Wind Is the Real Test on an Exposed Plot

On a hill farm, a coastal strip or a field with nothing taller than a gorse bush to break the weather, wind does far more damage to fruit trees than cold ever will. It rocks young trees until the roots tear loose in the soil — the classic windrock — strips blossom before pollinators can work, shreds and dries leaves, and pushes growth into a lopsided, wind-sculpted shape that never crops properly. On the coast you can add salt burn to the list, which scorches leaf edges and buds on the seaward side.

None of this means an exposed plot can't grow good fruit. It means the decisions you make before the tree goes in the ground matter far more than they would in a sheltered garden. Rootstock, variety, shelter and staking all need to be chosen with the wind in mind, not treated as afterthoughts.

Choose the Rootstock Before the Variety

The rootstock decides how big the tree grows, how well it anchors and how soon it crops — and on a windy site, anchorage comes first. Dwarfing rootstocks such as M27 and M9 have small, brittle root systems and will spend their whole lives needing a stake; in open ground they are a poor bet. Better choices are:

• MM106 — semi-vigorous, decent roots and the workhorse of most small orchards. Still worth staking permanently in a blustery spot.
• MM111 — vigorous with superb anchorage and good drought tolerance. Slower to crop, but it stands up to weather that would flatten a dwarf tree. A sound choice for exposed sites.
• M26 — semi-dwarf, manageable, but plan on a stake for life.
• M25 — very vigorous, giving full standards for large plots only.

For pears, ask for Quince A or Pyrodwarf rather than the dwarfing Quince C, or a seedling pear if you want a tree that stands alone. Plums do well on St Julien A, or Brompton on heavy, windswept ground. Sweet cherries on Colt anchor reasonably but crop poorly in wind; Morello is the more reliable cooking cherry.

Varieties That Earn Their Keep in a Blustery Garden

Look for varieties that flower in mid or late season — early blossom is far more likely to be ruined by wind-driven rain and a shortage of flying pollinators — and that are known for toughness rather than delicacy. Reliable apples include Egremont Russet, Ashmead's Kernel, Charles Ross, James Grieve, Lord Lambourne, Ribston Pippin and Annie Elizabeth. Remember that triploids such as Bramley's Seedling need two compatible pollinators nearby, so plant a crab apple or a second variety.

Pears are slower to settle but Conference, Concorde, Invincible and Beurré Hardy all cope reasonably with exposure. For plums, Victoria is self-fertile and forgiving, alongside Czar and Marjorie's Seedling. Damsons such as Merryweather and the old Shropshire damson are about as wind-proof as top fruit gets, and they make wonderful jam. Quince and medlar also shrug off rough weather, and cobnuts are worth a row.

Build Shelter Before You Plant the Orchard

If you can, spend a season or two establishing a windbreak on the prevailing wind side of the plot before the fruit trees go in. A permeable hedge — hawthorn, blackthorn, field maple, hornbeam, beech or hazel — filters wind and lifts it over the orchard. A solid barrier, such as a dense conifer wall, simply forces the wind up and over, creating damaging turbulence on the sheltered side.

A hedge will shelter ground for roughly ten to fifteen times its height, but leave a gap of five or six metres between hedge and first row of trees so the wind doesn't dump its force right at the edge. Also avoid the bottom of a slope, where cold air pools into a frost pocket — that will cost you more blossom than the wind ever will.

Planting and Staking So Trees Stay Put

Plant bare-root trees between November and March, when the soil is workable and the tree is dormant. Firm the soil in stages as you fill, so the roots have proper contact with the earth. Then stake properly:

• Use a short stake of about 60cm for well-rooted stock, driven in at an angle so the roots aren't damaged.
• On very exposed plots, use a tripod of three stakes with a crossbar, which holds the trunk steady without rubbing.
• Tie with adjustable rubber or webbing ties in a figure of eight, and check them every year — a tie that bites into the bark can kill a tree faster than the wind.

Water thoroughly through the first two summers, mulch around the tree but keep the mulch clear of the trunk, and avoid heavy nitrogen feeding — soft, sappy growth is the first thing wind tears apart.

Pruning and the Early Years

Train trees to a low, open goblet with a sturdy trunk and a broad framework, rather than letting them run up tall. A low canopy has less leverage in a gale, and the fruit is easier to pick. Prune in summer where you can, as cuts heal faster and regrowth is less sappy going into winter.

Expect a slower start than a sheltered garden would give you, and don't panic if the first two seasons look modest. Once the roots are anchored and the shelter has knitted together, a well-chosen windy-plot orchard will crop steadily for decades — and the fruit, grown slowly and ripened hard, is usually all the better for it.