It saves time until the first harvest if apple trees that have already been grafted are used when planting or redesigning a garden. With a few years of patience, beautiful plants can also be grown from seeds.

Get suitable seeds for growing an apple tree

Seeds for growing an apple tree seedling are usually not available in garden centers or by mail order. On the one hand, this is due to the fact that only a few hobby gardeners have the patience to experiment with sowing apple trees. On the other hand, the cores of the apple tree can usually be used without problems as they are found in the core of an apple.

Outsmart the natural germ barrier of the apple core

Apple seeds are provided with natural germ inhibitors in the year they ripen on the tree, which only decompose over the winter. In nature, this ensures that seeds only sprout in the new vegetation period and do not freeze in late autumn. If you want to grow an apple tree from a core yourself, you have to bypass this natural barrier to germs on the collected cores. To do this, place the cleaned apple cores in a container between damp sheets of kitchen paper to stratify them in the refrigerator for at least two weeks. You can then plant the seeds, which are usually already slightly sprout, in a pot with loose soil.

Keep your eyes open when selecting the core

In principle, the seeds from the cores of apples bought in the supermarket can also be used for cultivation in the garden. Note, however, that many apple varieties sold in stores may not really be adapted to the climatic and soil conditions in your area. It can be better to use the cores of proven apple trees in the gardens of neighbors or relatives for offspring. Well-known and proven apple varieties in Central Europe are for example:

  • Jonagold
  • Elstar
  • Alcmene
  • Berlepsch
  • boskoop
  • gold parmesan

tips and tricks

You should be aware that the core of an apple tree does not usually produce an identical offspring of that tree. Since apple trees are self-sterile, half of the cores always contain the genetic material of a nearby apple tree.

Category:

Trees