The Crab Apple

Like many English plant names, there's a degree of ambiguity about the origination of the wild "Crab apple" tree, Malus sylvestris. I like the etymological version, that it's from the Old Norse, appearing via Scotland in the early 16th century. No-one seems really sure though.

Botanically it's also confusing. Let's just say that crab apples are distinct from Malus domestica, which includes our cooking and eating apple varieties with their much larger fruit. The smaller crab apples, while sour, have higher pectin levels - handy for making jelly.

Like so many plants, Malus domestica originated in central Asia. There are crabs from elsewhere, like the Chineses Malus Hupuhensis, but Malus sylvestris is the Crab native to the UK. It was a tree of mixed woodland - the clue is in the name. It's quite rare now, and not to be confused with the Wilding apples which grow from discarded apple cores. Hereabouts you can find the odd tree in old hedgerows. Its blossom is lovely at this time of year and it can fruit prolifically (see below), but it's not usually planted in domestic or orchard situations and can look pretty untidy. Historically the fruit would have been eaten; there's evidence of their culinary use going back to the neolithic. 

Hardy and Long Flowering

I'm a huge fan of Crabs. We're on heavy clay, so suffer from poor drainage combined with high rainfall in winter, and concrete like soil in the summer. Apples generally are amazingly forgiving of these kind of conditions, and there are some stunning Crabs to choose from. They have an unusually long flowering period in spring, so they're often recommended as pollination partners for eating and cooking apples. 

Easily Trained

Typically they have pink buds, opening to produce heavily scented white blossom (some have pink). Gorgeous, and super-attractive to pollinators. Ours are mobbed by all sorts of bees - honey bees, bumbles and solitaries. We have two lovely runs of espaliered  'Evereste' in the garden, which are positively buzzing at this time of year. Like other apple trees, Crabs are easily trained and look great as espaliers, cordons, stepovers, or fans.

Use in The Kitchen

There are some Crab apples specifically grown for their blossom rather than their fruit. The Victorians used to grow varieties of Malus domestica like 'Annie Elizabeth' as ornamental trees, rather than for their apples.

Crabs are the same. Evereste's apples are pretty teeny, and although we now have visits from Fieldfares who seem to love them, I don't think you could use them in the kitchen. 

This seems to me to be missing a trick. All the cultivars we sell are great for cooking, and the apples are an attractive extra ornamentation in the autumn / winter. Some are yellow, others red. Like cooking and eating apples, many of the best were bred by Victorian nurseryment, but there are some more recent introductions too.

I think my favourite is 'Dartmouth', which we also have several of here; stunning blossom and beautiful red Disneyesque apples (see below). Older varieties include 'Veitch's Scarlet'  and 'John Downie' have very pretty apples too, all relatively large for crabs.  

'Dartmouth' makes a great jelly too, with good flavour and colour, and like many Crab apples has a nice tidy habit.