Urban Gardening: Fruit Trees -Espaliers, Columnars & Backyard Orchard

If you plan on using a manually operated saw or axe, please step back and consider how insane that is. Chopping down a tree by hand will take you forever, and will not even begin to be as accurate as using a chainsaw. If you don t have a chainsaw, you shouldn t even consider doing it without one. Ask around with your neighbors and see if anyone has one that you could borrow. 

Your staking should prevent all of this movement, because this is the most harmful thing that can happen to a young tree. It causes the roots to be in motion too much and not be able to properly get a hold on the soil so that the tree can develop normally. Before you stake a tree, you should be completely sure that it needs it. 

Depending on where your tree is and how you want it to function, you will have to look for different types of forms that will perfectly fit your situation. The theories of training can also be applied even if you are growing a tree in the traditional (natural) form. Sometimes branches will grow too close together and block each other out, so training them to grow away from each other can prevent the need to prune them later. 

If your tree grows over your fence the fruit could drop into your neighbor's yard, which might seem like a nice thing but would probably annoy some people. One of the most important things of all to keep in mind when planting a fruit tree is whether or not your soil in your yard is suitable for your tree. 

Once your tree collection starts to bear large amounts of fruit, you can consider starting a fruit stand or participating at the farmers market. Instead of letting the fruits go to waste or trying to eat them all (which can lead to some bad stomach aches), you can let the rest of the world enjoy the product of your intense labor. 

Almost any reflective surface or noisy object will prevent the birds from coming too close. I personally like to use reflective tape designed for scaring birds. You can purchase this at any gardening store. I usually use this in combination with a large assortment of wind chimes for maximum scaring. Once you have a plastic animal along with reflective items and noisy items, almost all birds will be too terrified to even go close.