Unusual fruit and veg

[chesters1]

I've had goose stuffed with chestnuts ib France for Christmas dinner.

When ours died aged about 30 it was probably to tough to eat stuffed with anything !

[corydoras]

If I had the space. I'd consider a hican tree - but they get BIG!

Hybrid vigour?

[chesters1]

Hybrid vigour?

Talking

[Ken L]

I don't think so. Shagbark hickory gets to 45m and pecans can top out a 40m so any way you look at it, the offspring is going to be a bit big for a garden.

If I can get them to go, the paw-paws should be more manageable.

[Phone]

Ken,

 

My "go to" joint. Not sure about international sales?

 

www.penrodsgreenhouse.com/plant_lists

 

Phone

​Last two years I'm "into" strawberries - probably two more years before I have to rotate on choose something else.

[corydoras]

https://treesforlife.org.uk/forest/blaeberry/

 

Yummy!

[Ken L]

https://treesforlife.org.uk/forest/blaeberry/

 

Yummy!

 

I have a district memory of being taken out to pick bilberries on heathland when I was no more than 4 or 5 years old. I know roughly were that must have been (not a million mils from where I live now) but I can honestly say that I've not seen any since.

Fortunately, I have their North American cousins (the blueberries), to grow.

[Sportsman]

I have just cut down a quince tree. Lat year it was loaded, to the point of breaking branches. Problem was, I can't stand them, wife and daughter weren't fussed and we couldn't give them away. I would like to replace it with a good cooking apple, something you have difficulty finding in France.

[corydoras]

I have just cut down a quince tree. Lat year it was loaded, to the point of breaking branches. Problem was, I can't stand them, wife and daughter weren't fussed and we couldn't give them away. I would like to replace it with a good cooking apple, something you have difficulty finding in France.

You could try Charles Ross. You can eat them, juice them, make cider from them and they are good for tarts and pies.

Bramley's are a PITA to grow. The Bramley is a triploid. In order to get fruit from a Bramley you need TWO other cultivars that will not only x-pollinate with the Bramley but will also x-pollinate each other.

 

PS

 

If you want a cooking apple in France you'll have to ask the nursery for pommes a cuire.

[Steve Walker]

We used to go picking bilberries on Saddleworth Moor when I was a kid. And when I lived in Aberystwyth, I used to collect them up in the hills round there. I find cultivated blueberries a bit insipid by comparison.

 

I used to have a quince tree in the garden in the old house (until I got a bit slapdash with the glyphosate). It was an ornamental cultivar, so the fruits were inedible, but perfumed. I steeped some in brandy. The resulting liqueur was undrinkable - tannic as hell. So I left it in a cupboard and forgot about it for a couple of years. When I tried it again, it was smooth and drinkable. I sweetened it with honey, and it was delicious. Sadly, the tree was dead by then so I never repeated the experiment.

 

I'm going to have to plan the new garden, most of it is a blank canvas laid to lawn, but it is tricky. The old garden was huge, this one is quite small, so I will have to be efficient. Also, I cannot ruin the view, so everything needs to be relatively low growing. I was going to put a greenhouse at the end of the garden, but it would be in the way, so I will have to tuck it in between the conservatory and the fence. It will at least be very sheltered and should get enough sun. And I will be able to see how things are growing from the sofa! I'm going to put in plenty of raised beds for veg and fruit canes. I have a decking area with a lot of trellis, so a couple of Kiwi fruits are on the agenda, along with lots of fragranced climbers. I want fruit trees, but the height is an issue and I don't particularly fancy the hassle of maintaining step-overs or espaliers. I might end up going with one of the latter, but the other option is to get some on dwarfing rootstocks.