Hello

I have just read an article in today's Telegraph with interest - a farm near
Honiton in Devon has planted some Olive trees and is expecting to produce
olive oil in the future.

http://www.otterfarm.co.uk/olives.htm
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.../ixuknews.html

As I live only a few miles away from the farm (I am near Broadclyst,
Exeter), I wondered what peoples opinions are of growing more 'exotic' fruit
trees in Britain's southern counties? Has anyone any experience of growing
fruit not commonly found here? I am aware that many plants such as oranges
can be grown as long as they are over-wintered in greenhouses, but I would
love to take advantage of our warming climate and new breeding of plants to
plant something unusual in a permanent location in the garden.

We do get frosts where I live, but rarely colder than about -4C.

Any suggestions or thoughts?

Thanks,

Henry




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Take out the spam to reply.

"Henry" wrote in message
...
Hello

I have just read an article in today's Telegraph with interest - a farm
near Honiton in Devon has planted some Olive trees and is expecting to
produce olive oil in the future.

http://www.otterfarm.co.uk/olives.htm
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.../ixuknews.html

As I live only a few miles away from the farm (I am near Broadclyst,
Exeter), I wondered what peoples opinions are of growing more 'exotic'
fruit trees in Britain's southern counties? Has anyone any experience of
growing fruit not commonly found here? I am aware that many plants such as
oranges can be grown as long as they are over-wintered in greenhouses, but
I would love to take advantage of our warming climate and new breeding of
plants to plant something unusual in a permanent location in the garden.

We do get frosts where I live, but rarely colder than about -4C.

Any suggestions or thoughts?

Thanks,

Henry




--
Take out the spam to reply.




Part of the article says:-"He is also growing almonds, apricots and
persimmon and plans to experiment with exotic paw paw. Nepalese peppers and
unusual spices are also part of his growing programme"

Perhaps you could try a few of these as well.
How about Physalis -Figs-Kiwi fruit.
The list is endless but perhaps you should wait a few decades till it gets a
bit hotter:-)

Henry wrote:
Hello

I have just read an article in today's Telegraph with interest - a
farm near Honiton in Devon has planted some Olive trees and is
expecting to produce olive oil in the future.

http://www.otterfarm.co.uk/olives.htm
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.../ixuknews.html

As I live only a few miles away from the farm (I am near Broadclyst,
Exeter), I wondered what peoples opinions are of growing more
'exotic' fruit trees in Britain's southern counties? Has anyone any
experience of growing fruit not commonly found here?

The Merton head horticultural honcho has planted olives in sunny sheltered
parts of a number of parks in Merton and apparently get a crop.

I've not seen ant but was at a meeting when he was chatting about them.

pk

Henry wrote:
Hello

I have just read an article in today's Telegraph with interest - a farm near
Honiton in Devon has planted some Olive trees and is expecting to produce
olive oil in the future.

http://www.otterfarm.co.uk/olives.htm

Sounds suspiciously like a wildy optimistic hobby farmer to me.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.../ixuknews.html

As I live only a few miles away from the farm (I am near Broadclyst,
Exeter), I wondered what peoples opinions are of growing more 'exotic' fruit

Under glass you could grow some more tender things. Ginger is fun for
the fresh new shoots. Nashi (asian) pears are possible as far north as
Yorkshire (I have one) - took it a while to come into fruiting well
though. I also have a ginko tree (from seed) - but I am hoping it will
not set fruit... they are notoriously smelly. Most grafted cultivars
are male for this reason.

Mulberries are fun if you have the space as the tree left to grow
becomes a handsome gnarled large specimen with age.

Of the tender mediteranean plants nectarines, figs and pomegranites are
worth a try if you can give them a suitably warm S facing wall to grow
up. Big problem in the UK is that the sun doesn't get high for long
enough to ripen most of them properly. I expect that is where this
olive tree scheme will come unstuck. I can grow (as in keep alive
slowly getting bigger) olive trees outdoors even in N yorkshire but
there is no realistic chance of any kind of crop actually ripening. The
closest was two years ago when they got to the size of small peas
before aborting when winter came.

love to take advantage of our warming climate and new breeding of plants to
plant something unusual in a permanent location in the garden.

We do get frosts where I live, but rarely colder than about -4C.

More important than the frost is can you improve drainage and keep the
roots dry in winter. Many of the tender continental plants are actually
cold hardy provided that they are kept dry enough. Hard to do in a damp
foggy maritime climate.

Regards,
Martin Brown

wrote in message
oups.com...

Henry wrote:
Hello

I have just read an article in today's Telegraph with interest - a farm
near
Honiton in Devon has planted some Olive trees and is expecting to
produce
olive oil in the future.

http://www.otterfarm.co.uk/olives.htm

Sounds suspiciously like a wildy optimistic hobby farmer to me.


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.../ixuknews.html

As I live only a few miles away from the farm (I am near Broadclyst,
Exeter), I wondered what peoples opinions are of growing more 'exotic'
fruit

Under glass you could grow some more tender things. Ginger is fun for
the fresh new shoots. Nashi (asian) pears are possible as far north as
Yorkshire (I have one) - took it a while to come into fruiting well
though. I also have a ginko tree (from seed) - but I am hoping it will
not set fruit... they are notoriously smelly. Most grafted cultivars
are male for this reason.

Mulberries are fun if you have the space as the tree left to grow
becomes a handsome gnarled large specimen with age.

Of the tender mediteranean plants nectarines, figs and pomegranites are
worth a try if you can give them a suitably warm S facing wall to grow
up. Big problem in the UK is that the sun doesn't get high for long
enough to ripen most of them properly. I expect that is where this
olive tree scheme will come unstuck. I can grow (as in keep alive
slowly getting bigger) olive trees outdoors even in N yorkshire but
there is no realistic chance of any kind of crop actually ripening. The
closest was two years ago when they got to the size of small peas
before aborting when winter came.

love to take advantage of our warming climate and new breeding of
plants to
plant something unusual in a permanent location in the garden.

We do get frosts where I live, but rarely colder than about -4C.

More important than the frost is can you improve drainage and keep the
roots dry in winter. Many of the tender continental plants are actually
cold hardy provided that they are kept dry enough. Hard to do in a damp
foggy maritime climate.

Regards,
Martin Brown

Friend has an Greek Olive cultivar she was given and it regularly crops and
ripens out in the middle of her lawn, but the thought of having to process
them means they always go unharvested!
Plenty of people get good fig crops, and its quite amazing what you can do
with a south wall, whether its commercial or not I would not know, I thought
the Tea from Tregothnan was a non starter till I saw how much they charge
for it!
--
Charlie, gardening in Cornwall.
http://www.roselandhouse.co.uk
Holders of National Plant Collection of Clematis viticella (cvs)

In article ,
Janet Baraclough writes:
|
| The list is endless but perhaps you should wait a few decades till it
| gets a bit hotter:-)
|
| Or colder, depending on what happens to the Gulf Stream
|
| Children, children!

If the North Atlantic Drift reverses, there won't BE any children in
the UK :-(


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

In article .com,
writes:
|
| Mulberries are fun if you have the space as the tree left to grow
| becomes a handsome gnarled large specimen with age.

But they are also fully hardy in the south!

| Of the tender mediteranean plants nectarines, figs and pomegranites are
| worth a try if you can give them a suitably warm S facing wall to grow
| up. Big problem in the UK is that the sun doesn't get high for long
| enough to ripen most of them properly. ...

Yup, but replace pomegranates by apricots. Pomegranates need a LOT of
heat to ripen. As you say, the winter problem is the wet - apricots,
vines, pomegranates and figs all can take pretty hard frost, but hate
being waterlogged and like a much hotter, sunnier summer than we ever
get. Apricots grow in some countries with winters that make anywhere
in the UK look mild.

Feijoa seems very hardy as a pot plant, and has evergreen, greyish
leaves. I have got a couple of flowers and hope for more - and the
flowers are edible and good (!!!), even if it doesn't fruit! Loquat
is another such plant, but the flowers aren't edible.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

In article ,
Janet Baraclough writes:
| The message
| from (Nick Maclaren) contains these words:
|
| If the North Atlantic Drift reverses, there won't BE any children in
| the UK :-(
|
| Why? The Inuit have children. Course, down there in Cambridge, you'll
| have a very long snow-shoe hike to drill your fishing hole.

Nah. Here, it will be all reindeer herding.

The problem isn't that at population would be sustainable - say, a
UK population of 10-20,000 - but that getting there from here would
be traumatic.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.