Summer pruning could go a long way

The tradition has always been to prune fruit trees in the winter in order to shape the plant and cut out diseased wood.

But, despite the fact that its summer, some pruning can be useful now.

Young trees, which tend to grow quickly in the summer can benefit from being cut back a little to encourage fruit growth.

By pruning in summer, more compact and numerous buds will appear as a pruned shoot sends chemical messages to the roots to boost concentrate on producing fruit buds rather than building new stems.

Clever tying techniques can also affect how fruitful a plant is.

"You can also reduce the flow of these messenger chemicals, called auxins, by tying branches down horizontally, (espalier training) or by pruning to encourage horizontal growth – growing trees as cordons," writes Town Criers Chris Thorne.

Fruit trees will tend to prosper in the summer and this can be continued by growing the plants in a green house.