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This summer and autumn have been exceptionally suitable for crab apples with lots of sunshine to promote good growth and flowering buds which opened in a great show last May.
Wild crab apples grow on ditches and at the edge of woodlands in many parts of the country. When it flowers in May, just after the white blossom of the wild cherry, its pale pink flowers are very noticeable.
The trees are generally smaller than the wild cherry, more the size of a large hawthorn bush, which flowers at around the same time.
Later the flowers set to give small, hard round red and yellow fruits, which are sometimes collected to make crab apple jelly.
While the wild crab apple is pretty, both in flower and in fruit, it is surpassed by some of its foreign relatives.
Given that the wild crab apple does so well, there is of course a good likelihood that relatives of the crab apple would be worth considering for the garden, and they are.
They are not much removed from the wild species and therefore retain a lot of their natural character, making them ideal for country gardens.
One of the best kinds for autumn fruits is ‘Golden Hornet’, which makes a small tree with white flowers followed by masses of rich yellow fruits.
These are quite small but carried in large numbers on the branches and they remain after the leaves have fallen, making a very attractive show at this time of year.
This variety is widely available. ‘Butterball’ is a superb yellow-fruited variety. The fruits are larger, round and a lovely deep yellow colour. They are carried in large numbers when the tree is grown in good soil, not too rich, and they hang on after the leaves have fallen.
The best-known fruiting crab apple, ‘John Downie’, is a variety that reliably produces fruits of a very distinctive tapering shape. These fruits are very prettily coloured in red and yellow, like perfect miniature apples.
They can be eaten but they are bitter to taste, and are good for wine making and jelly. The tree is small-growing and carries a nice show of white flowers in early summer.
The beautiful Malus hupehensis is a species that makes a fairly big tree to about 10 metres in good conditions. It carries a mass of white flowers against pale green leaves, a show that only cherries can match and later it carries smallish red and yellow fruits. Not easy to find but worth the search.
Two fine red-fruited varieties are ‘Red Sentinel’ and ‘Gorgeous’. Both of them have the attractive feature of holding the fruits after the leaves have fallen.
The bare branches decorated with red fruits add a touch of colour to the late autumn garden and last well into winter – it is a seasonal touch too. The fruits of ‘Red Sentinel’ are of a brighter red colour but slightly smaller than the dark crimson fruits of ‘Gorgeous’.
The variety ‘Cowichan’ is another beauty, with dark red fruits about the same size as ‘Gorgeous’ but slightly more pointed. Similar to ‘Gorgeous’, ‘Winter Gold’ has persistent yellow fruits. While these fruiting varieties are available, they are not as easily found as they should be.
Choose the planting location carefully for the fruiting crab apples. The first point to bear in mind is their eventual size.
Although they are relatively small as trees go, they still need at least five metres diameter for spread. These trees do not look well when cramped by other trees or large shrubs and shade deprives them of light so that they do not flower and fruit as well as they should.
Like all apple trees, the fruiting crab apples like good, deep soil, fertile but not overly rich, well drained but not too dry in summer.
The right conditions are very important for good fruiting – any tree struggling in unsuitable conditions will not carry much fruit, if any.
Choose a position that is not open to strong winds, but has some air movement to dry the leaves after rain and reduce the severity of attacks by apple scab.
For best ornamental effect, choose a spot that is not too far from the house, or at the entrance to the garden, where the tree can be seen with its fruit.
If a fruiting crab is planted in a border, give a prime spot to show its wares, especially where the evening sun will strike the fruits making their colours glow.
Chrysanthemums have made a big comeback in garden centres where new more compact varieties are available. These are naturally short bushy plants, round in shape with masses of small flowers covering the entire surface of the plant.
These are very showy and can be used outdoors for temporary display. Mostly they are not hardy and will not survive more than one winter, but like any pot-grown chrysanthemums some of them prove hardy enough to survive in gardens.
Some of the pot-mums (classic house plant often bought as a present) grow on quite well in the garden, producing much taller plants in subsequent years, usually treated with dwarfing agents to make neat bushy plants.
But the following year they revert to their normal height of up to one metre and these plants sometimes topple over, which is not so attractive.
Fruit, vegetables and herbs
This is the ideal time for planting new fruit trees and bushes and the soil has been in ideal condition. Dig over vegetable ground, removing old crops. Store vegetables that can be over-wintered in a pit or shed.
Lawn
Grass growth ran very late this year but moss growth is also very active. Lawn mosskiller can still be used. Otherwise, the moss will grow strongly until summer and will build up. Trim edges of a lawn, even if it was not mowed.
Trees, shrubs and roses
Planting of bare-root deciduous trees, hedging and shrubs can continue during dry weather. Don’t plant into very wet ground or into planting holes that fill with water, because the wet conditions cause the roots to rot.
Flowers
Frost arrived later than usual and dahlias, begonias and gladiolus growing in gardens in frosty localities should be lifted to prevent damage, or covered with soil in milder areas. Spring bulbs should be in the ground by now.
Greenhouse and house plants
Remove all debris and dead plants and ventilate occasionally. Water very little to reduce the risk of grey mould disease. Set up a greenhouse frost protection heater to protect tender plants, such as geraniums or fuchsias.
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