How our trees are grown
The first and arguably the most important parts of the tree growing process are the selection and planting of the 'Root Stock'. All of our root stocks come from only British suppliers and are all guaranteed disease and virus free. The roots are lightly trimmed to create nice fibrous roots then hand planted.
Here you can see planted 'Colt'rootstocks which are used for all of the fruiting and ornamental cherries.
Once the root stocks have been planted, they are then left in the ground till July when they are 'chip budded'. This is a very skilled job undertaken by our full time tree experts.
Firstly two cuts are made in the rootstock about 15cm from the ground to correspond with those on the bud chip and the resulting sliver of wood is then removed. The bud chip is then placed into the 'lip' of the cut rootstock so that the cambium layers match. The join is then binded tightly with grafting tape or strips of polythene, leaving the bud and leaf stalk exposed. Once the bud starts to swell the tape is removed. A cane is inserted and ties attached (up to 10 times a year) to the new shoot as it develops. This ensures the tree forms a perfect straight stem.
These Acer Drummondii are what'sknown as 1 year old or maiden trees. As you can see our trees make a lot of growth in just one year.
1 Year old flowering cherry trees.
From Mid November to the end of February (the dormant period), the trees are hand lifted to ensure minimum damage to the root system. Lifting is done the day of dispatch then sent by overnight courier to ensure the trees reach you in first class condition.
Outside the dormant season container grown trees are used. These have the benefit of being suitable for planting 12 months a year.
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Tree Gift Wrapping Service
Why not make your tree gift even
more special by using our gift wrapping service. This includes one of our
handmade drawstring 'ecobags' made out of 100% biodegradable materials, a gift
tag with optional gift message and a planting and aftercare booklet. All of this
for just £2.00 per tree.
B/R (Bare Root) - The traditional way to buy deciduous trees and shrubs. Perfect for planting between November and March.
R/B (Root Ball) - The traditional way to buy evergreen trees and shrubs. The plants are kept in their own soil, making them ideal to transplant between November and March.
C/G (Container Grown) - A very convenient way to buy trees and shrubs, already rooted in their pots, they can be planted all year round. Sizes given in litres.
H/S (Half standard) - Half standard trees are 2-3 years old and have a clear stem of 1.25-1.5m with a bushy head of branches. The total height from the ground is usually 1.8-2.4m (6-8ft).
B (Bush) - Bush trees are 2-3 years old and have a clear stem of 0.8-1m with a bushy head of branches. The total height from the ground is usually 1.5-1.8m (5-6ft).
Maiden (Feathered tree) - A good, well-defined prominent leader running straight up through the young tree. Perfect for training into a half standard, standard or fan-trained tree. Sizes given in cm's.
Multi-stemmed - A tree with two or more main stems
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