Dwarf Apple Trees

[katievt]

In front of our front porch was a large Burning Bush that was overgrown - plus they are an invasive - so we took it out last Summer.  Around that was a half-circle of evergreen bush that is also overgrown.  I want to take that out as well.

I was thinking about planting a dwarf apple tree there.  Something that won't get too tall and will be useful.  Any varieties you recommend?  I don't really care for macs.  Any places you recommend to purchase them?

[Skandi]

You can have pretty much any apple tree you want, if you want it short you want something grafted onto M9 or M27 (6ft or 9ft respectively) such small trees require a stake their entire lives, they are not as vigorous as larger ones and they do suffer in drought or other sub optimal conditions.

[feather]

I haven't bought an apple tree, but I do buy my fruit trees from Stark Bros. They have a guarantee to make it, so if they don't grow the second year they will replace it. Buy it in '19, it is guaranteed to grow in '20. If they don't, you call them and they will replace it the second spring.

They offer dwarf, semi dwarf, and regular size, in many different varieties. They also check your location to make sure that your tree will make it in your zone.

[deke01]

May 14, 2019 17:37:13 GMT katievt said:

In front of our front porch was a large Burning Bush that was overgrown - plus they are an invasive - so we took it out last Summer.  Around that was a half-circle of evergreen bush that is also overgrown.  I want to take that out as well.

I was thinking about planting a dwarf apple tree there.  Something that won't get too tall and will be useful.  Any varieties you recommend?  I don't really care for macs.  Any places you recommend to purchase them?

Apples require a certain number of chill hours or they will not fruit.  Thy have certain varieties with low chill hours, in the neighborhood of 400 hours.  I've tried them in Florida with no luck.  They don't thrive and 4 years later, the ones that have lived are only 4 ft tall, spindly things that aren't good for anything. 

If you live where there are real winters, you have dozens of choices.  Just get what you like to eat.  Some are way better in hand, some are better in pies, or applesauce.  I like anything that is firm and at least a bit tart.  So that should leave out Red and Golden delicious, but it doesn't have to.  We had a Golden tree when I was a kid and we simply picked the apples while they were still green.  The green apples worked great in hand, smeared with peanut butter, as applesauce, and in pies.  Once they were ripe, no one in my family liked them so they got fed to the chickens.    

[coppice]

A solitary tree is a wonderful excuse to do a little top-working and graft a couple crab-apple branches so you can be sure of pollinating your tree.