Gardening Guru By Peter Wayman of Palmers Bethlehem

Have you ever fancied picking fresh fruit straight off a tree?

It seems that young and old want to be able to crop their own fruit from their own trees, and now is the time to plant.

One of the easiest fruits to grow is the plum; easy care, very few diseases or problems, so a good one to start with. We have a full range of all fruit trees at Palmers Bethlehem, apples, pears, plums, peaches, nectarines and all types of citrus. Plant now so they get well rooted before the dry of the summer.

For best results, stake the trees when you plant to enable them to make root quicker and do not over-crop them in the first year. In fact it is recommended to take off most of the fruit in the first year to give the trees a head start, just let a few fruit grow to get a taste of what's to come.

If you are short of space, you could consider training then along a fence (called espalier) and if you want to fit in more varieties, go for a double grafted or triple grafted tree. This is where you get two or three varieties on the one tree; the varieties are selected to grow well together and will pollinate each other to give you better fruiting.

You can also ask for varieties grown on a dwarf root stock. This slows down the growth and keeps the tree small and more manageable. These trees are also suitable for growing in tubs or containers for people with little or no garden.

If you purchase single variety trees, you would be advised to buy two trees that pollinate each other, this means that the two varieties flower at the same time and therefore they will pollinate each other, as the trees need pollen from a different variety to form quality fruit. This applies to most types of fruit. The best position for fruit trees is an open sunny position sheltered from strong winds. Ask in store for more advice on variety selection.