Pillar fruit is not only trendy in particularly small gardens or on balconies, after all it can be used to achieve considerable yields even in confined spaces. In the meantime, gardeners are spoiled for choice when it comes to this plant category, since quite a few types of fruit are now available as columnar fruit trees.

The columnar growth makes harvesting easier

Columnar cherry trees

You should not automatically infer a compact growth form from the name columnar cherry tree, since many columnar cherries can reach impressive heights without regular pruning. The following varieties of columnar cherry are available in specialist shops in many places and are valued by many hobby gardeners and sometimes also by growers:

  • Pillar cherry "Karina"
  • Pillar cherry "Schneiders Späte"
  • Pillar cherry "Giorgia"
  • Pillar cherry Claudia
  • Pillar sour cherry "Jachim"

During the harvest season, cherries can be enjoyed fresh from the tree or processed well. Extend harvest time by planting early and late varieties side by side in your garden.

Pillar Pears: Naturally slender or trimmed in shape

Due to genetic predisposition, some varieties of columnar pears actually stay slim and columnar almost all by themselves, while other varieties occasionally need a slight topiary for their tightly upright growth habit. Overall, most varieties of columnar pear are relatively easy to care for, as they don't need to be pruned as much as some other columnar fruit trees. The following varieties of columnar pear are particularly popular when planted outdoors or in pots:

  • Pillar Pear "Obelisk"
  • Pillar Pear “Doyenné du Comice”
  • Pillar bulb "Concorde"
  • Pillar pear "Bambinella"
  • Pillar pear "Decora"
  • Column pear "Condora"
  • Pillar Pear "Conference"

The columnar pear variety "Conference" not only has juicy fruits that store well, but is also suitable as a "pollinator variety" for pollinating other pear varieties.

Pillar apples for the balcony and garden

While some columnar fruit trees cannot be cultivated very compactly, with the right pruning columnar apple trees can even be made to a suitable height for the balcony. If they are watered sufficiently, columnar apples also appreciate warm and sunny locations on the balcony or terrace. The following varieties have proven themselves in terms of plant health and yield:

  • Pillar apple "Bolero"
  • Pillar Apple "Ballerina"
  • Pillar Apple "Rhapsody"
  • Column apple "La Torre" (particularly resistant to scab and mildew)
  • Flamenco Column Apple
  • Pillar apple "Redini Cuckoo" (with red colored flesh)
  • Pillar apple “Malini Black Beauty”
  • Pillar Apple "Goldcats"
  • Red River Pillar Apple
  • Pillar apple "Green Sensation"

tips

Some columnar fruit trees tend (quite intentionally) to form extremely numerous flowers, from which an almost unreal number of fruits can sometimes develop. However, it may be that the amount of fruit is disproportionate to the size of the plant. If you attach more importance to fruit quality than quantity, then you should remove some of the still small fruits shortly after flowering if the fruit set is excessive. In this way, the remaining fruits can really fully ripen and develop their full flavor thanks to the better supply from the plant.

Category:

Trees