The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Growing => Fruit => Topic started by: silver swan on February 06, 2011, 02:07:16 pm
-
Does anyone in the Frozen North have any success with greengages?
I would like to expand upon the few fruit trees we have and for some reason a greengage has popped into my head even though I haven't had any since I was a kid. We have a Victoria plum which does well - every other year, three pear trees and a Howgate Wonder cooking apple tree which produces tons every year (so far!). ditto the Morello cherry (and 'geans').
Advice gratefully appreciated. Ta. X
-
We had a gage tree in Alloa - not exactly the frozen North though. It wasn't very old so can't judge yield but flavour was fabulous.
-
We are in the south of Scotland but 1000' up. Victorias simply won't grow here but we have a lovely golden gage - Ouillin's Golden Gage - which crops really heavily each year and gives fruit which is so sweet it can be eaten raw, or made into jam or stewed. Merryweather damson also grows well although the trees don't last many years. Mirabelles also do well and can be grown in a hedgerow - their fruit is small so loads of pips/stones but they make a really delicious jam. We also had a Czar plum which cropped very well in it's first couple of years but then keeled over when we had to move it.
-
That's the gage we had - it was delicious. We also had Czar plums, which was a nice fruit.
-
I got a greengage tree last year, nothing off it last year, but that's only to be expected. I love greengage's- and so often people have no idea what they are! My aunt has three gage trees, for the last 3 years, and still hasn't produced more than one or two fruit, so you might need to wait a while for the fruit!
Beth