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Cordons ‘hedge’ ideas for an exposed location

#1 · 4th November 2022, 7:03 pm

Please help! For the last 2 years I have been trying to get some advice from professionals with no luck whatsoever! I have an exposed, windy plot with a raised veg patch and an immature wildflower ‘meadow’ sitting side by side. I want to separate the two with a 7m row of cordon fruit trees up to a height of about 1.25m. Hopefully this will act as a bit of a wind break for the veg as well as producing seasonal fruit and be wildlife friendly. I live in NE Scotland (Aberdeenshire) and have asked so many people for advice and nothing has been forthcoming. What fruit and varieties would you recommend for this sort of location and do you think cordons would work? Thank you!

#2 · 9th November 2022, 9:04 am

Hello Buttercup,

A shame that you have struggled to obtain advice over such a period of time.

The forum rules do not allow advertising or promoting other sites/companies etc, so I cannot give you any names, but there are numerous nursery's and specialised tree and fruit tree growers/nursery's based in Scotland.

I'm fairly close to a place called Brogdale, this holds the Heritage collection of fruit trees, therefore if you Google "Heritage" fruit trees for Scotland you will find all the info you require.

Decide what's fruit trees you want, and buy bare root stock, much cheaper than container grown, regarding planting, have a look at Lee' s YouTube video about laying a hedge, you can use this method to plant your trees, but not as close to one another as in planting a tight growing hedge.

Really hope all goes well, let the forum know how you get on please.

Bob

#3 · 9th November 2022, 9:59 am

Quote from Lee Garden Ninja on 9th November 2022, 9:59 am
HI @buttercup
Thanks for getting in touch. It's a shame that so much basic gardening-growing information is so well hidden or restricted. But then I wouldn't be doing this if all the gardening info was easy to find, would I?! @Bob guidance on plant choices is very applicable, and he is a valued member of this gardening forum for his timely advic
I'm an absolute Scotland mega fan. I spend a lot of my spare time touring in my motorhome, visiting gardens and soaking up your gorgeous countryside, so you've come to the right place.
The first thing I'm going to do is give some advice for windy sites, which applies to all gardens anywhere in the world. There are a few key factors you need to consider before moving on to planting any grow-your-own or ornamentals in exposed gardens:
Work out the exposure - which side or aspect is more exposed
Check if your soil is constantly getting scraped by the wind - so you can work out where shelter is needed
Consider planting a shelter belt on the most exposed sides - such as a native hedge or small evergreen hedge as a baffle
Without some form of protection, most edibles and ornamentals will struggle to establish. I've worked with many exposed gardens, including mine, and this shelter belt or hedge is essential. I've even used a few strategically placed tough shrubs to help diffuse direct wind if a full hedge is impossible.
https://youtu.be/1TNhzMjco2c
Also, using some permeable material fencing can help soften the wind effects on the garden. There are special fabrics you can use to soften exposure. Another idea is a more rustic Chesnut fence often seen on Scottish coastal beaches or ski slopes in Scotland to help reduce exposure and provide a break from soil erosion.
So that's the first step is to make it as hospitable as possible with some exposure protection. Hedges don't need to be huge. Even a 3 ft hedge will offer protection from the worst wind and create a warmer microclimate on the protected side. Even if planting or fitting a fence delays your grand plans, trust me, it's worth it.
Using Cordon or Step Over Fruit Trees as a Windbreak
I wouldn't use the Cordons as a windbreak in this situation as this will doubtfully be detrimental to any fruit. The cordons may help protect the veg but the wind will no doubt strip the blossom and make the fruit really difficult to pollinate by insects. So you really need the first protective measure before this.
Cordons or step-over apple trees for those who are scratching their heads are pruned to follow a set shape. Cordons usually are trained against a wall, and stepover cordons are trained as a low hedge framework with laterals being tied in horizontally so you can 'step over' the trees. They still fruit but require lots of pruning to establish.
Cordons would make sense to help provide some structure and another microclimate for your veg. They do require some careful twice-yearly pruning to ensure they stay in the right shape and also fruit! Check out my pruning guide here for winter vs summer fruit tree pruning. You could train them from 2-year-old fruit tree whips in a few years, cutting them back and training the leaders horizontally, but it's quite advanced pruning, so I'd buy in young cordon-ready fruit trees. This will save you from battling against exposure and tying them in as young plants, which can be frustrating. It's worth the investment.
I'd look at later flowering and fruiting apple trees, given Scotland's climate is a few weeks behind the rest of the UK. The reason for this is that your winters carry on a bit longer so a later fruiting tree would help avoid it getting battered as much in early spring.
https://youtu.be/DFdcQU8sNx8
I hope that helps, and please enjoy all the detail on my site!
Happy gardening.
Lee

HI @buttercup

Thanks for getting in touch. It's a shame that so much basic gardening-growing information is so well hidden or restricted. But then I wouldn't be doing this if all the gardening info was easy to find, would I?! @Bob guidance on plant choices is very applicable, and he is a valued member of this gardening forum for his timely advic

I'm an absolute Scotland mega fan. I spend a lot of my spare time touring in my motorhome, visiting gardens and soaking up your gorgeous countryside, so you've come to the right place.

The first thing I'm going to do is give some advice for windy sites, which applies to all gardens anywhere in the world. There are a few key factors you need to consider before moving on to planting any grow-your-own or ornamentals in exposed gardens:

Work out the exposure - which side or aspect is more exposed
Check if your soil is constantly getting scraped by the wind - so you can work out where shelter is needed
Consider planting a shelter belt on the most exposed sides - such as a native hedge or small evergreen hedge as a baffle

Without some form of protection, most edibles and ornamentals will struggle to establish. I've worked with many exposed gardens, including mine, and this shelter belt or hedge is essential. I've even used a few strategically placed tough shrubs to help diffuse direct wind if a full hedge is impossible.

Also, using some permeable material fencing can help soften the wind effects on the garden. There are special fabrics you can use to soften exposure. Another idea is a more rustic Chesnut fence often seen on Scottish coastal beaches or ski slopes in Scotland to help reduce exposure and provide a break from soil erosion.

So that's the first step is to make it as hospitable as possible with some exposure protection. Hedges don't need to be huge. Even a 3 ft hedge will offer protection from the worst wind and create a warmer microclimate on the protected side. Even if planting or fitting a fence delays your grand plans, trust me, it's worth it.

Using Cordon or Step Over Fruit Trees as a Windbreak

I wouldn't use the Cordons as a windbreak in this situation as this will doubtfully be detrimental to any fruit. The cordons may help protect the veg but the wind will no doubt strip the blossom and make the fruit really difficult to pollinate by insects. So you really need the first protective measure before this.

Cordons or step-over apple trees for those who are scratching their heads are pruned to follow a set shape. Cordons usually are trained against a wall, and stepover cordons are trained as a low hedge framework with laterals being tied in horizontally so you can 'step over' the trees. They still fruit but require lots of pruning to establish.

Cordons would make sense to help provide some structure and another microclimate for your veg. They do require some careful twice-yearly pruning to ensure they stay in the right shape and also fruit! Check out my pruning guide here for winter vs summer fruit tree pruning. You could train them from 2-year-old fruit tree whips in a few years, cutting them back and training the leaders horizontally, but it's quite advanced pruning, so I'd buy in young cordon-ready fruit trees. This will save you from battling against exposure and tying them in as young plants, which can be frustrating. It's worth the investment.

I'd look at later flowering and fruiting apple trees, given Scotland's climate is a few weeks behind the rest of the UK. The reason for this is that your winters carry on a bit longer so a later fruiting tree would help avoid it getting battered as much in early spring.

I hope that helps, and please enjoy all the detail on my site!

Happy gardening.

Lee

#4 · 12th November 2022, 7:30 pm

Dear Lee and Bob,

Thank you both for taking the time to share your knowledge and provide some much needed advice and links - I greatly appreciate it!

I have planted a native hedge (now 2m+) as a shelter belt around the perimeter of the plot but is some 40m from the veg beds so probably too far away to give much shelter. I like the idea of the rustic fence, which could also act as a support for the cordons. Would apples be the only fruit I could use or would gooseberries or currants or some such be more robust?

It’s so lovely to have frustration turned back into enthusiasm - thank you!

#5 · 12th November 2022, 10:55 pm

Hello Buttercup,

Regarding gooseberries and currants, both require a pretty good fertile soil, planting in full sun or just partial shade.

But they require a sheltered site from strong wind and frosts, when planted give them a couple of years to establish before any pruning is carried out, if you keep an eye on Lee's video's you will be on the right track, hope all goes well.

Bob

#6 · 13th November 2022, 12:15 am

Just a thought Buttercup have you considered making a tunnel for your currants and gooseberries, using flexible waterpipe, it's colour is blue, flexible and strong, and covering this with fleece.

Let's light through, water through, resists wind and frosts to a limit, you can get 20mm pipe which would make a nice strong framework over your plants, cut the pipe to your required size, allowing extra to be pushed into the ground, you can strengthen them up by tieing bamboo canes across the top, making it look like an over large cloche.