<a href="http://pigyard.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/remove-peach-treejan20.jpg"><img class="alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-6042" src="http://pigyard.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/remove-peach-treejan20-150x200.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="200" /></a>For the last 6 years I've been watching this sad peach tree struggle to survive. Every year it gets covered in peach leaf curl despite my best efforts to use fungicidal sprays in the autumn and early spring. It has never produced any fruit but does have lovely blossom in the spring. Sometimes blossom isn't enough - the bees would like it however I've got a wonderful almond tree nearby which produces masses of blossom. Having weighed up the situation I decided to remove the peach and replace it with a Victoria Plum tree. My decision was helped by the fact that Tesco was selling them for £6 each.

<a href="http://pigyard.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/plum-treejan20.jpg"><img class="alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-6043" src="http://pigyard.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/plum-treejan20-150x200.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="200" /></a>It was a bit of a struggle to remove the peach but after some hefty root cutting I managed to get it out and dig a big enough hole for the much smaller plum tree. As it is so small I shouldn't have too much of a problem training it along the existing wires and keeping it in shape.

In the past I've had plum trees that became so laden with fruit that the branches need to be held up with props. Hopefully the wires will avoid that along with some careful pruning every year. Provided it survives the winter.