Overview

Embark on a rewarding gardening journey with the Pink Lady Apple Tree, a beloved variety known for its exceptional fruit quality and ornamental appeal. This offering is for a bare root apple tree, typically measuring 2-3 ft tall, providing a fantastic head start for establishing a productive fruit tree in your landscape. The ‘Cripps Pink’ cultivar, commonly known as Pink Lady, is celebrated for its distinctive sweet-tart flavor, firm texture, and excellent storage capabilities, making it a favorite for fresh eating, baking, and canning. Beyond its culinary delights, this tree offers year-round beauty, from delicate spring blossoms to lush summer foliage and vibrant autumn colors. Grafted for earlier fruit production, this Malus domestica ‘Cripps Pink’ is designed to perform beautifully in diverse climates, offering a robust and easy-to-grow option for both novice and experienced gardeners. Discover the joy of growing apple trees right in your own backyard.

Key Benefits

The Pink Lady Apple Tree brings a multitude of benefits to any garden, combining aesthetic charm with bountiful harvests. Its robust nature and delicious fruit make it a standout choice for home orchards.

• Exceptional Fruit Quality: Enjoy crisp, sweet-tart apples that ripen late in the season (November-December), perfect for eating fresh, baking holiday pies, or making preserves. They store well for up to 6 weeks, extending your harvest enjoyment.
• Year-Round Beauty: Experience creamy white to pale pink blossoms in spring, rich emerald green foliage in summer, and stunning orange, maroon, and yellow hues in autumn before the red apples appear. This provides continuous visual interest in your garden.
• Adaptable & Resilient: This variety is remarkably cold hardy and heat resistant, thriving in a wide range of climates from USDA Zones 5-9. It’s a versatile choice for many regions, making growing apple trees accessible.
• Early Fruit Production: As a grafted tree, your Pink Lady Apple Tree can begin bearing fruit as early as its first year, providing a quicker return on your gardening efforts.
• Easy to Grow: Known for its ease of cultivation, this tree is suitable for gardeners of all skill levels. With proper care, even those without a ‘green thumb’ can achieve successful results with this cold hardy apple tree.
• Pollinator Friendly: While not self-fertile, planting this tree encourages local bee activity. By pairing it with suitable pollinators like Gala or Fuji, you’ll ensure a robust fruit set.

Plant Care & Growing Tips

To ensure your Pink Lady Apple Tree thrives and produces abundant fruit, understanding its specific care requirements is essential. This bare root apple tree needs a good start to establish strong roots and healthy growth. Plant in a location that receives full sun, meaning at least 6-8 hours of direct sunlight per day. Adequate sunlight is crucial for fruit development and overall tree health. Ensure the soil is well-draining, loamy, and rich in organic matter. Apple trees prefer a pH between 6.0 and 7.0. Amend heavy clay soils with compost or peat moss to improve drainage and aeration. When planting your Malus domestica ‘Cripps Pink’, dig a hole wide enough to accommodate the roots without bending, and deep enough so the graft union is 2-4 inches above the soil line.

Water deeply and regularly, especially during the first few growing seasons and during dry spells. Consistent moisture is vital for young trees. Once established, apple trees are somewhat drought-tolerant but will benefit from supplemental watering during prolonged dry periods. Fertilize in early spring with a balanced fruit tree fertilizer, following package instructions. Avoid over-fertilizing, which can promote excessive vegetative growth at the expense of fruit production. Pruning is important for shape, air circulation, and fruit production. Prune your Pink Lady Apple Tree in late winter to remove dead, diseased, or crossing branches and to encourage an open canopy. Remember that growing apple trees requires patience and attention to detail, but the rewards are well worth the effort. This cold hardy apple tree will reward you with delicious fruit for years to come.

Size & Details

This offering is for a Pink Lady Apple Tree provided as a bare root apple tree, typically standing 2-3 ft tall at the time of shipment. Bare root trees are dormant plants shipped without soil around their roots, making them an economical and efficient way to plant. Upon maturity, this tree can reach a height of 15-20 ft and a width of 8-10 ft, creating a substantial presence in your garden or orchard. It exhibits a moderate growth rate, establishing itself steadily over time. The harvest time for its delicious fruit is typically in November to December, providing a late-season treat. Remarkably, you can expect this grafted tree to bear fruit as early as its first year after planting, though significant yields usually occur in subsequent years. The botanical name for this variety is Malus domestica ‘Cripps Pink’. It thrives best when planted outdoors in USDA Hardiness Zones 5-9. Please note that Pink Lady Apple Trees are not self-fertile and require a pollinator variety nearby, such as Gala, Fuji, Granny Smith, or Honeycrisp, often alongside a fruiting crabapple, to ensure successful fruit set.

Frequently Asked Questions

• Q: How big will my Pink Lady Apple Tree get? A: A mature Pink Lady Apple Tree typically reaches a height of 15-20 feet and a width of 8-10 feet. Its size can be managed with proper pruning.
• Q: When can I expect fruit from my bare root apple tree? A: Being a grafted tree, your bare root apple tree can potentially bear fruit in its first year, though more significant harvests are common in subsequent years as the tree matures.
• Q: Is this an indoor or outdoor plant? A: The Pink Lady Apple Tree is an outdoor fruit tree, best suited for planting in a garden or orchard setting where it can receive ample sunlight and space to grow.
• Q: How much sunlight does a Pink Lady Apple Tree need? A: This tree requires full sun, which means at least 6-8 hours of direct sunlight daily, for optimal growth and fruit production.
• Q: Is this tree easy to care for, especially for beginners? A: Yes, the Malus domestica ‘Cripps Pink’ is considered relatively easy to grow and is a good choice for beginners interested in growing apple trees, especially given its resilience to heat and cold.
• Q: What condition will the tree arrive in? A: The tree will arrive as a bare root apple tree, meaning it will be dormant with its roots exposed and packed for protection during transit, ready for immediate planting.
• Q: When is the best time to plant a bare root Pink Lady Apple Tree? A: The optimal time for planting bare root apple trees is in late winter or early spring, once the danger of hard frost has passed, allowing the tree to establish before the summer heat.
• Q: Will this cold hardy apple tree survive winter in my zone? A: This cold hardy apple tree is suitable for USDA Zones 5-9, meaning it can withstand winter temperatures in these regions. Always check your specific zone to ensure compatibility.
• Q: Does the Pink Lady Apple Tree need a pollinator? A: Yes, Pink Lady Apple Trees are not self-fertile. You will need to plant another compatible apple variety nearby, such as Gala or Fuji, to ensure successful pollination and fruit set.
• Q: Can I use the apples for baking? A: Absolutely! The crisp, sweet-tart flavor of Pink Lady apples makes them an excellent choice for baking, especially for pies, tarts, and other fall and winter holiday treats.