Small trees are the ideal choice for limited space in gardens and on balconies. Thanks to them, hobby gardeners and lovers of fresh fruit do not have to do without self-cultivation and flowering shrubs. Nowadays there is an extensive range of suitable varieties for the smallest of spaces available, which feel just as comfortable in the bucket as in the garden bed.
Table of Contents
Small fruit trees
When it comes to fruit trees, “small” shrubs mean less the height than the space requirement in general. Fruit trees that stay small mainly include slender growth forms that are offered as columnar trees. These have few side shoots, so they are very space-saving. High trunks, on the other hand, are generally shorter, but have more volume due to a mostly bushy crown. The most popular and best-selling fruit trees are listed below according to the fruit type:
apples
1. ‘Croquella’ (Malus ‘Croquella’)
- Growth: slow-growing, standard fruit trees
- Growth height: 130 to 180 centimeters
- Growth rate: 5 to 20 centimeters per year
- Flowering time: April to May
- Flower color: light pink
- Fruits: red-yellow, firm, tart, sweeter after a short storage time
- Harvest time: September
- Mediocre yields
- Can be stored for a short time
- Location: sun
- Hardy: yes
2. ‚Flamenco ‘(Malus Ballerina‚ Flamenco’)
- Growth: slender, tall, columnar
- Growth height: 200 to 300 centimeters
- Growth rate: 10 to 30 centimeters per year
- Flowering time: April to May
- Flower color: pink bud, white flower
- Fruits: green-red, juicy, firm, sweet, intensive aroma
- Harvest time: September to October
- Mediocre crop yield
- Shelf life: until December
- Location: sun to semi-shade
- Hardy: very hardy
3. ‚Goldcats‘ (Malus ‚Goldcats‘)
- Growth: slender, tall, columnar
- Growth height: 200 to 300 centimeters
- Growth rate: 10 to 30 centimeters per year
- Flowering time: April to May
- Flower color: light pink
- Fruits: green-yellow, juicy, firm, sweet
- Harvest time: September
- Particularly high crop yield
- Location: sun to semi-shade
- Hardy: very hardy
4. ‘Redcats’
- Growth: columnar, upright, slender
- Growth height: 2 to 3 meters
- Flowering time: April
- Flower color: light pink
- Fruits: firm, sour, red
- Harvest time: October
- Particularly high crop yield
- Location: sunny, semi-shady
- Hardy: frost hardy
5. ‘Rondo’ (Malus ‘Rondo’)
- Growth: slow-growing, columnar, slender
- Growth height: 200 to 300 centimeters
- Growth rate: 10 to 30 centimeters per year
- Flowering time: April to May
- Flower color: white
- Fruits: Large, green-yellow fruit with a red overtone, firm, sweet-tart, very juicy
- Harvest time: August to September
- Good returns
- Very long shelf life until February
- Location: sun to semi-shade
- Hardy: very
6. ‚Sonata’ (Malus ‚Sonata’)
- Growth: slow-growing, columnar, slender
- Growth height: 200 to 300 centimeters
- Growth rate: 10 to 30 centimeters per year
- Flowering time: April to May
- Flower Color: White with a touch of pink
- Fruits: medium-sized, green-yellow with a reddish overtone, juicy, medium-firm
- Harvest time: September to October
- Mediocre yields
- Very long shelf life until February
- Location: sun to semi-shade
- Hardy: yes
7. ‘Starcats’ (Malus ‘Starcats’)
- Growth: medium strong, narrow and columnar
- Growth height: 200 to 300 centimeters
- Growth rate: 10 to 30 centimeters per year
- Flowering time: April to May
- Flower color: light pink
- Fruits: red-yellow, particularly crunchy, firm, sweet-tart
- Harvest time: late August to early September
- Particularly high crop yield
- Good shelf life
- Location: sun to semi-shade
- Hardy: very hardy
apricots
8. Zwergaprikose (Prunus armeniaca)
- Growth: dwarf, upright
- Growth height: up to one meter, some varieties up to 1.5 meters
- Flowering time: March to May
- Flower color: apricot, pink
- Fragrant fruits
- Juicy pulp
- Harvest time: July to September
- Location: sunny, warm, sheltered from the wind
- Hardy: yes
9. Zwergaprikose ‚Kaluna ‘
- Growth: dwarf, upright, mostly standard
- Growth height: between 100 and 150 centimeters
- Flowering time: March to May
- Flower color: March to May
- Fruits: sweet, juicy
- Harvest time: July to September
- Location: sunny, warm, sheltered from the wind
- Hardy: frost hardy
pears
10. ‚Condo‘ (Pyrus communis ‚Condo‘)
- Growth: medium strong, narrow and columnar
- Growth height: up to 300 centimeters
- Flowering time: April to May
- Flower color: white
- Fruits: slightly acidic, lemon-colored, sweet, medium-firm, medium-sized
- Harvest time: September to October
- High-yielding autumn pear
- Good shelf life
- Location: sunny
- Hardy: frost resistant
11. Summer blood bear (Pyrus communis)
- Growth: columnar, narrow
- Growth height: 150 to 200 centimeters
- Flowering time: April
- Flower color: white
- Fruits: Red, juicy, coarse-grained
- Harvest time: August to September
- Mediocre crop yield
- Location: sunny, semi-shady
- Hardy: frost hardy
cherries
12. ‚Griotella‘ (Prunus cerasus ‚Griotella‘)
- Small tart cherry fruit trees
- Growth: slow-growing, standard with a compact crown
- Growth height: 140 to 150 centimeters
- Growth rate: 5 to 20 centimeters per year
- Flowering time: April
- Flower color: white
- Fruits: crisp, red, tart, firm
- Harvest time: mid-July to late July
- Very high yields
- Can be stored for a short time
- Location: sunny, warm, sheltered from the wind
- Hardy: yes
13. ‚Stella Compact‘
- Growth: miniature trunk, slow-growing
- Growth height: 150 to 200 centimeters
- Growth rate: 5 to 20 centimeters per year
- Flowering time: April to May
- Flower color: white-pink
- Fruits: sweet and sour, dark red, juicy
- Harvest time: late August to early September
- Particularly high crop yield
- Location: sun
- Hardy: frost hardy
14. ‘Sylvia’ (Prunus ‘Sylvia’)
- Aromatic sweet cherry
- Growth: slender, upright, columnar
- Growth height: 220 to 300 centimeters
- Growth rate: 10 to 30 centimeters per year
- Flowering time: April to May
- Flower color: white
- Fruits: crisp, red, medium firm, sweet
- Harvest time: July to August
- Mediocre yields
- Location: sunny, sheltered from the wind
- Hardy: yes
Kiwi
15. Kiwi ‘Super Jumbo’ (Grape Kiwi)
- Growth: climbing, slightly bushy
- Growth height: 100 to 150 centimeters
- Flowering time: April/May to June
- Flower color: white
- Fruits: Yellow, Lemon
- Harvest time: from the end of September
- Very profitable
- Location: sunny, warm
- Hardy: frost resistant
Nectarines (Prunus persica var. Nucipersica)
16. Zwergnektarine ‘Nectarella’
- Growth: dwarf, upright
- Growth height: between one and 1.5 meters
- Flowering time: March to April
- Flower Color: Red, Yellow
- Fruits: sweet, juicy
- Harvest time: July to September
- Location: sunny, semi-shady
- Hardy: frost hardy
peach
17. ‚Tellerpfirsich‘ (Prunus persica ‚Tellerpfirsich‘)
- Growth: weak
- Growth height: between 150 and 180 centimetres
- Growth rate: 20 to 30 centimeters per year
- Flowering time: April to May
- Flower color: pink
- Fruits: medium-firm, sweet, easily detached from the stone, less acidic than other varieties
- Harvest time: mid-August
- High yields
- Location: sun to semi-shade
- Hardy: hardy in warm locations – otherwise winter protection or frost-free overwintering
18. ‚Bonanza‘
- Small shrubs
- Pleasantly scented flower
- Growth height: about 120 centimeters
- Flowering time: April to May
- Flower color: strong rose
- Fruits: juicy-aromatic, sweet
- Harvest time: August to September
- Mediocre yields
- Location: sunny, warm, sheltered from the wind – ideal south-facing balcony/terrace
- Hardy: yes
plums
19. ‚Geisenheimer Top‘ (Prunus ‚Geisenheimer Top‘)
- Growth: upright, medium strong, compact, columnar
- Growth height: 120 to 150 centimeters
- Flowering time: April to May
- Flower color: white
- Fruits: purple, crunchy, sweet
- Harvest time: September
- High yields
- Location: sunny to semi-shady
- Hardy: yes
20. “Jojo” (Prunus domestica “Jojo”)
- Ministämmchen
- Growth: weak, compact
- Growth height: around 150 centimetres
- Growth rate: 5 to 20 centimeters per year
- Flowering time: April to May
- Flower color: white
- Fruits: medium-sized, blue, firm, sweet
- Harvest time: mid-September
- Mediocre yields
- Location: sun to semi-shade
- Hardy: yes
Small berry bushes
21. Wald-Heidelbeere (Vaccinium myrtillus)
- Deciduous, small variety
- Growth: bushy, densely bushy, stiffly upright
- Growth height: up to about 50 centimeters
- Flowering time: April to May
- Flower color: white
- Fruits: dark blue, sweet, deep violet flesh
- Harvest time: from July
- High crop yield
- Deep red autumn colour
- deciduous
- Location: semi-shady to shady, tolerates sun
- Hardy: frost hardy
22. ‚Autumn Bliss‘ (Rubus idaeus ‚Autumn Bliss‘)
- Herbsthimbeere, Zwergstrauch
- Growth: bushy, densely bushy, stiffly upright
- Growth height: 100 to 160 centimeters
- Flowering period: May to July
- Flower color: white
- Fruits: Red, sweet and sour
- Harvest time: mid-August to October
- High crop yield
- Location: sunny, semi-shady
- Hardy: frost hardy
23. Currant ‘Heinemanns Rote Spätlese’ (Ribes rubrum ‘Heinemanns Rote Spätlese’)
- Late-ripening, small shrubs
- Growth: upright
- Growth height: 100 to 150 centimeters
- Flowering period: May to June
- Flower color: white
- Fruits: red, tart, large
- Harvest time: August to September
- High yields
- Location: sun to semi-shade
- Hardy: yes
Flowering deciduous shrubs
24. Fingerstrauch (Potentilla fruticosa)
- Deciduous dwarf shrub
- Growth: densely branched
- Growth height: 50 to 60 centimeters
- Flowering time: June to August/September
- Flower color: depending on the variety, bright orange-red, pink, yellow
- Location: sun to semi-shade
- Hardy: very
25. Small lilac shrubs ‘Buzz magenta’ (Buddleja ‘BUZZ Magenta’)
- Deciduous dwarf shrub
- Growth: upright, shoots slightly overhanging, dainty
- Height of growth: up to 150 centimeters and just as wide
- Flowering period: July to October
- Flower color: bright pink-pink
- Panicles 25 centimeters long
- Pleasantly fragrant
- Location: sunny to semi-shady
- Hardy: yes
26. Small lilac shrubs ‘Palibin’ (Syringa meyeri ‘Palibin’)
- Deciduous dwarf shrub
- Growth: bushy
- Growth height: up to 100 centimeters
- Flowering time: May to June and second flowering in October
- Flower color: light pink
- Pleasantly fragrant
- Location: sunny to slightly semi-shady
- Hardy: yes
Tip: There is a whole range of lilac shrubs that are small trees and are ideal for balconies, terraces and small gardens and have similar properties to the varieties mentioned. These include, for example, the varieties BUZZ Ivory, BUZZ Sky Blue, BUZZ Pink Purple, BUZZ Hot Rasberry and BUZZ Midnight.
27. Forsythie ‚melee d or‘ (Forsythia ‚Melee d Or‘)
- Spring flowering, deciduous dwarf shrub
- Growth: wide-growing, lush flowering
- Height of growth: up to 100 centimetres, width up to 1.5 metres
- Flowering time: April to May
- Flower color: light yellow (bells)
- Location: sunny to semi-shady
- Hardy: very
28. Ginster Lydia (Genista Lydia)
- Deciduous shrubs
- Growth: broad, bushy, densely branched, many flowers
- Height of growth: up to 50 centimetres, width 120 to 150 centimetres
- Flowering period: May to June
- Flower color: bright yellow
- Location: full sun
- Hardy: yes
29. Honeysuckle ‘Maigrün’ (Lonicera nitida ‘Maigrün’)
- evergreen dwarf shrub
- Growth: slender, slightly overhanging
- Growth height: up to 100 centimeters – width: about 45 centimeters
- Flowering period: May to June
- Flower color: white
- Fruits: dark fruits from August
- Location: sunny to shady
- Hardy: yes
Tip: This shrub, which stays small, can also be used as a ground cover with the appropriate, regular pruning. This specimen is just as decorative as a hedge as it is in a bucket and between other plants in the garden bed.
30. Hortensie/Ballhortensie ‚Annabelle‘ (Hydrangea arborescens ‚Annabelle‘)
- Deciduous, lightly scented dwarf shrub for gardens and tubs
- Growth: broad, bushy, upright
- Growth height: up to 130 centimeters, width 120 centimeters
- Flowering period: July to September
- Flower color: creamy white
- Yellow autumn leaves
- Location: slightly sunny to shady
- Hardy: yes
Tip: Large, heavy flowers are mainly formed on young shoots, which often snap off without support due to the relatively heavy weight of the flowers. Here it is advisable to support them early on with bamboo sticks, for example.
31. Jasmine ‘White Lady’ (Philadelphus ‘White Lady’)
- Intensely scented dwarf shrub for gardens and containers
- Growth: broad, bushy, upright, many flowers
- Height of growth: up to 150 centimetres, width 100 centimetres
- Flowering period: June to July
- Flower color: bright white
- Location: sun to semi-shade
- Hardy: yes
32. Snowball laurel (Viburnum tinus)
- Evergreen dwarf shrub
- Slightly scented
- Growth: dense, compact
- Growth height: up to 120 centimeters (usually only reaches this in old age)
- Flowering time: February to April (earlier depending on the temperatures)
- Flower color: white-pink
- Location: Sun to semi-shade, warm, sheltered from the wind
- Hardy: yes
33. Maiblumenstrauch (Deutzia gracilis)
- Deciduous dwarf shrub, early bloomer
- Growth: bushy, dense, slightly overhanging
- Growth height: up to 100 centimeters
- Flowering period: May to June
- Flower color: white
- Location: sun to semi-shade
- Winter-hardy: yes, in pots for protection against the cold at extremely sub-zero temperatures
34. Sommerspiere (Spiraea japonica ‚Anthony Waterer‘)
- Deciduous dwarf shrub
- Growth: dense, upright, fast-growing
- Growth height: up to 100 centimeters
- Flowering period: July to September
- Flower color: carmine
- Foliage: Light green leaves up to 10 centimeters long
- Location: sunny to semi-shady
- Hardy: yes
35. Weigelie ‚Monet‘ (Weigela florida ‚Monet‘)
- Deciduous dwarf shrub
- Growth: broad, bushy, upright
- Growth height: up to 80 centimeters
- Flowering period: May to June
- Flower color: pink
- Foliage: dark brown-green, white-pink leaf margin
- Location: sunny to semi-shady
- Hardy: very
Mini shrubs without flowers
36. Blutberberitze (Berberis thunbergii ‚Atropurpurea Nana‘)
- Laubabwerfender Zwergstrauch
- Growth: flat-growing, bushy
- Growth height: up to 50 centimeters – width: up to 50 centimeters
- Foliage: Small, dark red, ovate leaves, decorative autumn color
- Fruit decoration: May to June red fruits (not edible)
- Location: sunny to shady
- Hardy: yes
37. Beech (Buxus sempervirens arborescens)
- Evergreen dwarf shrub
- Growth: bushy, stocky, upright
- Growth height: up to 120 centimeters – width: up to 35 centimeters
- Shiny green foliage
- Ideal as a small border hedge, for balcony boxes and tubs
- Location: sunny to shady
- Hardy: yes
38. Fan leaf tree ‘Troll’ (Ginkgo biloba ‘Troll’)
- dwarf ginkgo
- Can be trained as a mini shrub or standard tree
- Growth: dense, bushy, stocky, densely leafy
- Growth width: 60 to 100 centimeters
- Growth height: 60 to 80 centimeters
- Growth rate: 2 to 3 centimeters per year
- Beautiful autumn colour
- deciduous
- Location: sun to semi-shade
- Hardy: yes
39. Harlekin Weide (Salix integra 理 Hakuro Nishiki’)
- Not evergreen
- Growth: dense, bushy
- Growth width: up to 150 centimeters
- Height of growth: up to 150 centimeters (in old age)
- Foliage: shedding, white-greenish leaves, shoots pink, autumn colour
- Inconspicuous flower/fruit
- Location: Sun to light semi-shade
- Hardy: yes
40. Korkflügelstrauch (Euonymus alatus ‚Compactus‘)
- Zwergstrauch
- Growth: compact, broad and bushy
- Growth height: 90 to 120 centimeters – width up to 180 centimeters
- Bright red autumn colour
- Location: sunny to semi-shady
- Hardy: yes
