In the meantime, most types of fruit are also available in specialist shops as columnar fruit, which offers a relatively high yield with a relatively small space requirement. Whether these plants need special protection from the winter cold depends not least on the respective location.
Column fruit is just as hardy as normal-form fruit trees
Successfully overwinter planted columnar fruit
Planted columnar fruit varieties are usually no more or less hardy than the fruit varieties from which they were grown. However, you should note that the grafting point for fruit trees must always be above the surface of the earth, otherwise it could become rotten. In addition, a plant stake or attachment to a trellis can do no harm to protect the plants from wind or snow damage. Very young plants should sometimes be wrapped in fleece around the trunk so that the winter weather does not crack the trunk bark.
The right winter protection for potted plants
Unfortunately, columnar fruit trees grown in planters are not quite as insensitive to the winter cold as specimens planted out. With these measures you can usually get your columnar fruit through the winter well:
- Choose planters large enough
- Wrap plant pots with fleece or bamboo mats
- Create some distance to the floor with a styrofoam base
- Place the plant pot preferably in a wind-protected location under an eaves
- Cover the root area with a disc of coconut fiber
- Avoid waterlogging in the plant pot
- Overwinter sensitive varieties in particularly cold areas in a frost-free place in a bright room
tips
Unlike many other plants, fruit trees should not be protected with their leaves from the winter cold in winter, since the infestation pressure can otherwise increase enormously due to the wintering of pests, fungal spores and pathogens.