, gorgeous, huge amounts but the drought and weight of plums on my Marjories Seedling nearly brought the tree out of the gound
damsons more than I could cope with
I have 2 gages that are supposed to be on dwarf stock but they are huge and hardly produce and also a crab apple (can't remember name, possibly princess, a very dark coloured variety) is a lovely shape, but is now 4 years old and still not producing much - ho hum
Jon,
We fancy a Damson tree but have been told they're not very controllable and we dont have a lot of space. What do reckon?
My Cambridge Gage is the strongest-growing of my trees, but it crops well. I'll try the Charles Ross for cooking, though I didn't buy it for that.
The Crab apples (John Downie) is fruiting now on the Nursery as a 2 year old tree. So they do come into cropping early.
As for growing them as a hedge, if more like an upright cordon then this would be fine. They use some crab Apple varieties in orchards and these are just interplanted between the main trees and prunned really hard as its just the blossom thats required for the pollination. They still crop well !!!.
Jon
Barnowl
If you are short of space then make sure that you plant the Damson on the Pixy rootstock and not the St Julien.
The tree on Pixy stock will grow to around 3 Metres when mature.
Jon
Robert
Charless Ross would not be my choice for flavour, loads of better varieties available now. It is mainly grown for the size, shape and colour (a good choice if you just wish to show it, could get you a few prizes).
The flavour is sweet and juicy at first but like you say becomes dry and flavourless.
It is a dual variety both dessert and cullinary and does do well on chalky soils.
Regards
Jon
Jon, I'm thinking Blueberry Sunshine Blue.
If delivery isn't until January, is that the ideal to plant out then (again it will be in a pot).
MrsKP
The Blueberries are all ready to be shipped now. The Sunshine Blue is a new variety that I have had at home in my garden now for 4 years in a pot and is more than happy. Had a great crop from it this year.
http://www.blackmoor.co.uk/index.php?cPath=367
Value for money for me would be the smaller 1 Litre size
Jon
Oh ! it states on the page won't be in stock until January. Hmm, thanks Jon, am looking on other pages now too lol.
This is what comes from being stuck at home sick. Far too easy to be lured.
;D
I have just ammended the date as they are in stock and can be sent out straight away.
Jon
You have mail lol.
;D
MrsKP
Happy to welcome all new customers to Blackmoor
Jon
Aquick question Jon... are the ornamental elderberries as useful as the common ones. We make elderflower cordial from a neighbours on the allotments, would like my own supply but couldn't face planting an elder!!!
;D
Saddad
I have to say that I do not know anything about the elderberry so could not advice, sorry. I am sure someone out there will be able to help.
Jon
Quote from: Jon Munday on September 27, 2006, 13:07:17
The best crab apple variety for making jelly is without a doubt John Downie - Perhaps the best fruiting crab apple. White flowers in April followed by large conical bright orange-red fruits. A very refreshing flavour. Ideal for jelly. Highly recommended.
hmm, I'd like a crab apple for jelly too - Jon, would this tree need to be planted in the ground, or in a pot. What sort of size will it grow to ?
Also v tempted by the blueberries ... what size pot should the 1l plant be planted into ? I probably won't be able to water it every day, so would want to go larger rather than smaller to avoid drying out.
Great idea btw - its like putting candy in front of a baby !
Thanks, mc
Mc
If grown in a container it would need planting into around a half barrel size. It should not get too much taller than around 2-3 metres. If grown in the ground it will be around 3-4 metres.
The Blueberries 1 Litre would need to go into a 3-5 litre for 12 months then into 10-12 litre the following season.
Jon
Would half a barrel be big enough for a fig? One last question; I have a couple of pear trees that haven't grown at all, and I've discovered that it's due to weak root systems. Would it work to cut them back drastically, or do I need to replace them?
Just a quick note to say that I bought some blueberry plants and a fig tree from Blackmoor earlier this year and was very impressed with the service and the plants. In fact my wife ate the last fig off the tree just tonight! We only had three figs off it but there are dozens of "baby" figs at the moment.
All the blueberries have flourished, particularly Bluecrop - the Chandler berries were huge.
Robert
I half barrel will do for the fig for a few years yes. The root restriction makes them crop.
For the Pears, how come the root system is week ? Prunning it hard back this winter will help. Support the tree to make sure that you have no wind rock. Feed well in the Spring and see what happens.
If by the end of the Summer it still is not growing well then I think its time to replace.
Jon
Thanks. They were trees which I bought at a time when I didn't know a lot about fruit, and they never had strong roots. But one I lifted to investigate is growing new ones so I don't think it's hopeless. I'll cut them well back and see.
Robert
Good Luck
Jon