@jess_happy_smallholding: December - March is bare root tree planting season! So you can plant yours soon 🤗🍎🍏 This adorable little tree is a step over apple. At 2ft high they really are tiny, making them perfect even for the smallest of spaces. I’m growing them in front of my rhubarb so they aren’t taking up any additional space at all. This year each tiny tree produced 5kg of apples on average. That’s around 30 apples per tree! So they are highly productive. To plant a step over apple it’s important to understand how apple trees are grown. Most apple trees are grafted, which means the top part of the tree, which determines the variety of the apple, is stuck onto a new root system which determines how big the tree will grow. To grow step over apples you need to select trees on a dwarfing rootstock called M27. For the top part, you can choose any variety you like. Most apple cultivars are not self fertile which means they need to be pollinated by another apple tree. Different cultivars flower at different times, denoted by pollination groups. To ensure successful pollination you need to plant at least 2 different cultivars from the same or adjacent pollination groups. Or choose a self pollinating variety. Planting a stepover apples is pretty straightforward: 🌱 Make your supports. We bashed oak posts into the ground, drilled holes through them and threaded metal rods through the holes. 🌱 Train your tree. Gently bend the top of the tree over towards the horirfzontal mental rod and tie it in. Keep it facing up a little as trees grow more vigorously when angled upwards. Alternatively, prune the tree back to a node close to the horizontal, and a new branch will grow from the node which can then be trained along the horizontal. #apples #selfsufficient #gyo #growyourown #growyourownfood #homestead #smallholding #garden #lovegardening #kitchengarden #veggarden

Jess Gough

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Region: GB

Thursday 30 October 2025 07:23:42 GMT