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Crab Apple Tree

1st May 2009

The Crab Apple tree is a native of the British Isles and makes a wonderful and easy to manage tree for the garden. In the spring it will be laden with lovely blossom, (like the tree below, the image taken the last week of April) and in the autumn be decorated in red/orange fruits. It is deciduous, so the leaves will fall off each year. However, the leaves are not to big and will not create too much leaf litter. It is also a great food source for local wildlife, attracting a wide variety of birds that love the crab apples.

Credit: Nick Pringle

The sour apples can also be enjoyed by less feathery creatures...Us. They are a bit sour to eat individually, but can made into jam, jellies and wines. The ancient Celts refered to this tree as 'The tree of love', so perhaps the jam might have aphrodisiac qualities!

The tree will do well in partial or full sun in well drained soil. The branches can easily be pruned to keep neighbours happy with no ill effects to the tree, and they can grow in time to over 9 metres tall.

With so many exciting and unusual trees avaialble now in garden centres, it is easy to forget old British favourites, and the Crab Apple is certainly one of these.

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