Fruit tree video channel

Trees are wonderful companions. Trees have their own story to tell. All we need to do is to listen to them through observation by means of regular visits. It is a fallacy that trees look after themselves. In particular, the quality of the first five years of a fruit tree’s life is instrumental to its capability to produce fruit on a regular basis.

The purpose of these videos is to follow the development of fruit trees throughout the seasons of winter, spring, summer and autumn. As for all living matter in nature, trees have to battle against a whole range of adversities as days go by. Once we get to know these adversities, it will become clear, particularly in the early years, when a modest amount of support from us will improve the fruit tree’s quality of life. This in turn will enable the tree to provide you with its delicious, natural and health-promoting fruit, grown in your own garden.

We are currently working on the production of these videos, and they are listed here in chronological order. Each link below takes you to a page where you can watch the video and read an accompanying text.

How to plant a fruit tree

A video that demonstrates how to plant a fruit tree. It shows a potted tree, but the same principles can be used for planting bare-root trees. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

how to plant a tree video

How to identify an apple variety

If you planted the trees yourself, you know the variety. But if they were already there when you arrived after moving house, how do you know what varieties the apple trees are? Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

How to identify an apple variety video

The history of the apple tree

Dan Neuteboom takes a look at the distant origins of apple trees, and the “fruit forest” near Almaty, Kazakhstan, where apple trees have been growing wild for thousands of years. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

History of the apple tree video

February: Pruning fruit trees – general principles

The basic concepts involved in pruning – the importance of light in determining tree shape. Click on the thumbnail to watch

Pruning fruit trees general principles video

February: The open-centre tree

In this video Dan describes the open bowl-shaped tree, an alternative to the pyramid structure. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

the open centre tree video

March: Pruning pear trees – the difference between fruit and wood bud

It is important to delay pruning until you can see which buds are fruit bud. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

difference between fruit and wood bud video tutorial

March: Whip and tongue grafting tools and technique

In this video, William Seabrook demonstrates the tools and steps involved in whip and tongue grafting. Click on the thumbnail to watch.

Whip and tongue grafting tools and technique video tutorial

March: Whip and tongue grafting and the rind grafting technique

Close-up views of these two grafting techniques. Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

Whip and tongue grafting and the rind grafting technique video tutorial

March: How to shape a fruit tree without pruning

In a fruit tree’s early years, the pyramid shape can be initiated without pruning. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

How to shape a fruit tree without pruning, video tutorial

March: Tying down apple tree branches

Dan Neuteboom demonstrates how to tie down apple tree branches, a method of forming the tree’s structure. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

Tying down apple tree branches, video tutorial

Late March: Pruning fruit trees: a mature apple tree

In this video Dan Neuteboom demonstrates how to prune an old apple tree – a 50-year old Bramley. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

Pruning a mature apple tree video tutorial

Late March: A pear tree in bad condition

In this video Dan takes a look at a 7-year old pear tree that is showing evident signs of distress. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

A pear tree in bad condition video tutorial

April: Pruning plum trees – and how not to prune plum trees

In this video Dan Neuteboom shows us two mature plum trees, one of which has been pruned with a chain saw. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

How to prune plum trees

April: How to prune an apple tree – video tutorial on a 10-year-old tree

In this video, Dan Neuteboom demonstrates the basics of pruning, improving light entry with as few cuts as possible. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

How to prune an apple tree video tutorial

April: Grafting pollinator to improve cropping – pear tree

Pollination can be improved by grafting on a second variety at the centre of the tree. Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

Grafting pollinator to improve cropping on a pear tree, video tutorial

April: How to grow greengage tree – open-centre tree

Dan shows us a 17-year old greengage that he has transformed by removing the central leader. Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

How to grow greengage tree, video tutorial

April: Bark, tree health, and fruit tree canker treatment

Using bark colour to assess health. How to cut out tree canker. Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

Bark, tree health, and tree canker treatment, video tutorial

April: Newly planted apple tree care video

Mulch helps keep the soil moist and provides nutrients. A tree guard is essential. Beware of mice. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

Newly planted apple tree care, video tutorial

April: Grafting mistletoe onto an apple tree

Mistletoe loves to grow on apple trees. It does no harm to the tree and encourages biodiversity. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

Grafting mistletoe onto an apple tree, video tutorial

April: Blossom on fan shaped pear trees

Good fruit set on three fan-shaped pear trees. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

Blossom on fan shaped pear trees video

April: Peach leaf curl control video tutorial

Peach leaf curl can be prevented by keeping buds and wood dry in winter and spring. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

Peach leaf curl management video

April: Cherry tree pollination – how to improve it easily

How to improve cross-pollination, fruit set and cropping on a cherry tree, using a milk bottle. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

Cherry tree pollination how to improve it, video tutorial

April: Tydemans Late Orange, a biennial bearing variety

Tydemans Late Orange tends to crop only every other year – biennial bearing – but the fruit is worth waiting for. Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

Tydemans Late Orange a biennial bearing variety, video tutorial

April: Soil analysis for fruit trees

A soil analysis report is crucial for determining the suitability of a new garden in terms of fruit tree soil requirements. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

How to obtain a soil analysis for fruit trees, video tutorial

April: Planting new fruit trees – variety choice video

A fruit tree varieties chart providing information on time of cropping, pollination, and disease resistance. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

Planting new fruit trees variety choice video

April: Apricot tree frost damage protection video

How to protect an apricot tree in the UK from the potential damage caused by night frosts. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

Apricot tree frost damage protection, video tutorial

April: How to plant a hedgerow

An example of a newly-planted hedge with details on preparation and care. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

How to plant a hedgerow, video tutorial

April: Pruning fruit trees video – stages of bud development

It is best to delay pruning until you can see the difference between wood bud and fruit bud. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

How to prune fruit trees and stages of bud development, video tutorial

April: An insect hotel and fruit tree pollination

Insect hotels can help with pollination on early-flowering fruit trees such as cherries, plums, greengages, apricots and peaches. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

An insect hotel and fruit tree pollination, video tutorial

May: Plum sawfly treatment video

For plum sawfly control, you can use a pheromone trap. Here are the details on controlling this pest. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

Plum sawfly treatment video

May: How to control aphids on fruit trees

You can always see when you have an aphid attack because the leaves curl up. There is a simple organic method to get rid of aphids on fruit trees. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

How to control aphids on fruit trees, video tutorial

May: How to control aphids on apple trees – video

if you see ants going up your fruit tree, you know that you have aphids. How can you get rid of the aphids on your apple tree? Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

How to control aphids on apple trees - video

May: Black aphids on cherry – video tutorial

Black aphids can be a serious problem on cherry. Here is an organic solution to black aphid infection. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

Black aphids on cherry, video tutorial

May: Video, how to control wasps in the garden

Wasps can be a real problem, particularly with plums and cherries. Here is a simple trap. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

How to control wasps in the garden, video tutorial

May: Video on how to thin apples by hand

For early varieties, late May is a good time for thinning fruit on apple trees. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

How to thin apples by hand, video tutorial

May: How to support fruit tree branches

When a young tree sets a lot of fruit, it may be necessary to provide support and prevent breakage. Here’s how to do it. Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

How to support fruit tree branches, video tutorial

May: How to grow morello cherries

The morello cherry is the only fruit tree that does very well on the north side of a building. Here are some tips on ensuring that it crops well. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

How to grow morello cherries, video tutorial

May: Scenes from a garden orchard, video

Dan Neuteboom at Suffolk Fruit & Trees points out some situations in a garden orchard, in early May. Fan, espalier, pyramid shape, spring frost, how to protect peaches, nectarines and apricots from frost damage. Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

Fan, espalier, pyramid shape, spring frost, how to protect peaches, nectarines and apricots from frost damage, video

May: How to grow figs in the UK

Figs do much better if they are in some sort of container, because they have very strong root systems. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

How to grow figs in the UK, video tutorial

May: How to thin plums – video tutorial

In late May-early June, if the set of fruit on plum trees is strong, it is a good idea to start thinning out the plums. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

How to thin plums, video tutorial

May: Mildew on fruit trees

In spring and early summer, mildew can develop on fruit trees very quickly, particularly in certain weather conditions. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

Mildew on fruit trees, video tutorial

May: Ladybirds, great friends for fruit growers

A ladybird is the biggest friend the fruit grower can have. They inhabit fruit trees and eat the aphids. Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

Ladybirds, great friends for fruit growers, video tutorial

May: Grafting apple trees, results and maintenance

How to solve problems in grafts that have not taken properly. Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

Grafting apple trees, results and maintenance, video tutorial

July: Thinning pears video

Thinning pears improves fruit size. A demonstration on the variety Joséphine de Malines. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

Thinning pears video

July: Thinning apples video

Thinning apples should be performed even on trees that have a natural self-thinning tendency. A demonstration on Winter Wonder/Suntan. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

Thinning apples Suntan video

July: Doyenne du Comice – an early-cropping pear

In the right conditions, a Comice pear tree on the right rootstock will crop at an early stage of its life, Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

Doyenne du Comice an early-cropping pear, video

July: Summer Sun, a compact, self-fertile cherry

A compact cherry, suitable for growing along a wall, best when planted with a pollinator. Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

Summer Sun a compact self-fertile cherry video tutorial

July: Thinning Pinova apples – a video tutorial

Pinova is a wonderful, late apple variety that crops fairly regularly, but it tends to overcrop, so thinning is very important. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

Thinning Pinova apples video tutorial

July: Thinning the Golden Gage greengage – video tutorial

Golden Gage is a generous tree, but if there are too many plums on the tree, thinning is necessary, because otherwise, next year you won’t get a good crop. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

Thinning the Golden Gage greengage video tutorial

July: Pheromone trap for the sawfly – video

The pheromone trap attracts the male sawfly, preventing too many grubs from ruining plums and greengages. Remember to replace the lure. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

Pheromone trap for the sawfly video

July: A Comice bush tree

Dan shows us a Comice pear cultivated as a bush tree, a pattern that can produce a lot of good-quality fruit as long as it has a pollinator that flowers at the same time. Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

Comice bush tree video

July: Thinning apricots – video tutorial

Apricots have set very well this year (2019), and so the fruits are too close together. Dan shows us the correct distance between fruits, and how to remove excess apricots. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

Thinning apricots video

July: How to save a tree that has been ring-barked by muntjac deer

Rabbits, hares and muntjac deer can cause terrible damage to a fruit tree. Dan Neuteboom shows us a Winter Nelis pear tree that was damaged in this way, and describes how he treated it in order to bring it back to health. Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

How to save a tree that has been ring-barked by muntjac deer, video tutorial

July: Chainsaw surgery – treating bacterial canker on a damson tree

Bacterial canker is a disease that can kill a tree. Dan Neuteboom explains how he treated an infected damson tree by cutting away the infected parts of the trunk with a chain saw, and painting the wounds with creocoat (a creosote substitute). Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

Chainsaw surgery treating bacterial canker on a damson tree, video tutorial

August: Some fruit tree problems

Dan Neuteboom explains about aphis, drought, rabbit damage. Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

Some fruit tree problems aphis drought rabbit damage, video tutorial

August: Summer pruning video

The principles of summer pruning, improving fruit colour and flavour. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

Summer pruning fruit trees, video tutorial

August: A wild flower meadow

Dan and Henrietta Neuteboom describe the benefits of a wild flower meadow, not just an aid for garden fruit trees, but also a source of constant fascination and stunning beauty. Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

wild flower meadow video

August: How to train a stepover tree

Dan Neuteboom describes the construction of a stepover tree, with examples of two varieties, Norfolk Beefing and Egremont Russet. Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video:

How to train a stepover tree video

August: Fruit tree problems

Some common fruit tree problems: aphis, too many weeds around the tree, insufficient water, and rabbit damage. Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

Fruit tree problems aphis too many weeds around the tree insufficient water and rabbit damage, video tutorial

August: The delayed open centre tree

The delayed open centre tree shape, as applied to a Bramley tree to reduce wood growth and increase cropping. Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

The delayed open centre tree Bramley video

August: How to make liquid fertilizer from comfrey

Dan Neuteboom describes how to make an organic liquid fertilizer using comfrey. Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

How to make liquid fertilizer from comfrey video

August: Development of a fruit tree – video

Dan Neuteboom illustrates the development of an apple tree, from its first year, right through to 30 years. Dan provides some tips on what to watch out for – aphis, greenfly, deteriorating leaf colour. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

Development of a fruit tree from its first year through to 30 years, video

August: Thinning apples video tutorial

Dan Neuteboom provides advice and demonstraton on how to thin apples. Thinning apple fruitlets improves size and quality. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

how to thin apples, video tutorial

August: Chip budding video

William Seabrook demonstrates the chip budding technique. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

Chip budding video

August: Maintenance of a graft performed in April

William Seabrook demonstrates what should be done on a graft made in April, removing the tape and finishing off. Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

Maintenance of a graft performed in Aprilm video tutorial

August: Grafting, success and the occasional failure

Grafts are not always successful. William Seabrook examines two grafts performed in April, one showing excellent growth, while the other evidently went wrong. Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

Grafting success and the occasional failure, video

August: Summer pruning on Suffolk Pink

Summer pruning is important to develop colour on ripening apples. Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

Summer pruning on Suffolk Pink pruning fruit trees, video tutorial

August: Pruning a cherry trained along a wall

When pruning cherries, the most important thing is to seal the cuts immediately using a wound-healing compound. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

Pruning a cherry trained along a wall pruning fruit trees, video tutorial

August: Summer pruning on pears – video

When doing summer pruning on pears, think ahead to next year’s crop. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

Summer pruning on pears pruning fruit trees, video tutorial

August: The development of grafted fruit trees

Nurseryman William Seabrook explains the differences in growth that can occur in grafted trees. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

The development of grafted fruit trees, video tutorial

August: What to look for when buying apple trees

Dan Neuteboom talks about what to look out for when buying fruit trees. A healthy tree is essential, but you can also look for characteristics that indicate a rapid start of fruiting. Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

What to look for when buying apple trees, video tutorial

August: Suffolk Pink apples and their colour

A fruit growing detective story. In Suffolk Pink, colour is produced not just by the effect of sunlight, but requires another factor as well. Which is it? Click on the thumbnail below to find the answer.

Suffolk Pink apples and their colour, video

August: How to keep a greengage to a manageable size

A greengage can be kept down to about 5 feet height with regular pruning. This makes harvest and pest control easier. Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

How to keep a greengage to a manageable size pruning fruit trees, video tutorial

Pruning pear trees in August and September – video

How to keep pear trees in a shape that stimulates good cropping and keeps the fruit low down on the tree for easy picking. Click on the thumbnail below to watch

Pruning pear trees in August and September pruning fruit trees, video tutorial

October: Grease bands video

Dan Neuteboom demonstrates the application of a grease band to a fruit tree, a non-chemical method of protecting the tree from pests such as the winter moth. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

How to apply a grease band to a fruit tree, video tutorial

October: Picking apples, how to determine when fruit is ready to pick

The tree itself provides indications of whether or not the fruit is ready to pick. Click on the thumbnail below to watch the video.

Picking apples How to determine when apples are ready to pick, video tutorial

October: How to pick apples – picking over

In this video, Dan shows us how to “pick over”, in other words, picking just the apples that are ripe. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

How to pick apples picking over Red Falstaff, video tutorial

October: How to make dried apple rings

Dan demonstrates how to make dried apple rings at home using a technique that he remembers from his wartime experiences but that in fact has been performed in many locations for centuries. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

How to make dried apple rings, video tutorial

October: Picking Comice, a late pear variety

This year the Comice pears are of a good size, and they come off easily by simply lifting the pear. Regular pruning has kept the tree to a manageable size, permitting nets to be placed over it, protecting the fruit from the birds. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

picking comice pears

December: Winter pruning video

Dan Neuteboom demonstrates the principles of pruning apple trees. How to prune apple trees to improve cropping and fruit quality. Click on the thumbnail below to watch.

pruning fruit trees winter pruning video

This page is the most practical way of viewing the complete library of videos. Our YouTube channel is here… and you can follow us on twitter or facebook if you want to be informed when new video clips become available. We also include news about our latest videos on our free monthly newsletter.

Contact us at Suffolk Fruit and Trees: enquiries@realenglishfruit.co.uk