Has anyone researched into what other species complement apple trees to include natural pest resistance or synergies?
I donāt know about other plants to improve synergy, but daffodils take advantage of the early season sunshine before the apples leaf out, and they look lovely scattered below the trees. They will be died back and out of the way in time for harvest of even the earliest ripening apple varieties.
I would say dwarf comfrey (Symphytum āHidcote Blueā - or similar) would make a fairly nice underplanting as well. They form a groundcover and are much lower growing than the more commonly grown S. officinale and hybrid S. Ćuplandicum.
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Insects are not fond of many of the herb plants. (spice herbs, not the other)
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Chickens 
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Unfortunately for my current purposes, chickens require daily support Iām unable to provide.
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Iām not sure if i am a believer of the whole āguildsā thing. I need to learn more about it. I find it hard to find hard science on it.
Most scientific things i could find to āhelpā the fruit trees are probably nitrogen fixing legumes.
I however despise bare ground. So tend to plant groundcover below trees.
i think it depends. Is it a shaded spot or more sun?
If been reasonably happy with micro clover. (cultivars with smaller leaves of Trifolium repens)
when not mown or grazed the leaf size does increase though. And in deep shade it tends to stretch and reach a Hight of roughly 4-8 inches.
Iām trying to multiply my ramsons ( Allium ursinum )
I think those will be really nice beneath fruit trees, in shaded spots. These will be āgoneā early summer. so depending on rain/weed pressure you might want another ground cover for summer/fall. Or you could keep the soil bare for that period if that would work for you.
If you have a sunny spot (south side of the tree) i like creeping thymes. Or creeping winter savory ( Satureja montana)
Some other alliums like Allium senescens or Allium nutans and hybrids are also nice.
Do keep in mind lots of the plants i mentioned flower (and for long times) so if your spraying they might not be a good idea.
I plant these plants because i like them. And despise bare soil. Not because i think they will significantly boost my fruit trees.