Trees for Scottish Gardens

Scotland has a proud tree-growing history, from the orchards of the Carse of Gowrie and the Clyde Valley to the great gardens and arboretums planted across the country. Shorter summers, cooler temperatures, wind and late spring frosts mean choosing the right tree matters, but pick well and you can grow beautiful trees and home-grown fruit almost anywhere.

Here are the trees from the Frank P Matthews Trees range we’d recommend for Scottish gardens, from heritage Scottish fruit varieties to hardy ornamental trees.

Fruit Trees

Fruit trees need the most thought in Scotland, because blossom and ripening are where the climate bites hardest.

What to look for:

• Hardiness. Choose varieties known to crop reliably in cooler, wetter conditions.
• Later flowering. Blossom that opens later in spring is less likely to be caught by frost. Varieties in later pollination groups are usually a safer bet.
• Early to mid-season ripening. Fruit that is ready by September or early October ripens fully before the weather turns.
• Disease resistance. A damp climate encourages scab and canker, so resistant varieties need less care.
• The right rootstock. On exposed sites or poorer soils, a slightly more vigorous rootstock gives a sturdier tree that copes better with wind.
• A sheltered spot. A sunny, south- or west-facing position out of the wind, or against a warm wall, makes a real difference, especially for pears and plums.

Scottish Apples

These five apples were all raised in Scotland, so they’re already at home in its climate. Our Scottish Apple Collection brings four of them together.

All five store only until around November, so they’re best enjoyed in autumn.

James Grieve is the best place to start. It crops reliably, is self-fertile and is one of the best-known apples ever raised in Scotland.

Bloody Ploughman is the one to grow in a cold or exposed garden. It’s hardy, relatively trouble-free and its deep red fruit turns the flesh pink when fully ripe.

Pears

Pears flower earlier than apples and like warmth, so in Scotland they do best against a sunny wall or in a sheltered corner.

Christie is the Scottish favourite. It’s a pre-1900s variety that’s well known among Scottish fruit enthusiasts, with large, sweet, mellow fruit and a reliable crop. The green skin reddens as it ripens, ready to pick in late September. Christie isn’t self-fertile, so plant it with a partner from pollination group 3, such as Conference.

Conference is the dependable all-rounder. It’s self-fertile, copes with cool, wet conditions and makes an ideal partner for Christie.

Concorde, a cross between Conference and Comice, is compact and ripens a little earlier, which suits a shorter Scottish season.

Plums

Plums have a long Scottish history, most famously in the orchards of the Clyde Valley. Like pears, they flower early, so give them a sheltered, sunny spot.

Gordon Castle is our Scottish plum, raised in Scotland around 1864 and described as a native hardy plum for northern districts. Its greenish-yellow fruit has a sweet, excellent flavour and is best eaten straight from the tree in late September. It’s self-fertile, so one tree is enough.

Victoria is the classic choice. It’s self-fertile and very productive, with bright red fruit in August and September for eating, cooking and jam.

Giant Prune is tough and reliable for exposed areas, making it a good pick for windier gardens.

Ornamental Trees

For ornamental trees in Scotland, hardiness and a tolerance of wind and wet ground matter most. These are some of the toughest and most rewarding in our range.

Rowan

Nothing says Scotland quite like a rowan. Our Sorbus are very hardy, grow in almost any soil and cope with coastal conditions. Try Glendoick Spire, which takes its name from Glendoick in Perthshire, for its upright shape, orange and red autumn leaves and bright pink berries the birds love. Joseph Rock adds creamy-yellow berries and great autumn colour.

Himalayan birch

White-barked Himalayan birches light up a Scottish garden in winter and grow happily on wet and clay soils.

• Jermyns is more vigorous and hardier than some other white-barked forms, making it a good choice for colder gardens. It holds an RHS Award of Garden Merit.
• Grayswood Ghost is one of the best white-barked selections available, with golden-yellow autumn colour and an RHS Award of Garden Merit.
• McBeath is one of the whitest birches of all. It was collected in the wild by Ron McBeath, formerly of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, and its slow, upright growth suits smaller gardens.
• Himalayan birch (Betula utilis var. jacquemontii) itself has coppery young bark that peels to reveal brilliant white beneath.

Crab apples

Crab apples are very disease resistant and trouble-free, and their blossom pollinates your apple trees too. They’ll grow in most soils, but avoid waterlogged ground.

• Evereste has large white and pink blossom and small red-yellow fruit that hangs on into winter.
• Comtesse de Paris has small yellow fruit that often lasts past Christmas.
• Gorgeous is disease resistant, with pure white blossom and glossy red fruit into November.
• Golden Hornet is small and compact, with heavy crops of yellow fruit.

Dawn redwood

Metasequoia glyptostroboides is a deciduous conifer with feathery green foliage that turns gold in autumn. It tolerates waterlogged ground, so it’s ideal for wet Scottish gardens or beside a pond or stream. Goldrush keeps golden foliage all summer.

Disease-resistant elms

Dutch elm disease devastated elms across Britain, including Scotland’s native wych elm. Our disease-resistant elms bring this classic tree back to the landscape.

• Lutèce has excellent resistance to Dutch elm disease and broadens with age.
• Vada is slender and upright, with glossy dark green leaves.
• Wingham is vigorous, fast-growing and highly resistant.
• Ademuz is a field elm from Valencia with very high resistance.

Hawthorn

Crataegus is extremely hardy, copes with coastal sites and wet soils, and covers itself in fuchsia-pink May blossom followed by red berries for the birds.

Planting Tips for Scottish Gardens

• – Plant bare-root trees between November and March, when the soil isn’t frozen or waterlogged.
• – Improve drainage on heavy or wet ground by planting on a slight mound.
• – Stake firmly for the first few years, especially on windy sites.
• – Use shelter. A hedge, fence or wall to break the wind helps blossom set and fruit ripen.
• – Protect blossom from late frosts with horticultural fleece on cold nights in spring.

Whether you’re planting a heritage Scottish apple, a white-barked birch or a disease-resistant elm, the right tree will reward you for years to come. Browse the full range at frankpmatthews.com or call us on 01584 810214 for advice.