Dwarf Fruit Trees For Beginners

OK….So lets see what all the fuss is about and have a look at the different shapes we can produce when pruning our trees and why some people consider it an ‘art form’.

Firstly, we have the ‘step-over’ tree. So called because you step-over it!! This shape is just a single tier espalier and looks especially good when used as a boundary.

From This…..

To This

Beautiful yes?

Of course we also have the proper espalier….lets look at a drawing first..

And a fully grown specimen……..

And the best space saver of all is the single stemmed tree. It has various names such as minarette, ballerina, cordon…lets have a look at the drawing first…

And once more, a real live example..

Now, there are many variations of all these basic types but I think you get the idea…the shapes you can get are almost infinate. I intend to discuss shaping your tree at a later date but at least for now you have can see the possibilities. All you need to consentrate on is the pruning.