wall mounts if you are against a masonry, concrete or stucco wall
bare root fruit tree
compost, shovel
sharp clippers
green garden tape
marker
wire clippers
pliers
tape measure
Three Tier Cordon Fruit
One basic form, the double horizontal cordon, can be shaped in essentially two years. This form is best for pears and apples. Prepare your support, using two wires. You will need at least 8' of wall space to accommodate the size of a mature espaliered tree. Lay out a pattern with a main trunk, and three cordons which are horizontal tiers. Mark 48" from the top of your soil for the tree height. Draw a horizontal line at this height which will represent the top or third cordon. A vertical line can be drawn to represent the trunk of the tree in the middle of your 8' space or at approximately 4 feet. You should allow a few inches for your tree trunk growth.
Once the pattern is completed, there will be one vertical line with three horizontal lines at 16", 32" and 48" from the bottom of the ground. The wire which will support the mature tree can now be attached to the wall. Make sure the wire is tight.
With your wire secure and in place, plant a one year maiden tree or unbranched whip midway between supports. Dig a hole 15' wide by 15' deep. Add soil mix and compost. Plant your tree 6 to 12' away from your fence or wall to allow for good circulation, growing room, and for ease of spraying. The base of the tree should be at soil level. Right after planting, cut off the top of the whip with your sharp clippers right above a bud slightly above the first wire at a 45 degree angle. This bud will grow into a new leader, with the two buds just below it forming the lower horizontal arms. Rub off all other buds, leaving only these three (Diagram A). If you start with a young branched tree, choose one whose structure can be pruned to this pattern. Little bumps on your tree trunk have the potential to grow into a cordon. Once side growth has grown 10', select the strongest stem or lateral on each side, and tie down to your wire with your green garden tape. Do not use any material that will cut into the tree bark as the tree grows. Trim off the other laterals that won't be needed. During the growing season do not allow any other shoots to develop. If necessary, keep the new leader vertical by tying it to a bamboo cane until it reaches the second wire.
IThe leader or vertical scaffold should be cut in early spring the second year at the second wire leaving two nearly-opposite buds to form the upper horizontal arms (Diagram B). All laterals should be trimmed to two buds. You will have new growth starting a cordon on each side at your first tier level, and you have small growth growing vertical, which will eventually reach the second tier level. The new vertical growth must not be left to grow more than 6'. Continue to nip it back during the season. The new side shoots along the first tier should continue to grow longer horizontally. Once your first tier cordons have reached 3/4 of the way toward the end of their wire support, then the vertical trunk can now grow up and reach the second tier wire level. Start the process all over again. Continue the same procedure on the final tier.
By the third year, the basic form is established. Allow the horizontal scaffolds to continue to grow until they reach the end of the wires (Diagram C). Prune in early July, August, and September to keep the espalier form well-defined and to promote the formation of fruit spurs.
Nectarines, peaches, and apricots, which require new wood for bearing fruit are usually trained in a fan shape. One classic method starts with a one year whip pruned to four buds so as to throw off two shoots on each side (Diagram D). The following spring, head each upper shoot down to three buds placed so as to throw out one leading shoot and one shoot on each side. Head the lower shoot to two buds, a leader plus one shoot on the upper side. As each of the ten shoots elongates, tie it exactly in the position in which it is to remain. This forms the framework (Diagram E).
During the summer, pinch every new lateral shoot to two buds. Allow one branch to develop and bloom the next spring. Cut the second branch down to two buds, thus providing a continuous supply of new wood. For spur-bearing trees trained in fans, prune all side shoots to eight inches once in early July, August, and September.
Most espaliers are adaptations of the above procedures. For a single horizontal cordon, use only one wire and allow only two opposing buds to grow the first year. For a triple horizontal cordon, use three wires. Follow instructions for the double cordon except leave three buds the second year also, one to continue the vertical to the third wire. This technique can be continued upward year after year for a horizontal T, especially adapted to plums and cherries whose horizontal arms should be spaced only nine inches apart.
The popular and graceful four-armed palmette verrier or multiple cordon is a vertical adaptation of the double horizontal cordon: the six-armed palmette verrier is an adaptation of the triple cordon. In these forms the horizontal branches are trained upward into a shape resembling a candelabra (Diagram F and G).
Another vertical variation is the U-form, which comes in single, double, or triple (Diagram H, I and J). On vertical espaliers, until the tree has attained its desired height, half of the last year's growth is pruned off, leaving an outside bud to continue vertical growth. After the tree reaches its full height, top growth is limited to one bud per year.
Belgian Fence
Espalier trees can be trained in fences. The most common are the Belgian Fence and the Arcure Fence. In the Belgian Fence, a variation of the single horizontal cordon, several trees are trained in opposite 450 angles to form a broad V. Each tree is planted two feet apart, with the point of the V's at exactly the same height. At least five trees are needed for a diamond lattice pattern. The fence may extend any desired distance.
Acure Fence
In the Arcure technique, plant whips at a slight angle to the right about three feet apart. After some weeks of growth, curve the whip into a semi-circle and tie to the support. Pinch off all shoots except the center shoot at the top of the curve. By the end of the summer bend it back in the opposite direction and tie. Keep repeating this procedure until the fence has reached its required height (Diagram L). Branches bent downward cease terminal growth and encourage abundant fruiting.
Other than pruning regularly and following a careful spray schedule. Fruit trees require little care. Most fruit trees set too much fruit. Do not allow your tree to bear fruit until the basic espalier structure is formed. In most sections of the country avoid planting espaliers against a wall with a south exposure. The captured heat in summer may burn the tree. Instead, chose an east or west exposure, with a minimum of six hours of sun.
Mount Vernon Walkway, Virginia, photo by Galen Parks Smith
If you would like to visit gardens which have trees that are espaliered, some of the popular destinations are Mount Vernon and Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia, Chicago Botanic Garden in Illinois, Old Westbury Gardens in Connecticut, River Road Farm in Tennessee, and the New York Botanic Garden and Brooklyn Botanic Garden in New York. Colonial Sense is providing to the reader a few websites where you can purchase an espalier tree in various growth stages. Henry Leuthardt Nurseries were actively selling espalier trees in the 1970's. For further patterns to try, the best source is Espalier Services.
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