On 14/07/2014 21:51, Vir Campestris wrote:
Having read the "didn't know they grew in this country" thread - it
occurs to me to ask.

There's a wall at one side of my garden which has a young, sick ash
tree. Unless some miracle happens and it looks all healthy the rest of
the year I'm going to rung bark it late in the season - which will give
me a west facing wall, sheltered by next door's house 10ft behind, which
seems to me to be a nice place to put an espalier.

Suggestions?

I'm thinking of a Sturmer Pippin apple, as they are local

I would first ask why such a vigorous tree as an ash is sick. OK, it
could be ash dieback, and that would explain it. If not, is there
something in the soil which is slowly killing it? Are other plants
around it ok?

If it is just that the soil is poor quality and dryish, then maybe a
grapevine would grow fairly well against the wall. Or you could dig out
the poor soil and put something decent in.

--

Jeff