Applecrabs are the hybrid between an apple and crabapple. This combination often makes a hardier cross and is typically well suited for colder climates, and the fruit size usually is around 2 inches. When the best of both worlds come together, you get a larger fruit than a crabapple yet produces as heavily as a crabapple. The taste can be every bit as good or even better than most modern apples sold in today’s commercial world. These combinations with good disease resistance make for what most people would consider the best apples to plant for wildlife, especially the Whitetail deer. Most would look at an apple crab and think, well, that’s an apple, and while they very well might be right to an extent, the tree’s ability to produce such an abundant crop of fruit is what sets it apart above planting a regular apple tree for deer.
These trees are unique cultivars. Trees are specially selected for their characteristics and then propagated from new vegetative growth taken from the original tree (essentially giving you a clone of the original tree). In this case, we select characteristics that produce traits that we find most beneficial for feeding and attracting the Whitetail deer.
We all want characteristics such as consistent and abundant fruit production, drop lengths, and specific drop times. Durations that correspond with our habitat management needs, sweet and palatable fruit, and a tree with enough built-in disease and insect resistance regularly produce large fruit crops without the chemical spraying required for most standard apple trees.
Blue Hill Wildlife Nursery strives to provide you, the best tree possible.
