how to plant a crabapple tree

Choose a location in full sun with well-drained soil. Trees that are shaded develop an open canopy instead of a more attractive, dense growth habit. Shaded trees produce fewer flowers and fruit, and they are more susceptible to disease. Dig the hole for the tree as deep as the root ball and two to three times as wide.

When can I plant a crab apple tree?

Planting Time: You can plant crabapples most any time the soil is workable. Bare-root trees need to be planted in early spring, but balled and burlapped or container grown trees can be planted in spring, summer, or fall.

How fast do crabapple trees grow?

Many crabapple cultivars grow at a greater rate of 13 to 24 inches per year. The flowering tea crabapple (Malus hupehensis), hardy in USDA zones 5 to 8, grows at a rate of 24 inches per year.

Do crabapple trees need to be planted in pairs?

Do you need two crabapple trees to produce fruit? Yes, all apple trees need a suitable pollinator to set fruit, and crabapples are no different. There are certain varieties of crabapple that do not produce fruit, but all of the cultivars that do need cross pollinators.

What kind of soil do crabapple trees need?

When planting, be sure to add plenty of organic soil amendments to give your tree roots a good start. Crabapples are fairly drought tolerant but rich soil with good drainage is ideal. They prefer a slightly acidic soil pH between 6.0 and 7.0.

Are crabapple trees easy to grow?

Growing crabapple trees in the home landscape is much easier if you choose disease- and insect-resistant varieties.

What do I feed a crabapple tree?

A general 10-10-10 fertilizer is a good choice for feeding a crabapple tree. Another recommendation is to use one to two pounds of fertilizer per 100 square feet (9 square meters) of ground around the tree. The root system extends about 20 to 30 feet (6 to 9 meters) beyond the edge of the crown of the tree.

Can you eat crab apples off the tree?

This is because crab apples are not always palatable. In fact, crab apples are usually simply not eaten because they can be extremely sour or spongy in texture. Those that come from the Dalgo and Centennial trees are considered the most edible.

Are crabapple trees messy?

Crabapple trees provide beauty in the spring but a mess in the fall once the fruit drops. ... During the summer months, a tree can throw shade and reduce air conditioning costs.

What are crabapple trees good for?

There are numerous reasons to consider planting a crabapple tree. Their ability to help pollinate other fruit trees, the tasty fruit, and their beautiful blooms make them a great asset for your yard or orchard. There are other great fruit trees to consider, too!

How deep are crab apple tree roots?

Feeder roots, which extend the furthest from the tree, typically extend two to three times this distance. For example, if the dripline is 8 feet from the trunk of the tree, the roots will likely extend 16 to 24 feet from the crabapple's trunk.

How often should I water a newly planted crabapple tree?

Crabapple trees need about 1 inch of water every week during their first year. You need to make sure you're watering the tree regularly during the first year because the tree is establishing itself during this time period and once it has, you don't have to be worried about watering it.

Are Crabapple berries poisonous to dogs?

The fact is that – YES – crabapples are toxic to dogs. ... In a crabapple, only the seeds are considered toxic. The seeds, which are also called pips, contain a poisonous chemical called amygdalin. Amygdalin turns into cyanide in your dog's body and causes cyanide poisoning.

How do you take care of a crabapple tree?

How to care for crab apples. For the first few years, make sure your newly planted crab apple tree is well watered in dry periods. Always give a mulch of well-rotted manure or compost in spring and prune in late winter to remove any dead, dying, diseased or crossing branches.

How often do crabapple trees bloom?

Crabapple trees are known for their beauty as an ornamental tree in the home landscape. They cover their branches in blooms for two to three weeks every spring, if undisturbed by wind or rain. Their early flowering provides a welcome source of food for bees and butterflies, after a long, lean winter.

Do crabapple trees attract bees?

Crabapple trees are truly excellent pollinators — even professional apple orchardists plant them systematically to cover any possible pollination gaps in their apple selection. A crabapple tree also makes a beautiful food source that attracts bees, birds, and other wildlife.

How tall does a crabapple tree grow?

Large crabapples can grow up to 40 ft. tall and wide (12m); medium-sized trees reach 15-20 ft. in height and spread (4.5-6 m); small crabapples typically grow up to 10-15 ft.

Do crabapple trees need to be pruned?

Crabapple trees are pretty easy to maintain and don't require vigorous pruning. The most important reasons to prune are to maintain the tree's shape, to remove dead branches, and to treat or prevent the spread of disease.

Why are the leaves on my crabapple turning yellow?

A fungus called Venturia inaequalis infects crabapple leaves early in the spring. ... Most people don't notice the disease, though, until these infected leaves turn yellow and fall off the tree.

How do you save a dying crabapple tree?

Remove fallen leaves from the area under your crab apple tree in the fall. Rake these away before the snow falls in winter. These leaves often harbor mold spores, which lie dormant in the winter and attack crab apple trees in the spring. Avoid excess watering of your crab apple tree.

What month are crab apples ready to pick?

Crab apples typically appear on the tree in summer and ripen in fall, but the best time to pick them is winter! Freezing temperatures make the crab apples soft and sweet, so they taste better when it's cold outside. Alternately, you could pick them when ripe in fall and stick them in your freezer for a couple days.

Do squirrels eat crab apples?

Squirrels get trashtastic from ingesting fermented crab apples, squash, magnolia petals, and cherries. ... Yes, you can eat crab apples. Generally, they're too tart to eat raw, but their appliness is intense when cooked. Crab apples have a really high pectin content, great for jams and jellies.

Why are crab apples called crab apples?

Crab apples are technically called such because of their size—small—and not their cultivar, since no two apple seeds are genetically alike. Think of them as their own fruit for culinary reasons, since you can't use crab apples exactly as you would larger, more familiar apples.