If I lived in France I'd have fields and fields of vegetable gardens, rock walls, a French lover and a reasonable sized chateau surrounded by a fence made from espaliered apple trees.
You can't tell me any different. I would have all that on my mediocre blogger's salary.
Because in my imagination that's the way it is. In fact it's even a little bit better because I'd be able to speak fluent french, my clothes would all be made out of linen and lavender and I'd drive a little ivory convertible which is always in to be repaired by Henri, the village mechanic/clothing designer (French men are multitalented like that).
Luckily Henri is happy to trade late evening dinners in my courtyard in exchange for repair costs. I usually hear him crunching across the pea gravel around 9:30 at night after work, just as I'm ripping apart a freshly baked loaf of rustic bread and placing it in with the charcuterie of olives, cured meats, ripe cheeses and sliced apples. A drop of sweat runs down his neck, rolling over the hard curve of his chest, landing somewhere below ....
Oh shit. That's right, this post is about apples. Sorry, I don't know what happened there.
As it turns out I don't live on a French farm with rolling hills of hot farm hands. Instead I live in a small town on what's as close to a microfarm as I can manage. I've smashed vegetables, chickens, a maple syrup tree, rhubarb and a smattering of flowers into my lot and am generally pretty happy with it all.
What I always wanted was a fruit tree though.
But with fruit trees you need TWO fruit trees so they can pollenate each other, THEN you need a lot of space because ... they're fruit trees. They're big and bushy and kind of bossy in general.
But a few years ago, several years ago I started really researching Espaliered fruit trees. Apples specifically. They're pruned so they grow flat and beautiful against a fence or wall. They get wider and thicker but they don't get taller. Kind of like women after the magical age of 40.
I considered planting some along my big side fence but I already have boxwoods there (which coincidentally also surround my French courtyard. Henri sometimes trims them for me).
Also if any kids picked the apples (and of course they would, why wouldn't they?) I'd be FURIOUS. I might even cry and I'd definitely make a scene. I don't care if kids pick my tomatoes or cucumbers or anything else that hangs outside of my front vegetable garden fence. In fact I encourage people passing by to pick whatever they want. But the APPLES? No. No, no, no.
Then a few years ago things got even worse. A fruit nursery about an hours drive from my house started selling 6 in 1 apple trees. One apple tree, with 6 different types of apple branches grafted onto it.
This meant you got 6 different varieties from one tree. And that tree happened to be an Espaliered tree.
It was a match made in tiny lot heaven. But it was a long drive and I had no way to transport the tree and they were expensive and I still didn't think I had anywhere to plant it where it would thrive; so every spring I'd dream about one but never go and actually buy one.
Cut to 3 weeks ago with me twirling through Home Depot in a Julie Andrews, Sound of Music, type manner - because that's how I always act and feel when I'm in a home improvement store. Mid twirl, arms spread wide open, I Von Trapped myself right into a row of 6 in 1 Espaliered apple trees for sale.
I immediately bought two.
I had no idea where I was going to plant them but at $54 each I wasn't going to miss out on this once in an imaginary lifetime opportunity. France Karen would never pass up an espaliered apple tree for $54. Never. Henri would never forgive her. Jacque would probably be pretty upset too. Jacque is my neighbour with the vineyard and 4 donkeys who are always escaping into my pool area to graze on my Rosemary. Heh. Those donkeys.
Since I've been researching these trees for years now I knew exactly how to plant them. And by the time I got home I knew where I was going to plant them too.
I put one on either side of my porch railing, a nice flat surface,
If you have just bought an espalier tree or are thinking of it, you should read this post where I lay out all the steps and hardware for planting an espalier plus you can see how big they've gotten in the years since I planted them.
Henri would love this.
Oh, I'm sorry, you want to know what kind of apples?
You're impressed aren't you? You love it don't you?
To that I say Merci Beaucoup.
MrsChris SA
I want one....................... now find someone in SA that supplies them......................
steph
I have wanted to espalier fruit trees for years but was sure I'd mess it up. Now I have much too large Mulberry, Lemon, Cherry, Olive (massive), Quince & Pear You are genius, thank you SO much for this post with all necessary detail. Now I'm ready to try.
Thanks again Karen
steph
Dale
Karen,
(or other fruit tree gardeners)
You mentioned that you need two trees to pollinate the blossoms. Will this 6 in 1 tree allow each type of apple to pollinate the others? So the one tree will pollinate itself?
Jim Barry
I was going to ask that same question.
Karen
Yep. ~ karen!
Suel
What a great idea! I want to try this since I live in the heart of apple country in Western North Carolina. This reminds me of an ancient apple tree in my grandparent's orchard. It was called the cider tree. There were three varieties grafted, and when they were blended made the most delicious cider. Your trees look much more manageable, I wonder if I can find any in our area.
Cheers!
Karen
The cider tree! I love that. :) ~ karen!
Kathleen
Your trees and porch are going to look wonderful once the apples have appeared. Who needs to love / live in France?
I am off to Google the apple trees here in South Africa... I have the perfect spot for one!
Stephbo
If you had never ventured into talking about the apple trees, I honestly never would have noticed. I was way too into the daydream of the French countryside. But thanks for bringing us back. I love the idea of several varieties of apples on the same tree. And thanks for doing at HD. My hubby works there, and his 401k is what we're planning in living off of in our retirement. ?
Isabella
I am also seriously impressed. You are everything Henri said, plus more. I've wanted to espalier apples( or anything) for ever so long. Now I must. Merci beau coup Madamoiselle.
Angelique Vela
Yes, I'm impressed. Yes, I love it. I hope they thrive for you.
Amanda
I am impressed, but considering that I only eat honeycrisp apples, I can't say I'd buy one myself.
It's a personal preference. I don't judge other apple eaters.
nancy
I know, I got all excited for a second and then I saw ... No Honeycrisps ... ho hum. The farmers market still needs my support.
Karen
That's funny because when the Honeycrisp bandwagon started a few years ago I immediately went out and bought some and thought ... meh. I like my galas better. Also, you can get trees with honeycrisp. :) ~ karen!
Patricia
You must not have had a good honey crispy because they are delicious! Very sweet and crispy...hence the name I guess :)
I have a small yard and now you have me thinking espaliered apple trees...
Alisa
You might want to check into a book called "Grow a Little Fruit Tree". I started with four espaliers, and now I have 19 regular, non-espalier trees in my back yard. Nineteen! The author explains how to grow and prune them, so they stay extremely small, yet produce like mad. It's a brilliant book, and now I'm all excited about fruit trees, and I need to go plant more....
Karen
19?!! O.K. I don't have room for 19 of anything in my backyard. I'll add the book to my Amazon list tho! thx. ~ karen
Nicole
I've got 16 espaliered fruit trees in my yard and it's a great way to get fruit with limited space. Enjoy!
maria-to
thanks alisa i just ordered from my local library -- sounds like this book has good advice about small fruit trees always wanted to plant apple but dont have room for large trees - espaliers just might work :)
Jennifer
Alisa, I've been mulling the idea of fruit trees over in my mind, and this idea just might get me to jump in. I planted an orange and mandarin tree a few months ago, but would love to plant more. Keeping them small would allow me to do that! *logs onto Amazon to order that book*
Katie Schneider
Oooh! i have three! and this is the first year I'll get fruit...planted 3-4 years old. should've gotten a few last year, but what the darned neighborhood scavengers (we live in the 'hood and they're outside the fence) didn't pick and sample before they were ripe (i thought everyone knew apples aren't ripe in June?!), the codling moths got into. so I'm trying an organic method of keeping bugs and people off this year and it seems to be working....
also have a grafted pear and some columnar apple trees. fun fun!
Karen
You'll have to let me know about your organic pest control because fruit trees are NOTORIOUSLY difficult to keep without using some sort of spray. ~ karen!
Katie Schneider
we get apple maggots and codling moths here.
http://www.homeorchardsociety.org/growfruit/apples/footie-update-improving-coddling-moth-protection/
this is what I'm trying. bought footies on Amazon (accidentally got black ones) and food-grade kaolin clay. the apples look hilarious with their little black hats! hidden bonus is that nobody takes them because they look weird. so far they look bug free compared to the neighbors' tree, but some scorched when we had 90-degree temps in April (I'm in Portland, OR, and that is seriously weird La Nina crap or something). I'm not sure if black footies helped or hurt with that...
we'll see!
Katrina
Karen, You should Join, "My Job Depends on Ag" on FB.
Lots of help in that group!
Cynthia Jones
Oh bugger! I wanted to be the first to tell you about "Espalier".
You know everything, just like that bloody Barbie.
Never mind.
Just in case you don't know this...if you spread the ashes from your pizza oven or any other remants of a wood fire around your trees in the months before flowering, it will help them flower and fruit more prolifically. You know, more better. Works with any flowering plant.
You're so naughty, teasing us with names of lovers. You know it gets us all stirred up.
Lovely trees, great job stringin' your wires, very pretty result.
If the clamps dont hold you can get little cables ties from a hardware store in black plastic, just like the ones serial killers keep in the boot.
Your photography, styling and labelling is magnificent. Well done you. :)
Ronda
I put ashes from our charcoal BBQ in the hole before planting two of my peonies, and they grew much better than the two that didn't have the ashes. So when I move them to our new and improved back yard, I will definitely be putting in some. Bit of a brain fart there! Too many "ashes"! Is there a synonym for ashes??
Bobbles
I lived many years in France and Belgium and the espaliered trees and the groves of trees planted in such perfect diagonal lines were a great joy to me! To me, planting trees that require years to grow to such shapes and in such detail is the ultimate act of selflessness. Thank you for doing this and bringing back a taste of home!
whitequeen96
OK, this might sound dumb, but I don't think I've eaten any of the apples listed except for the Fuji. I'm a HUGE fan of Fuji apples, which is probably why I don't remember eating the others. My new favorite is Honey Crisp apples, but you don't have a branch for them.
I think this is a fabulous idea and will look beautiful. And they'll be magic apple trees, since you get 6 different kinds of apples from them! Plus, I know you'll come up with creative ideas for dressing them up!
Dale
Henri will be as thrilled with your mechanical abilities to manipulate cable and turnbuckles just to raise raise 6 different apples to make him 6 different tarts. When the main tart is the chef herself!!
Well done.
Mary W
LOL
Mark
Nice job!
robert
I would definitely buy the series of romance novel of the Canadian girl living in France that you apparently aren't writing so, please start. How long before you get the first apples?
maria-to
p.s. i've purchased a couple of home depot trees that have done amazingly well - big box, a great price and they didn't die!
Kat
I am SERIOUSLY IMPRESSED! Good choice on the location as they look great there.
Will it take years for fruit to start or will it start to produce come next spring? Do chickens like apples?
Karen
Chickens love apples, and there's no real way to tell when I'll get apples. Other than one or two, probably not for a couple of years I would guess, once the trees are happy and established. ~ karen!
maria-to
will you get apples this year?
Rita
Karen may get some but she'll need to ditch all but 2 apples per stem for the first year. In reality, it'll be 3 years before Karen gets a meaniful harvest. Of 6 beautiful varieties ☺
Karen
Nope. I might have had one but a bird stole it, lol. ~ karen!