CHRISTMAS decorations!

The crab apple tree’s bauble-like fruits not only look impressive, they taste great in festive jams

EVER since an engraving of Queen Victoria’s Christmas tree was published in 1848, it’s been a festive tradition for us to festoon an evergreen tree with baubles. Yet outside there’s a tree that doesn’t need a helping hand to impress at this time of year. They’re crab apple trees – deciduous gems that in winter are naturally decorated with showy fruit in many colours, shapes and sizes.

Loved by hungry birds during cold snaps, the glistening fruit first appears in autumn while trees are still in leaf. The living ornaments then become the centre of attention when trees drop their leaves later in the season. In many cases, the fruit persists for months on end, hanging down from branches well into winter.

Crab apples are native to North America, Asia and Europe, with one species (Malus sylvestris) indigenous to our shores. Scientists used to think culinary apples (Malus domestica) descended from crab apples, but DNA tests have shown they’re the offspring of Malus sieversii, a tree with large fruit found in Central Asia.

Like many of our native plants, crab apples are steeped in myths and legends. Druids considered them sacred and made wands from their wood, and branches were burnt by Celts during fertility rites. Some country folk believed that spotting a crab apple tree in flower during autumn was a portent of impending doom.

During the 18th and 19th Centuries, wild species from around the world arrived in this country and provided plant breeders with the genetic material to create scores of varieties.

Trees vary from tall to dwarf, and from upright to weeping, and carry fruit measuring half an inch to three inches across, in shades of yellow, orange, red and purple.

Apart from looking good, crab apples are an edible treat high in Vitamin C. They’re too sour to eat raw but once tempered with sugar, the fruit can be turned into jams, jellies and chutneys. These preserves tend to set easily due to the high pectin content of the fruit, and they have a distinctive, tangy flavour.

Their fruit may be the main draw, but this family of smallto-medium-sized trees are not one season wonders.

Their craggy outline adds structural interest in winter, while white, pink, red or purplish flowers smother branches in spring.

Some varieties have leaves that turn fiery shades before falling in autumn.

Container-grown crab apple trees are available all year round, while bare-root ones are on sale during their dormant period, usually November to March. Planting container-grown specimens is easy. Dig a round hole that’s about twice the diameter of the container and the same depth. Spike the sides and bottom with a garden fork to allow roots to penetrate easily. Place the tree in the centre and fill the gaps with soil, firming down as you go to remove air pockets.

Plant bare-root trees with the ‘root flare’ (the part where the upper roots join the trunk) level with the surface. Dig a hole no deeper than the roots but twice the diameter of the root system. Hold the tree upright in the hole and gradually return the soil, firming in place with your heel.

Give it a good soaking and then spread a 3in-deep layer of homemade compost, leafmould or composted bark over the ground to lock in moisture and prevent weeds from growing.

But remember to leave a 4in gap around stems as the material can soften bark, making trees vulnerable to diseases.