Cheery Tree - Do they bear fruit in Ireland ?

worded

Im thinking of a Cherry tree for a front sunny garden

Are they suitable for an Irish Climate?
Do they grow huge?
Any recommendations?

Thanks

macraignil

Cherry trees do grow here. The size they grow to depends on the variety and how they are pruned. It is said to be better to prune trees in summer to reduce the spread of disease in damp conditions. Morello cherry tree I planted a couple of years ago does yield fruit, but these are attractive food for birds so netting may be required if you want to harvest your own fruit. The flowers are nice for a few weeks and the tree does not offer much colour for the rest of the year so it might be worth considering what other plants you plant near it for colour at other times of the year.

worded

Is it ok to plant them in front gardens if a smaller tree is chosen say 2 meter high? Just wondering if the neighbours will think it odd. Perhaps I should just not care.

I have a sunny front garden and reall like cherries

solargain

Mine produce cherries but the birds always beat me to them

worded

If the tree isn't too big a net could stop the birds ?

periodictable

You need to decide on how big a tree your garden can deal with, and pick a tree with the appropriate rootstock.
A rootstock is a root onto which a tree is grafted and its growth rate helps to control the tree size.

Here's a little background:

http://www.orangepippintrees.eu/articles/rootstocks-for-cherries

http://treesandshrubs.about.com/od/pruning/a/Grafting-Scion-Rootstock.htm

Sgt Pepper 64

Bought an €8 euro tree from dunnes 4 years ago, now its a mighty tree full of cherrys. But birds will beat me to it!

macraignil

I have seen nice cherry trees in front gardens. Most often these are varieties grown for their flowers rather than their fruit. My grand aunt says there is a cherry variety in some gardens near where she lives in Graystones that flowers for much longer than others. I have also noticed close to where I live a mature cherry tree with a purple coloured leaf that makes a more interesting feature in the garden when the tree has finished flowering.
The Morello cherry tree I pruned recently had infection of some type of honey fungus in some branches. If you are growing a tree in your front garden spending some time to prune it well over its first few years growth will make it a much nicer feature for the garden. I see too many examples of trees that have been cut back with so little direction and care that the garden would look better without them.