Do I need two apple trees to get fruit?

Apples are grouped by flowering time, usually numbered one to seven or lettered A to E. A tree can be pollinated by anything in its own group or in the group either side, because the flowering periods overlap.

Step by step

1. Find out what variety you have or want.The pollination group is listed by every nursery and in the standard references. Without the variety name you are guessing, so it is worth identifying the tree.
2. Understand the grouping.Group numbers reflect flowering time from earliest to latest. A tree in group three can be pollinated by anything in groups two, three or four.
3. Survey what is nearby.Apple and crab apple trees within a few hundred metres — in neighbours' gardens, on verges, in hedgerows — pollinate perfectly well. Bees range further than most people assume.
4. Watch for a year before buying a partner.If the tree flowers and sets a reasonable crop, pollination is already happening and you do not need a second tree.
5. Check for triploids.Some popular varieties — Bramley, Blenheim Orange, Jupiter — are triploid: they produce poor pollen and cannot pollinate anything else. They need two other compatible varieties nearby, not one.
6. Consider a self-fertile variety.Varieties such as 'Red Falstaff', 'Greensleeves' and 'Scrumptious' set a reasonable crop alone, though nearly all fruit better with a partner.
7. Use a crab apple as a universal pollinator.'Evereste', 'Golden Hornet' and 'John Downie' flower over a long period and pollinate most apple varieties. A single crab in a corner solves the problem for a whole small orchard.
8. Consider a family tree.Two or three compatible varieties grafted onto one rootstock. It pollinates itself and suits a garden with room for only one tree.
9. Space and site them for the bees.Pollinators need to fly between the trees. Cold windy weather during blossom keeps them grounded regardless of what is planted, so a sheltered position matters.
10. Match the rootstock to the space.M27 for a very small garden or a pot, M9 or M26 for a small tree, MM106 for a normal garden tree. The rootstock decides the size, not the variety.

Tips

• Neighbouring gardens usually solve the pollination problem for you in a town.
• Bramley cannot pollinate anything — it is a triploid and needs two partners of its own.
• One crab apple pollinates almost every apple variety and takes very little space.

Common mistakes

• Planting a second tree without checking flowering times — Two apple varieties that flower three weeks apart do not pollinate each other at all. The pollination group, not simply having two trees, is what matters.
• Planting Bramley as one of a pair — It is triploid and produces sterile pollen, so it takes pollen from others without giving any back. A Bramley needs two other compatible varieties nearby.

If it doesn't work

Questions people ask