Despite the relatively compact size, columnar fruit can also deliver a surprisingly high fruit yield. So that the plants have the necessary nutrients ready for this, care must be taken during planting and further care to ensure that fertilization is precisely tailored to the needs of the plants.

With good fertilization, the columnar fruit tree bears more

The misunderstanding of fertilizing columnar fruit

Some fruit-loving hobby gardeners tend to be overly cautious when fertilizing columnar fruit. Apparently, in some gardens the opinion is circulating that consistent fertilization of the dainty-looking young plants would lead to undesired proliferation in plant growth. This can only happen to a very limited extent in the case of fruit trees specially bred for use as columnar fruit, since the growth habit is genetically defined in most cases. Pillar fruit was usually selected for a particularly high fruit yield. It is therefore important, especially when cultivating in a planter, to always supply sufficient amounts of nutrients for the formation of the fruit. With compost and animal manure, this is only partially possible, which is why rich long-term fertilizers in liquid or solid form (granular) are generally recommended for fertilizing columnar fruit.

Fertilize immediately when planting and repotting

If columnar fruit varieties such as columnar pear or columnar plum are planted outdoors, the planting hole should be at least twice as large as the rootstock of the tree. In this way, a good foundation can be laid for later growth by filling the planting hole with a mixture of garden soil, mature compost and stable manure. Container cultures can also tolerate a certain amount of organic fertilizer when planting. This can be renewed each time the substrate is replaced if the trees are repotted into a larger planter about every two to three years. The following fertilizers (among others) are suitable for long-term fertilization of the substrate:

  • mature compost
  • animal dung
  • bedrock meal
  • horn shavings

The right time and the interaction of different fertilizers

Column fruit should be fertilized at least once a year, but twice a year can also be fertilized. First of all, the plants should be given fertilizer in the spring as soon as the first leaves sprout. With this fertilization, a long-term nitrogen fertilizer for fruit trees can be used. The nitrogen it contains stimulates leaf formation and plant mass growth, laying the foundation for a good yield. A second fertilization can then be carried out in late summer, although a fertilizer with a low nitrogen content should be used so that new shoots are no longer formed shortly before the onset of winter. The fertilizer for the late summer fertilization of columnar fruit, on the other hand, should contain more potassium and phosphate. These substances promote the lignification of young shoots and thus ensure the necessary winter hardiness of the plants.

tips

It's not always just a bad location or the wrong fertilizer that causes column fruit yields to fluctuate greatly. It can happen with columnar apples that after a year with very high fruit set there are hardly any blossoms to be discovered on the tree in the following year. This is because plants bred for high fruit yield “expend” so much energy on the ripening of the fruit that there is little left over to set up flower buds for the following year. For this reason, parts of the possible harvest should be removed in advance, e.g.

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Trees