Dwarf fruit trees - no fruit!

Hi all
I have three dwarf fruit trees - two apple and one pear and all are in their fourth year. Last year I noticed all the fruit buds 'snipped' off in the tubs and had very little fruit - two pears and just one apple. After some investigation and the help of somebody on here I was able to link the blackfly larvae on upper young leaves to the growing ant population in the tubs.

This year I have been extra careful, spraying the leaves with a rapeseed-based soluble spray and using ant killer to rid the tubs of ants. However I have a much lower number of fruit this year - just three pears despite having no more blackfly and no ants.

I can't find any fruit buds except a few early on. I was careful to place all three trees close together to encourage cross pollination (none require mandatory cross-pollination) and it seemed to have worked; I had in excess of twenty young fruit on both apple trees and a dozen good young pear buds at one stage.

What has happened and how can I stop it next growing season?

Regards, Martin.

 

It sounds to me like a pollination problem, Martin. Firstly, pears don`t pollinate apple trees and vice versa. Secondly, the two apples you have need to be in the same pollination group. Do you know the varieties of the trees?

 

Martin. You mentioned TUBS.

Not quite sure what you mean by "fruit buds"?

I'm assuming you are watering and feeding well.

If the fruit formed and then fell off it would be my guess the plants have dried out at some point.

I doubt blackfly or ants would have any bearing on the situation.

 

Hi both. The buds were the small 25mm tear-shaped formations that later become the fruit when successfully grown. Sorry I wasn't sure what to call them. The apples are in 30cm tubs and the pear is in a 45cm tub, all with small drainage holes underneath. Both are in a compost and loamy mix.

In spring and summer once the plants had started to flower I fed weekly with Westlands soluble feed and watered daily in hot sunny weather.

Both varieties were sold as self fertile varieties - Midget Golden Spur and Midget Lilliput Pear. I was of course aware that pears don't pollinate apples and vice versa, sorry my wording wasn't clear on that. They are all on my west-facing patio which gets the full sun from about 11am til sunset all year round.

Let me know if you need any more information. Thanks again.

Regards, Martin

 

OK, so the fruit actually formed and has now fallen off, thats a natural thing for the plant to do, its just happened a bit early and probably too many have dropped off.

I cant think of any other reasons for that to happen, it sounds like pollination was OK.

 

It`s what fruit trees do if the fruit hasn`t set, ie, been pollinated. I have to admit I have never heard of these varieties. I think they have come in from abroad. Who did you buy them from Martin?

 

Just had a quick look on Google. From what I can see there is a bit of fibbing going on here. Martin, did you get them from Parkers?

 

Dai, I've never seen an apple get to 25mm across and not be pollinated.

The unpollinated ones drop off just after flowering with out forming fruitlets.

The tree does drop fruitlets at or after the 25mm stage, but thats due to the "June drop", (usually in July), and has more to do with what the tree can cope with rather than pollination.