Kentynet

List of native and naturalised cultivated fruits of the British Isles The British Isles emerged from the last glacial maximum with very little flora. Flora spread from refuges in areas of Europe which had retained climates suitable for such species (these areas today forming Europe's centres of plant diversity). Much of it came from Iberia, with others from the Balkans and other areas of Europe which escaped glaciation.

Boreal species spread north but were partially superseded by more temperate species. The British Isles are notable for lacking certain species that exist up to the coast of nearby France. In most cases they have been introduced and have naturalised, some may have spread with birds though. In these cases the species arrived too late to cross the land bridge to Great Britain which would have by then become submerged.

This page refers to fruits commonly eaten and cultivated by humans. Fruit of no value to humans is not included.

NOT FINISHED

Native top fruit

Top fruit refers to fruit trees.

English name	Natural range in British Isles	Information
European Crab Apple	England, Wales, Scotland & Ireland	Not cultivated for food, but one of the parents of the cultivated apple
Wild Cherry	England, Wales, Scotland & Ireland	Wild form of sweet cherry. Cultivated specimens are thought to originate in Southern Europe and Anatolia, but the trees are the same species and freely interbreed with the wild types.
Sloe	England, Wales, Scotland & Ireland	A wild plum used as hedging and also valued for adding to alcoholic beverages.
Damson	England & Wales.	A wild plum sometimes cultivated. Used as a barrier and in cooking (especially in more northern and western areas where it is much hardier than other plums). Thought to be either selections of sloes taken by humans for their superior qualities and propagated, imported plums from West Asia or natural hybrids of Prunus domestica with Prunus spinosa.
Hazelnut	England, Wales, Scotland & Ireland.	Not a fruit but a cultivated nut. Grows wild and sometimes cultivated (especially in Kent) One of the first trees to recolonise Britain.
Damson	England & Wales.	A wild plum sometimes cultivated. Used as a barrier and in cooking (especially in more northern and western areas where it is much hardier than other plums). Thought to be either selections of sloes taken by humans for their superior qualities and propagated, imported plums from West Asia or natural hybrids of Prunus domestica with Prunus spinosa.
Service tree	Small areas of South Wales and South West England.	Made into cider-like drinks in parts of Europe.

Naturalised top fruit

English name	Range in British Isles	Information
Cultivated apple	England, Wales, Scotland & Ireland	Spread since the Neolithic with humans. Widely cultivated and grows from discarded cores and fallen fruit.
European pear	England	Thought to have arrived during the Neolithic from continental Europe. Widely cultivated and sometimes seen growing wild.
Sour Cherry	England, Wales, Scotland & Ireland	A sour cherry used in cooking. Widespread and sometimes seen growing wild.
Plum	England & Wales.	Widely cultivated and sometimes naturalised.

Native soft fruit

This generally includes smaller plants that don't form trees.

English name	Natural range in British Isles	Information
European raspberry	England, Wales, Scotland & Ireland	Common in wild and cultivated forms.
Blackberry	England, Wales, Scotland & Ireland	Very successful plant, often to the extent of it becoming a weed. Usually gathered from the wild where it is abundant (especially in western areas), but increasingly cultivated.
Blackberry	England, Wales.	Widely cultivated for use in cooking and drinks.
Gooseberry	England & Wales.	Used in cooking.
Alpine Strawberry	England & Wales.	Grows wild but not widely cultivated although increasing.

A useful website for researching flora (in Swedish)