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Lord Derby apple trees

Lord Derby apples
Lord Derby is listed in the RHS Plants for Pollinators
  • Picking season: Late
  • Self-fertility: Not self-fertile
  • Flowering group: 4

Lord Derby is a traditional large English cooking apple, ripening in the mid to late season - from mid-September to early October.

Lord Derby fills a useful gap in the culinary apple calendar, arriving after the early cookers such as Keswick Codlin and Grenadier, and before the later cookers such as Bramley. This is not a variety for winter storage but the apples can be kept for a month or so in a cool place.

The Victorian author Hogg rated Lord Derby as an "excellent culinary apple". The flavour is nicely acidic if picked young, but milder if picked when fully ripe (at which point the skin develops a more yellow hue).

Although usually considered a cooking apple, many Lord Derby enthusiasts regard it as an excellent sharp eating apple too.

Lord Derby apple trees for sale

Pot-grown

All our pot-grown trees are grown for us to our specification by the Frank P Matthews nursery.

All pot-grown trees are suitable for planting out in the garden, some are suitable for growing in containers.

  • PG12-year bush-trained 12L pot-grown tree M26 rootstock£56.50
    Grown for us by Frank P Matthews nursery
    Medium tree (2m-3m after 10 years)
  • PG22-year bush-trained 12L pot-grown tree MM106 rootstock£56.50
    Grown for us by Frank P Matthews nursery
    Large tree (3m-5m after 10 years)

Bare-root

  • BR11-year bare-root treeM26 rootstock£34.95
    Medium tree (2m-3m after 10 years)
  • BR21-year bare-root treeMM106 rootstock£34.95
    Large tree (3m-5m after 10 years)
  • BR32-year (1.75m) bare-root treeM25 rootstock£46.95
    Very large tree (4m-7m after 10 years)
    Out of stock
    Please try next season

Need help? Ask our fruit tree experts

Call us on 01759 392007 or fill in our contact form.

Tree specification

Photos of trees as supplied | Tree sizes and forms

Next deliveries

Order now for delivery from week commencing 24th February.

Delivery charges

Delivery for a single tree starts at £9.95, it is calculated based on your postcode.

Growing and Training

Lord Derby is a very easy apple tree for the garden, and like many Victorian culinary apples it has excellent natural disease resistance. It seems to be happy in both wetter and drier climates.

Recommended pollinators for Lord Derby apple trees

Lord Derby is not self-fertile, so you will need another different but compatible variety planted nearby in order to produce fruit. The following varieties are good pollinators for Lord Derby. If you are not sure about pollination requirements don't hesitate to ask us. More pollinators >

  • Pollinator Braeburn
    Braeburn
    Braeburn is one of the best-flavoured supermarket apple varieties.
  • Pollinator Gala
    Gala
    Gala is popular supermarket apple - but better when home-grown, with a sweet pleasant flavour.
  • Pollinator John Downie
    John Downie
    John Downie is a traditional crab apple for making crab apple jelly. White blossom and orange-red fruits.
  • Pollinator Golden Hornet
    Golden Hornet
    Malus Golden Hornet is a traditional white blossom crab apple, with persistent yellow fruits.
  • Pollinator Newton Wonder
    Newton Wonder
    A traditional English cooking apple, a good alternative to Bramley.
  • Pollinator Wedding Bouquet
    Wedding Bouquet
    Malus Wedding Bouquet features ivory-white blossom and tiny red berry-like fruitlets.
  • Pollinator Ellison's Orange
    Ellison's Orange
    Ellison's Orange is a well respected Cox-style apple which can achieve very good flavour.
  • Pollinator Peasgood's Nonsuch
    Peasgood's Nonsuch
    Peasgood Nonsuch is a highly-regarded old-fashioned English cooking apple.

History

Cheshire, 19th century.


Lord Derby characteristics

Growing

  • Gardening skillBeginner
  • Self-fertilityNot self-fertile
  • Flowering group4
  • Pollinating othersAverage
  • Fruit bearingSpur-bearer
  • Climate suitabilityTemperate climatesMild damp climates

Using

  • Picking seasonLate
  • CroppingGood
  • Keeping (of fruit)1-2 months
  • Food usesCulinaryJuiceTraditional cooker

Problems

  • Disease resistanceGood
  • Scab (Apple and Pear)Very resistant

Identification

  • Country of originUnited Kingdom
  • Period of origin1850 - 1899

British-grown trees Trees grown in the UK.

Unlike many garden centres and online retailers, the vast majority of our fruit trees are grown in the UK. Find out more.

In addition, all our trees are certified under the Plant Healthy scheme, supervised by the Plant Health Alliance. Other stakeholders include Defra and the RHS. The scheme aims to improve UK biosecurity by setting standards for all growers and retailers involved in selling plants in the UK. Find out more

Guaranteed fruit trees

When you buy your fruit tree from Orange Pippin Fruit Trees we guarantee it for the first season in your garden whilst it gets established. If it doesn't grow successfully, we'll either replace it the following season or offer a refund - subject to some conditions. Find out more.


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