Fruit Trees for Small Spaces

Think you need a massive garden to grow your own fruit? Think again! Whether you’ve got a small garden, a courtyard or just a balcony, there are loads of clever ways to squeeze in fruit trees and enjoy juicy homegrown treats straight from the branch. At Elmwood Nursery & Garden Centre in Emersons Green, we’ve got plenty of space-saving fruit tree options that are perfect for compact living – and they look gorgeous too.

Here are some fun and practical ways to grow fruit when space is limited:

• Minarettes: These slim, upright trees are real space-savers. Picture a vertical stick bursting with apples, pears, plums or cherries – that’s a minarette. Pop one in a large container and you’ve instantly got a fruit tree that fits on your balcony or patio. They’re not just productive, they’re also super stylish.
• Cordons: Cordons are single-stemmed trees trained at an angle (around 45º), encouraging more fruit on shorter branches. You can line them up along a fence or wall, spacing them just 75cm apart – meaning you can grow multiple varieties in just a few metres! Great for apples, pears, redcurrants and gooseberries.
• Espaliers: Got a boring wall or fence that needs a glow-up? Espaliers are your answer. These trees have horizontal branches that are trained at regular levels up a central trunk, creating a living, fruit-bearing sculpture. Apples, pears, plums, apricots and even peaches can be grown this way – how cool is that?
• Fans: Fan-trained trees look like a botanical work of art. Branches spread out in a neat fan shape, ideal for walls or fences where you want to show off your fruit-growing skills. Perfect for stone fruits like plums, cherries, peaches, nectarines and apricots.
• Stepovers: These are basically mini fruit trees that grow sideways! Trained low to the ground, stepover trees are fab for edging borders or pathways and are a quirky way to grow apples in the smallest of spaces.

So whether you’ve got a pocket-sized garden or a sunny balcony, don’t let a lack of space stop you from enjoying the satisfaction of growing your own fruit. With the right setup – and maybe a bit of help from our friendly team – it’s totally doable.

Pop into Elmwood Nursery & Garden Centre in Emersons Green and chat with our plant experts. We’ll help you pick the perfect fruit tree for your space and give you all the tips you need to keep it thriving. 

Ready to turn your small space into a mini orchard? Let’s do this!