Fruit tree rootstocks

The smallest apple rootstock in general use. Produces a tree that crops very early in its life and never becomes large, at the cost of needing a permanent stake and being intolerant of competition and drought.

Mature height

150–180 cm

Sourced guidanceDepends on conditionshigh confidence

Applies when: In reasonable soil with normal pruning. On poor dry ground an M27 tree can stall well below this and never fill out.

• Royal Horticultural Society: Apple rootstocks

Checked 2026-08-13

Staking

Permanent staking

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

The root system is too small to anchor a cropping tree. The stake is part of the tree for life.

• Royal Horticultural Society: Apple rootstocks — staking

Checked 2026-08-13

In a container

suitable

Sourced guidanceDepends on conditionshigh confidence

Applies when: The one apple rootstock where container growing is genuinely established rather than optimistic. It still needs consistent watering and annual feeding, because the same small root system that keeps the tree small also gives it no reserves.

• Royal Horticultural Society: Growing fruit trees in containers

Checked 2026-08-13

First crop

2–3 years

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Apple rootstocks

Checked 2026-08-13

The dwarfing rootstock most commercial orchards are built on. Early, heavy cropping on a small tree, and the same permanent-staking and weed-free requirements as M27.

Mature height

200–250 cm

Sourced guidanceDepends on conditionshigh confidence

Applies when: Varies with soil fertility and with how vigorous the grafted cultivar is.

• Royal Horticultural Society: Apple rootstocks

Checked 2026-08-13

Staking

Permanent staking

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board — AHDB: Orchard establishment — support systems

Checked 2026-08-13

In a container

possible

Horticultural consensusDepends on conditionsmoderate confidence

Applies when: A container of at least 45–50 litres, with reliable watering.

Workable in a large container for a period, though it outgrows most pots sooner than M27 and is less commonly recommended for it.

No external citation — see the evidence type above.

Checked 2026-08-13

First crop

2–4 years

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Apple rootstocks

Checked 2026-08-13

A step up from M9. Suits a garden tree of manageable size, and is the usual choice for trained forms such as cordons and espaliers on reasonable soil.

Mature height

250–300 cm

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Apple rootstocks

Checked 2026-08-13

Staking

Stake while establishing

Sourced guidanceDepends on conditionshigh confidence

Applies when: Better anchored than M9, but a heavily cropping tree on an exposed site is safer left staked.

• Royal Horticultural Society: Apple rootstocks — staking

Checked 2026-08-13

In a container

Not assessed

Insufficient evidenceconfidence unknown

GrowingHQ has not found horticultural evidence for long-term container growing on M26 that it can stand behind.

No external citation — see the evidence type above.

Checked 2026-08-13

First crop

3–4 years

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Apple rootstocks

Checked 2026-08-13

The default garden apple rootstock, and the one most bare-root trees are sold on. Produces a proper free-standing tree that needs no permanent support and tolerates ordinary soil.

Mature height

350–450 cm

Sourced guidanceDepends on conditionshigh confidence

Applies when: Kept smaller by pruning, but this is the size it wants to reach.

• Royal Horticultural Society: Apple rootstocks

Checked 2026-08-13

Staking

Stake while establishing

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Planting fruit trees

Checked 2026-08-13

In a container

unsuitable

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

Too vigorous to hold in a pot for long. A tree on MM106 in a container is a tree waiting to be planted out or to decline.

• Royal Horticultural Society: Growing fruit trees in containers

Checked 2026-08-13

First crop

3–5 years

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Apple rootstocks

Checked 2026-08-13

A vigorous rootstock for poor soil, exposed sites and large trees. More than most gardens want, and the right answer where the ground is thin or the tree has to compete with grass.

Mature height

450–550 cm

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Apple rootstocks

Checked 2026-08-13

Staking

Stake while establishing

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Planting fruit trees

Checked 2026-08-13

In a container

unsuitable

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Apple rootstocks

Checked 2026-08-13

The traditional orchard standard: a full-sized tree that takes years to crop and then does so for generations. A choice about landscape and legacy rather than about fruit production in a garden.

Mature height

550–700 cm

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Apple rootstocks

Checked 2026-08-13

Staking

Stake while establishing

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Planting fruit trees

Checked 2026-08-13

In a container

unsuitable

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Apple rootstocks

Checked 2026-08-13

First crop

5–8 years

Sourced guidanceDepends on conditionshigh confidence

Applies when: One of the reasons standard orchard trees fell out of garden use.

• Royal Horticultural Society: Apple rootstocks

Checked 2026-08-13

A smaller pear rootstock than Quince A, used for restricted forms and smaller gardens. Needs good soil to perform.

Mature height

250–350 cm

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Pear rootstocks

Checked 2026-08-13

Staking

Stake while establishing

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Planting fruit trees

Checked 2026-08-13

In a container

Not assessed

Insufficient evidenceconfidence unknown

Not assessed by GrowingHQ.

No external citation — see the evidence type above.

Checked 2026-08-13

Some pear cultivars are graft-incompatible with quince and are sold with an interstem of a compatible cultivar between the rootstock and the top. This is the nursery's problem rather than the grower's, but it is worth knowing why such a tree has two graft unions.

The standard pear rootstock for gardens. Produces a moderately sized tree that crops within a few years — far sooner than a pear on its own roots, which can take a decade.

Mature height

300–450 cm

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Pear rootstocks

Checked 2026-08-13

Staking

Stake while establishing

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Planting fruit trees

Checked 2026-08-13

In a container

Not assessed

Insufficient evidenceconfidence unknown

Not assessed by GrowingHQ for long-term container growing.

No external citation — see the evidence type above.

Checked 2026-08-13

First crop

4–6 years

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Pear rootstocks

Checked 2026-08-13

A dwarfing plum rootstock producing a tree small enough for a garden. Fruit size can be slightly reduced compared with a more vigorous stock, which is the trade for the smaller tree.

Mature height

250–300 cm

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Plum rootstocks

Checked 2026-08-13

Staking

Stake while establishing

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Planting fruit trees

Checked 2026-08-13

In a container

possible

Horticultural consensusDepends on conditionsmoderate confidence

Applies when: A large container and reliable watering. Less well documented than apple on M27.

No external citation — see the evidence type above.

Checked 2026-08-13

The general-purpose rootstock for plums and other stone fruit in gardens. Moderately vigorous, tolerant of a range of soils, and the usual choice for a fan-trained tree against a wall.

Mature height

350–450 cm

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Plum rootstocks

Checked 2026-08-13

Staking

Stake while establishing

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Planting fruit trees

Checked 2026-08-13

In a container

unsuitable

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

Too vigorous to hold in a container long term.

• Royal Horticultural Society: Plum rootstocks

Checked 2026-08-13

A dwarfing cherry rootstock, and the development that made cherries a realistic garden fruit. A tree small enough to net against birds, which is the difference between a crop and a spectacle.

Mature height

250–350 cm

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Cherry rootstocks

Checked 2026-08-13

Staking

Permanent staking

Sourced guidanceDepends on conditionsmoderate confidence

Applies when: Reported as needing support in commercial systems carrying heavy crops. A lightly cropped garden tree in shelter may manage without, but staking is the safer default.

• WSU Extension — Washington State University: Sweet cherry rootstocks — orchard support

Checked 2026-08-13

In a container

Not assessed

Insufficient evidenceconfidence unknown

Not assessed by GrowingHQ for long-term container growing.

No external citation — see the evidence type above.

Checked 2026-08-13

First crop

3–4 years

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Cherry rootstocks

Checked 2026-08-13

A semi-vigorous cherry rootstock, smaller than the old orchard standards but still a substantial tree. The usual choice for a fan against a wall.

Mature height

400–500 cm

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Cherry rootstocks

Checked 2026-08-13

Staking

Stake while establishing

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Planting fruit trees

Checked 2026-08-13

In a container

unsuitable

·source

Sourced guidancehigh confidence

• Royal Horticultural Society: Cherry rootstocks

Checked 2026-08-13

A cherry on Colt will outgrow the height at which it can practically be netted, and unnetted cherries in a British garden are a bird crop rather than a human one.