Small flowering trees are one of the most important components of the home landscape and the crabapple (Malus) is an important genus of flowering and fruiting deciduous trees.
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Many have showy white, pink or purplish coloured flowers, occasionally lightly perfumed, abundant in spring, with autumn colour and fruits that may persist well into winter.
Their moderate size and spreading form produce an ideal shade tree.
Specific hybrids are propagated by vegetative means, and Malling Merton understocks used by many commercial growers provide many of the required characteristics of superior trees.
Crabapples are at their best in cool winters with freely drained soil, well endowed with organic matter, protection from the wind in full sun, and free of competing plant roots. Little pruning is necessary. In the erect kinds the trunk should be kept free of branches for the first one to two metres, after which the only help required is to maintain its natural form.
Old trees may be skeletonised to encourage shoot growth with any pruning done immediately after spring flowering. Crab apples should never be pruned in winter when fruiting apples are normally done.
Regarded by many as one of the most beautiful, Malus x floribunda is one of the most prolific in flower, and small yellow pomes with a reddish blush on the sunny side. Malus ‘Golden Hornet’ is a shapely tree 3-6m tall, carrying heavy crops of the best of the yellow fruits.
Considered the best of the red crabapples in fruit are the 2.5cm pendulus crimson globes of Malus x ‘Gorgeous’, which from memory are planted as a striking street tree in the former gold digging village of Arrowtown, South Island, New Zealand.
Malus ioensis ‘Plena’ is a double flowered hybrid of American origin, 6-8m tall with a short main trunk. The branches are somewhat pendulous in pink and white sweetly perfumed flowers, blooming later than other crabapples from October to the end of November.
Most crabapples are selected for the quality of their fruit their attractive spring flowers and autumn colour. There are numerous varieties worth exploring for a shape and size that suits your landscape. Flowering times for crabapples tend to be long, so grow them alongside culinary and desert apples to ensure successful pollination. Any suckers appearing below the bud union should be cut away cleanly with a sharp knife.
