Bare root fruit trees on semi-vigorous or dwarf rootstocks offer an excellent balance of manageable size, early productivity, and ease of planting. These trees—whether apples, pears, plums, or damsons—are supplied dormant and without soil around their roots, making them lighter to handle and quicker to establish once planted. Dwarf and semi-vigorous rootstocks help control the eventual height and spread of the tree, making pruning, harvesting, and general care far simpler while still providing strong, reliable yields. Apples and pears on these rootstocks tend to form compact, fruitful shapes ideal for smaller gardens or trained forms, while plums and damsons benefit from the improved establishment and steady growth that bare root planting encourages. Overall, choosing bare root trees on controlled-growth rootstocks is a cost-effective and rewarding way to create a productive orchard in limited space.
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| To ensure good pollination and therefore a good crop, it is essential to grow two or more different cultivars from the same Flowering Group or adjacent Flowering Groups. | |||
| Some cultivars are triploid ** – they have sterile pollen and need two other cultivars for good pollination; therefore, always grow at least two other non triploid cultivars with each one. | |||
| Apples: | |||
| Blenheim Orange' ** | MM106 (Large 2.5m - 4.5m) | Cooking/Dessert | Pollination group 3 |
| Bountiful' | MM106 (Large 2.5m - 4.5m) | Cooking | Pollination group 2 |
| Bramley Seedling' ** | MM106(Large 2.5m - 4.5m) | Cooking | Pollination group 3 |
| Charles Ross' | MM106 (Large 2.5m - 4.5m) | Cooking/Dessert | Pollination group 3 |
| Cox Self Fertile' | MM106 (Large 2.5m - 4.5m) | Dessert | Pollination group 3 |
| Discovery' | MM106 (Large 2.5m - 4.5m) | Dessert | Pollination group 3 |
| Elstar | MM106 (Large 2.5m - 4.5m) | Dessert | Pollination group 3 |
| Grenadier' | MM106 (Large 2.5m - 4.5m) | Cooking | Pollination group 3 |
| James Grieve' | MM106 (Large 2.5m - 4.5m) | Cooking/Dessert | Pollination group 3 |
| Katy' | MM106 (Large 2.5m - 4.5m) | Dessert | Pollination group 3 |
| Lanes Prince Albert' | MM106 (Large 2.5m - 4.5m) | Cooking | Pollination group 4 |
| Limelight' | MM106 (Large 2.5m - 4.5m) | Dessert | Pollination group 3 |
| Peasgood Nonsuch' | MM106 (Large 2.5m - 4.5m) | Cooking/Dessert | Pollination group 3 |
| Red Pippin (Fiesta)' | MM106 (Large 2.5m - 4.5m) | Dessert | Pollination group 3 |
| Spartan' | MM106 (Large 2.5m - 4.5m) | Dessert | Pollination group 3 |
| Tydesman Late Orange' | MM106 (Large 2.5m - 4.5m) | Dessert | Pollination group 4 |
| Worcester Permain' | MM106 (Large 2.5m - 4.5m) | Dessert | Pollination group 3 |
| Apples Family: | |||
| TBC | MM106 (Large 2.5m - 4.5m) | Cooking/Eating | Self Fertile |
| Apples Dwarf Stock: | |||
| Bramley' | M27 (Dwarf - maximum height 2m) | Cooking | Pollination group 3 |
| Cox Self Fertile' | M27 (Dwarf - maximum height 2m) | Dessert | Pollination group 3 |
| Discovery' | M27 (Dwarf - maximum height 2m) | Dessert | Pollination group 3 |
| Katy' | M27 (Dwarf - maximum height 2m) | Dessert | Pollination group 3 |
| Red Pippin' | M27 (Dwarf - maximum height 2m) | Dessert | Pollination group 3 |
| Quince A is often considered roughly equivalent of the apple MM106 rootstock, but is a bit less vigorous. | |||
| Height after 5-10 years of 3m-4m, or 2.5m as a fan or espalier. | |||
| Pears: | |||
| Beth' | Quince A | Dessert | Pollination group 3 |
| Beurre Hardy' | Quince A | Dessert | Pollination group 3 |
| Concorde' | Quince A | Dessert | Pollination group 3 |
| Conference' | Quince A | Dessert | Pollination group 3 |
| Doyenne du Comice' | Quince A | Dessert | Pollination group 4 |
| William Bon Chretien' | Quince A | Dessert | Pollination group 3 |
| St.Julian is a semi-vigorous rootstock, roughly equivalent to the apple MM106. | |||
| Height after 5-10 years of 3m-4m. | |||
| Damson/Plums/Greengage: | |||
| Cambridge Gage' (Greengage) | St. Julian A | Dessert | Partially Self-fertile/group 3 |
| Coe's Golden Drop' | St. Julian A | Dessert | Pollination group 2 |
| Czar' | St. Julian A | Cooking/Dessert | Self-fertile/group 3 |
| Denniston's Superb' | St. Julian A | Dessert | Self-fertile/group 2 |
| Kirke's Blue' | St. Julian A | Dessert | Pollination group 3 |
| Marjorie's Seedling' | St. Julian A | Cooking/Dessert | Partially Self-fertile/group 3 |
| Merryweather' (Damson) | St. Julian A | Cooking | Self-fertile/group 3 |
| Opal' | St. Julian A | Dessert | Self-fertile/group 3 |
| Oullins Gage' (Greengage) | St. Julian A | Cooking/Dessert | Partially Self-fertile/group 4 |
| Victoria' | St. Julian A | Cooking/Dessert | Self-fertile/group 3 |
| Pixy is a semi-dwarf stock can be considered roughly equivalent to the apple M26 rootstock. | |||
| Height after 5-10 years of 2m-3m. | |||
| Damson/Plums Dwarf Stock: | |||
| Merryweather' (Damson) | Pixe | Cooking | Self-fertile/group 3 |
| Victoria' | Pixie | Dessert | Self-fertile/group 3 |
| Peaches: | |||
| Peregrine' | St. Julian A | Dessert | Self-fertile |
| Apricots/Nectarines: | |||
| Moorpark' | St. Julian A | Dessert | Self-fertile |
| Tros Orange' | St. Julian A | Dessert | Self-fertile |
| Lord Napier' (Nectarine) | St. Julian A | Dessert | Self-fertile |
| Quince: | |||
| Vranja' | Quince A | Cooking | Self-fertile |
| Medlars | |||
| Medlar | Cooking/Dessert | Self fertile | |
| Colt is roughly comparable to the apple MM111 rootstock. | |||
| Height after 5-10 years of 3.5-4.5m | |||
| Cherries: | |||
| Merton Glory' | Colt | Dessert | Pollination group 2 |
| Stella' | Colt | Dessert | Self-fertile/group 4 |
| Sunburst' | Colt | Dessert | Self-fertile /group 4 |
| Sour Cherries: | |||
| Morello' | Colt | Cooking | Self-fertile/group 4 |