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than a pot or container between 450 and 500mm (18 to 20 inches). Always use new compost and throw the old compost out into your garden. When you have reached the maximum size that I have suggested you should take your tree out of the pot and throw the old compost out. You will then need to prune the roots to a) ensure that they continue to thrive by regrowth and b) to prevent overcrowding. Carefully prune off between a quarter and a third of the bottom of the rootball and then repot using fresh compost. Don’t forget to add the stake back in!
Before I finish with fruit trees I must deal separately with figs. In order to get figs to fruit they need to be grown in quite a small pot, certainly one not exceeding 400mm (16 inches) and keep it in the same pot and not upsize regularly. Every other year take the tree out of the pot and give the roots a prune in the way I noted earlier. As a one off for potting figs I suggest that you use non weedy garden soil that has not been fertilised recently as we want the tree to sit in a poor-quality soil similar to that in which it grows in the wild. Feeding wise I prefer not to feed figs unless they start looking
weak and pale in which case a light feed in the summer is prescribed. However, do ensure that you water the pots regularly.
So, I will now move on to the soft fruit plants which include currants, blackberries and hybrid berries, gooseberries, raspberries, strawberries and blueberries. With the important exception of blueberries and strawberries you should use John Innes 3 for a planting medium as for fruit trees. However, for blueberries always use an ericaceous compost and for strawberries
I strongly recommend you use a light,
free draining non peat compost as this provides ideal conditions for these plants. Strawberries will not be very happy at all
in a soil-based compost and you will be very disappointed with the results. As with fruit trees use mycorrhizal granules with the exception of blueberries which will not respond to them. Use blood, fish and bone for blueberries instead.
When growing redcurrants, whitecurrants and gooseberries in pots I always recommend that they are grown
as single cordons grown up canes. You might choose to grow two plants per
pot or container, but I consider that to be enough. With raspberries I suggest that you use three fruiting canes in a large pot or container and grow the primocane autumn fruiting raspberries such as Autumn Bliss, Autumn Treasure, Joan J and Polka as
they do not grow especially tall and are
cut down at the end of the year. You can support these using a tripod of canes.
Most blackberries and hybrid cane berries are far too vigorous for growing in pots or containers with the exception of the fairly recently introduced primocane blackberries such as Reuben. This blackberry grows to
32 Simply Vegetables