Tree of the month: Crab apple
October 2024 – Crab apple (Malus sylvestris)
Each month we’re going to bring you a profile of one of the UK native tree species being planted in the Silk Wood Community Planting Project. For October, it’s the Crab Apple (Malus sylvestris).
It’s apple season, and we can’t let that go without talking about our native apple tree. Crab apples are the wild ancestors of commercial apples, which the scientific name alludes to: Malus (apple tree) and sylvestris (living in the forest).
Often gnarled, spiny and twisted (which is where they may get the ‘crab’ name), their flowers are fantastic for pollinators, and at this time of year, the apples feed a huge variety of wildlife. You can use the fruit to make crab apple jelly, or roast with meat, but maybe don’t eat any straight from the tree as they’re incredibly tart.
Crab apple trees have been associated with love for centuries - the Celts burned the wood during fertility rites, Shakespeare referenced the tree in some of his more romantic plays, and that classic image of Christmas romance, mistletoe (Viscum album), is commonly found to parasitise crab apple.
