How to Plant a Crabapple Tree

When planting a crabapple tree, you should choose a location where sunlight is abundant, and the soil is moist, yet free of stagnant water. While crabapple trees are fairly hardy, care must be taken during the planting process to ensure prolific blossom production during the early spring, and fruit production throughout the summer and fall.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Shovel
• Sphagnum peat moss

1. Choose the right location to plant your crabapple tree. Pick an area where there is plenty of exposure to the sun, and where the crabapple tree will not be forced to compete with other trees. Since crabapple trees can be fairly small (15 to 30 feet tall), it is easy for larger trees to overcome and shade them, which will result in a significant reduction of blossoms.

2. Dig a hole that is the exact depth of the root ball or container of the young crabapple tree, and anywhere from 2 to 3 times the width, depending upon soil conditions. If you plant your crabapple tree in an area where the soil is hard, compacted or muddy, you may need to create a wider hole to facilitate future root growth.

3. Place the crabapple tree in the hole, making sure that the top of the root ball or container soil does not drop down below the level of the ground. If the root ball is covered in a burlap sack, you can loosen it and allow it to remain in the ground, since it is biodegradable and will eventually decompose.

4. Pack the soil carefully into the hole, taking care not to create any air pockets. You may want to mix the soil with a few handfuls of sphagnum peat moss, especially if the ground is particularly moist or muddy. Ensure that the level of the soil does not rise above the former level of the rootball or container.

5. Use the excess dirt to create a ridge or dam around the tree after you plant it. This will help to retain water and nutrients as the root system takes hold in the ground.

6. Water your new tree thoroughly after you plant it. Generally, this will be daily for the first few weeks, and possibly even more frequently as the weather turns hot or dry, especially during the first three seasons after the transplant.

Tips & Warnings

• Crabapple trees are often planted in apple orchards, since these trees are very effective when it comes to cross-pollination. In some cases, branches of crabapple trees are actually grafted onto the branches of apple trees for this purpose.