Cherry Bush 'Athos'

Pot-grown shrubs can be planted at any time of the year as long as the soil is not waterlogged or frozen. If in doubt, err towards spring but remember to keep pots well-watered so that the soil does not dry out.

Birds will quickly strip the ripening cherries from the tree - drape netting over cherry trees to protect the fruit from birds.

• Best grown in moderately fertile soil in full sun. Also perfect in large pots on a patio - 30cm diameter or larger and keep well watered.
• Shrub roots generally tend to spread out rather than down, so dig a planting hole 3 x wider than the roots of the shrub you're planting, and mix some well rotted compost or manure with the soil from the hole and use this to re-fill one the shrub is in place.
• We've found that a square hole is better than a round one as the new roots, once they reach the edges tend to grow in a circle round the circumference of the hole whereas when they reach the corners of a square hole, they find it easier to grow through.
• Before planting soak container-grown shrubs thoroughly and allow to drain.
• Remove the plant from its pot and tease out a few of the roots.
• Add Mycorrhizal fungi to the roots when planting to help plants establish quicker.
• Place your shrub in the hole at the same level at the pot.
• Refill the hole with the earth removed (backfilling).
• Firm in the soil with your heel, avoiding the root ball.
• Water well and mulch around the base of the plant with a collar, compost, gravel, bark etc.
• Apply a slow-release fertiliser such as blood fish and bone in early spring, and mulch to retain moisture, about a month before flowering.
• Established trees don't require radical pruning to keep them fruiting, just take off any diseased, dying and damaged branches, (the three Ds) in spring. Look at the overall shape and aim for an open structure of branches and remove any that cross over so they don't damage each other. Trim longer new shoots back mid-summer for better shaped trees.
• Harvest crops as soon as they ripen. Avoid leaving windfalls or over-ripe fruit on the ground.
• Don't forget the tree guards as rabbits can strip the bark overnight.