Apples? You can’t beat them
Don’t worry if you see torch carriers hitting tree trunks with sticks – it’s part of an ancient tradition to ensure a giant crop
There is a very strange custom that happens in orchards at this time of year. It involves a group of people carrying flaming torches, singing, dancing and drinking cups of cider. They also place bread in the tree’s branches and beat its trunk with sticks.
Don’t worry, though. They aren’t part of a weird cult, but simply upholding a folk custom known as wassailing. Pre-dating the arrival of Christianity, the ritual aims to wake up trees from dormancy and scare away evil spirits, ensuring a bumper crop. The word itself derives from the Saxon words ‘waes hael’, meaning ‘be well’.
Traditionally wassailing took place on Twelfth Night (the end of Christmas celebrations and when, according to superstition, decorations should be taken down) — either January 5 or 6, according to different denominations of Christianity. However, these days the events take place in orchards throughout the month.
Apart from being the time to take part in wassailing, mid-winter is perfect for planting an apple tree in your garden. Over the next couple of months, the roots of both bare-root and containergrown specimens will establish readily, allowing trees to burst into life in spring.
Apples derive from a species native to a remote region of Kazakhstan. The Romans later found cultivated apples in Syria, developed new varieties and then introduced them to parts of Europe during their 367-year occupation.
The fruit remained an important part of our diet and, at their peak of popularity in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, about 3,000 different varieties were grown. Today there are more than 2,000 different ones grown, although only a small percentage are offered for sale.
Many of my favourite varieties are hundreds of years old, but modern breeding has given us plenty more that are worth growing.
Among the tastiest newbies are ‘Redlove Odysso’ with its captivating red skin and pink-red flesh, and ‘Purple Haze’, whose purple-skinned fruit have red flesh and heart-shaped white centres.
Now for some technical stuff. Only a few apple varieties are self-fertile, meaning they’ll produce fruit by themselves. Most need to be grown near another variety to allow cross-pollination by bees. Not all are compatible with each other, so ask suppliers to recommend varieties that can be grown together.
If grown on their own roots, apple trees often fail to anchor themselves, grow too large or produce a disappointing crop.
To avoid these problems, nurserymen propagate them using a technique called grafting — where the shoot of one variety is joined on to the roots, or rootstock, of another. This controls its growth-rate and eventual size.
Before buying a tree, make sure it’s growing on a rootstock that suits the size of your garden.
There are six main ones, including ‘dwarfing’ M9 that limits growth to 8ft and ‘vigorous’ M25, which results in 20ft tall trees. MM106 is the most popular rootstock at 12ft in height.
You also need to consider how you want to grow apples. Half-standards and ‘bush’-trained trees are great if you have space, while free-standing columnar plants and stepovers are ideal choices for smaller gardens.
Cordons, fans and espaliers are perfect raised against walls and fences, and dwarf trees for containers.
As for growing conditions, apple trees like well-drained soil and full sun.
As they usually produce blossom between late April and mid-May, choose a sheltered spot to ward off frost.
Pollination is also carried out by insects, which are put off by strong winds in open, blustery areas of the garden.