13 Crabapple Trees That Add Long-Lasting Color to Your Landscape

Adams

Add some rosy color to your landscape with 'Adams' flowering crabapple. Its abundant semi-double deep pink blooms are followed by small, glossy, red crabapples with blood-red pulp. The fruit matures in the fall, persists in the winter, and attracts birds. This tree's green leaves also have reddish tints in spring and turn orange and red in the fall. This variety has good resistance to the major diseases that can affect crabapples.

Form: Broadly rounded

Season of Bloom: Mid-spring

Size: Up to 20 feet tall and wide

Zones: 4-8

Buy It: Adams Crabapple

Adirondack

The long-lasting, deep pink buds of this crabapple variety are known to open into nearly pure white flowers. Its blooms develop into abundant orange-red fruits that hang on into early winter. Adirondack's leaves are green through most of the year, before turning yellow in fall. The relatively upright form of Adirondack makes it a perfect choice for narrow spaces in the landscape as a hedge or an espalier. The tree has excellent resistance to apple scab, powdery mildew, cedar-apple rust, and good resistance to fire blight.

Form: Narrow, upright oval

Season of Bloom: Mid-spring

Size: Up to 18 feet tall

Zones: 4-8

Buy It: Adirondack Crabapple ($200, McKay Nursery Company)

Callaway

The large red fruits of 'Callaway' crabapples trees are good for making a tart jelly as well as attracting birds to the garden. The tree blooms in spring with single white fragrant flowers. Its leaves emerge green, then they turn shades of yellow, orange, and red in fall. It is one of the best crabapple trees for Southern areas because it has a low-chill requirement for flowering and fruiting. It also has excellent resistance to scab, fire blight, powdery mildew, and cedar-apple rust, even through hot, humid summer conditions.

Form: Oval, rounded

Season of Bloom: Mid-spring

Size: Up to 25 feet tall and 20 feet wide

Zones: 5-8

Buy It: Callaway Crabapple Tree ($28, Ison's Nursery & Vineyards)

Cinderella

If you want a crabapple tree but think your yard doesn't have room for one, take another look at Cinderella (also called 'Cinzam'). This dwarf crabapple tree fits almost any landscape, or in container gardens. It's a compact plant with densely packed white blooms and golden yellow fruits. Its green foliage turns golden yellow in autumn. It also has good resistance to apple scab and excellent resistance to fire blight, powdery mildew, and cedar-apple rust.

Form: Oval, dwarf

Season of Bloom: Spring

Size: Up to 8 feet tall and 6 feet wide

Zones: 4-8

Buy It: Cinderella Dwarf Crabapple Tree

Harvest Gold

A late-flowering crabapple with pink buds that open to single white blooms, Harvest Gold (or 'Hargozam') is often considered the best gold-fruited crabapple. Its bright yellow fruits last into winter, and its green foliage turns yellow in fall. The tree's shape makes it a good small shade tree as well as an attractive flowering and fruiting ornamental plant. It also has good resistance to all four major crabapple diseases: Fire blight, apple scab, powdery mildew, and cedar-apple rust.

Form: Upright oval

Season of Bloom: Spring

Size: Up to 25 feet tall and 25 feet wide

Zones: 3-8

Buy It: Harvest Gold Crabapple Tree ($100, Planting Tree)

Louisa

The spreading, weeping form of 'Louisa' has a graceful appearance. Clusters of delicate pink blooms cover its arching branches, followed by amber-yellow pea-size fruits that mature in fall and hang on into winter. Its foliage is glossy dark green and turns yellow in autumn. If left unpruned, its branches will drape all the way to the ground. The tree has excellent scab resistance and good resistance to fire blight, cedar-apple rust, and powdery mildew.

Form: Spreading to weeping

Season of Bloom: Spring

Size: Up to 15 feet tall and wide

Zones: 4-8

Buy It: Louisa Weeping Crabapple

Prairifire

Pinkish-red flower buds on the Prairifire crabapple tree open to deep pink blooms. The flowers are followed by masses of purplish-red fruits that attract birds. Its leaves emerge purplish, mature to bronzy green, and develop a yellow-orange glow in autumn. This tree has reddish-brown bark similar to cherry trees, which looks especially eye-catching when contrasting with a blanket of snow.

Form: Upright

Season of Bloom: Spring

Size: Up to 20 feet tall and wide

Zones: 4-8

Buy It: Prairiefire Flowering Crabapple ($34, The Home Depot)

Profusion

Named for its abundance of magenta pink blooms, 'Profusion' crabapple has many attractive landscape qualities. Its foliage emerges purple, turns bronzy green in summer, and rounds out the season with mottled yellow, orange, and green tones. The tree develops ruby-red fruits that may be harvested for jellies. The foliage has excellent resistance to cedar-apple rust, good resistance to fire blight, and powdery mildew, but only fair resistance to apple scab.

Form: Rounded, spreading

Season of Bloom: Spring

Size: Up to 30 feet tall and 35 feet wide

Zones: 4-8

Buy It: Profusion Crabapple

Red Jewel

Producing abundant cherry-red fruits after its large, white flowers bloom, Red Jewel (also called 'Jewelcole') lives up to its name. In mild-winter areas, the fruits remain on the tree until the following spring. This variety's green foliage turns yellow in fall. The shape of the tree remains fairly narrow, so it's a good choice for smaller yards. The tree also has good disease resistance, but occasional fire blight or powdery mildew may develop.

Form: Irregular oval

Season of Bloom: Spring

Size: Up to 15 feet tall

Zones: 4-8

Buy It: Crabapple Red Jewel ($250, Crabapple Red Jewel)

Robinson

Known for being a fast-growing cultivar, 'Robinson' crabapple has pale pink blooms that develop into dark red fruits, which persist on the tree into winter. Its leaves emerge purple but turn bronze-green as they mature, then take on bright orange fall color. Apple scab, fire blight, cedar-apple rust, and powdery mildew rarely affect this tree's foliage.

Form: Upright when young; rounded with age

Season of Bloom: Spring

Size: Up to 25 feet tall and wide

Zones: 4-8

Buy It: Robinson Flowering Crabapple

Royal Raindrops

The easy-to-grow crabapple tree, Royal Raindrops (which has the unfortunate variety name 'JFS-KW5') begins the season with magenta pink blooms that develop into persistent red fruits. Its unique deep purple cutleaf foliage in the summer is an outstanding ornamental feature. In autumn, the foliage turns a mix of orange, scarlet, bronze, and purple. This small tree's strong branching pattern and dense canopy hold up well in windy sites.

Form: Upright rounded to vase shape

Season of Bloom: Spring

Size: Up to 20 feet tall and 16 feet wide

Zones: 4-8

Buy It: Royal Raindrops Crabapple ($400, itrees.com)

Snowdrift

It's safe to assume that with a name like 'Snowdrift', this crabapple variety produces pure white blossoms in spring. The fragrant blooms are followed by orange-red fruits that hang on the tree well into fall. The tree has glossy green leaves in summer and reliably provides muted yellow fall color. Occasional fire blight and scab can affect it, though.

Form: Rounded to upright spreading

Season of Bloom: Spring

Size: Up to 20 feet tall and wide

Zones: 4-8

Buy It: Snowdrift Crabapple ($20, Arbor Day Foundation)

Sugar Tyme

A prolific bearer, Sugar Tyme ('Sutyzam') crabapple has pink buds that open to pure white fragrant blossoms. The showy flowers are followed by masses of small, glossy, red fruits that mature in autumn and hang on the tree into winter. Its dark green leaves develop muted fall colors of mottled green, yellow, and orange. It's no wonder this disease-resistant tree looks spectacular all year long.

Form: Oval

Zones: 4-8

Season of Bloom: Spring

Size: Up to 18 feet tall and 15 feet wide

Zones: 4-8

Buy It: Sugar Tyme Crabapple Tree ($140 Fast Growing Trees)