Crab Apple, John Downie (Malus sylvestris 'John Downie')

John Downie Crab Apple (Malus sylvestris John Downie)

Considered by many to be the best fruiting crab, John Downie is a small deciduous native tree that produces clusters of white/pink flowers in April and May (it is an excellent pollinator for most cooking and eating apples), followed by edible bright red (sometimes with just a touch of orange) crab apples suitable for jam/jelly making. For a crab, John Downie apples are rather large (everything is relative) and somewhat elongated. The foliage turns shades of red and gold in autumn. John Downie is upright when young, widening at the base as it ages. Although it grows quite quickly, John Downie never becomes a large tree and its flowers, fruit, autumn foliage and reasonable size combine to make it an excellent specimen or ornamental tree for the smaller garden. Like most crab apples, John Downie grows to between 6 and 8m and tolerates most reasonably drained soils. It flowers and fruits best in a sunny position.