Heritage Fruit Trees and Plants
Heritage fruits and nuts are traditional varieties which have been grown for centuries for their superior flavour, versatility and hardiness in the UK climate. You won’t find these fruits in the shops, where uniformity of size and shape is all important. But by growing heirloom trees in your garden, you can enjoy fantastic flavours as well as preserving the good old fashioned fruits and nuts our great grandparents would have eaten.
Apple enthusiasts love this tree
- Soft flesh with a nutty flavour (eating)
- World-renowned heritage apple
- Serve with cheese and walnuts!
- Harvest from September (stores well)
A British classic!
- Wonderfully aromatic (eating)
- Tastes 10x better than supermarket bought
- Delicious eaten fresh or pressed for juice
- Harvest from September to October
The best of all damsons?
- Rich and complex flavour
- A brilliant option for wall training
- Great for jam or damson vodka
- Harvest from late August to September
The largest damson variety
- A naturally tart, tangy flavour
- Grows well in cold and wet climates
- This iron-rich fruit makes great jam and wine
- Harvest from late August
Heavy-cropping, heritage damson
- Punchy, sharp taste that cooks down nicely
- Ideal for northern gardens
- Makes an outstanding damson crumble
- Harvest from early September
Versatile, French cherry plum
- Honeyed and highly moreish
- Easy to grow and loved by pollinators
- Make a classic Tarte aux Mirabelles
- Harvest from late August
An incredible heritage variety
- Rich, candy-sweet and tender
- A truly reliable cropper
- Superb eaten fresh
- Harvest from August
Fab for both eating and cooking
- Boasts a versatile flavour profile
- A heavy cropper and tough as nails!
- Make a cherry and almond crumble
- Harvest from early July
Make the ultimate cherry pie
- The best sour cooking cherry
- RHS Award of Garden Merit winner
- Perfect for a black forest gateau!
- Harvest from late July to August
An incredible origin story!
- Juicy and mild (dual)
- Stained, pinkish-red flesh
- Cooks down wonderfully into a sauce
- Harvest from September
Two in one, what's not to like?
- Unbeatable depth of flavour
- RHS Plants for Pollinators
- Great for both eating fresh and cooking
- Pick your apples from August
Two great varieties, one tree!
- Incredible flavours
- Red and green apples from the same tree
- Eat the apples fresh or use them in desserts
- Harvest from September
Your crumble's new best friend
- Sharp tartness, mellows when cooked (cooking)
- Perfect for smaller gardens
- Cook down to a sauce or bake in desserts
- Harvest from October
Medlars with a superior flavour
- A compact medlar tree with well-flavoured fruit
- Harvest in early October
- Grows to just 4m and can be pruned to fit any garden
- Eat raw or make delicious jellies and jams
A soft-shelled sensation
- Sweet and perfect for making milk
- Glorious scented, springtime blossom
- Grind your almonds to make a flour for baking
- Harvest from mid-September
An old English variety with a royal pedigree
- Large crops of rich and succulent berries
- A lovely ornamental tree with heart shaped foliage
- Crops from August to September
- RHS Award of Garden Merit
Fantastic French 'noyer' variety
- Decadent, creamy-tasting walnuts
- Award of Garden Merit winner
- Eat fresh or bake into bread
- Harvest from late September
Early-cropping and self-fertile
- Classic walnut flavour - creamy and earthy
- Brilliant for pickling when unripe
- Candy your walnuts in sugar and butter
- Harvest from the end of September
Ideally suited to UK-growing
- Flavourful and sweet
- Crops well even when young
- Pickle or use in a Wardorf salad
- Harvest from September or October
An unusual heirloom variety
- Sweet and fruity pineapple flavour (eating)
- Highly unique flavour - a real talking point!
- Press for a tall glass of juice at breakfast
- Harvest from September (stores a few weeks)
I'll have a pint of apples...
- Bittersharp flavour (cider)
- A rare heritage variety, highly sought after
- Press and make your own homemade cider!
- Harvest from October to November
A glorious heirloom quince
- Tart flesh mellows brilliantly when cooked
- A reliable cropper
- Make a Persian quince lamb stew
- Harvest from mid-September
Classic English cider apple
- Full-bodied and medium dry (cider)
- Reliable and easy to grow
- Ideal for making delicious cider and juice
- Harvest from October to November
Supersized, white-fleshed cherry
- Intense and well-rounded flavour
- Grown since the 18th century
- Pair with citrus, nuts or sweet spices
- Harvest from July (stores and freezes well)