Dig a hole as deep as the root ball and 2 to 3 times as wide. Set the tree into the hole and fill hole half with soil and water to remove any air pockets. Once the soil settles the water will drain out, at that point you can finish filling in the hole.

The best time to plant a crabapple tree is in the spring of fall. The soil should be moist combined with cool temperatures.

To propagate a crabapple tree, clip an up to 12 inch cutting from the flexible green growth at the tip of the branch. Strip any lower leaves as well as at least 3 inches of bark at the bottom of the cutting. Use a rooting hormone and place the cutting in a pot of coarse sand. To hold in moisture place pot within a plastic bag until the roots form (about 4 weeks). Once roots are established remove bag and place pot in full sunlight.

The crabapple tree tends to be drought tolerant, but prefer about an inch of water per week. However, if you live in an area where there is a lot of rainfall reduce your watering schedule. Over watering will hinder the tree’s growth.

The rule of thumb fertilizing the crabapple tree is to put limited amount of compost around the roots in the spring along with composted manure in around the roots in the fall.

Crabapple trees will bloom in late spring.

Cut open the crabapple, seeds should be brown. If seeds are white or green then it is not yet ripe. The apple itself should also feel somewhat squishy when pressed with your hand. It has a lovely sour taste to it.

Crabapples appear on trees in the summer, however, the best time to harvest apples is in the winter. The colder weather makes the crabapples soft and sweet.

Store crabapples in a sealed container in the fridge. Crabapples pick with flavors of other foods they’re combined with. However, they also freeze well.

Crabapples are a fruit.

Herbaceous and tree peonies are great companion plants for the crabapple tree.

Raw crabapples are high in antioxidants with low levels of iron, calcium, phosphorus, manganese, and magnesium.