- Grow your own apple tree from the core
- Small apple varieties for the balcony
- An apple tree also needs care on the balcony
- tips and tricks
Not every fruit lover has a large garden in which to grow an apple tree themselves. If you choose the right tree shape and apple variety, sweet and juicy apples can also be harvested on your own balcony.
Grow your own apple tree from the core
If you can be patient for a few years, growing an apple tree from a core is an experiment that can also be a lot of fun on your own balcony. However, apple trees grown from seeds often revert to a particularly large wild form, which makes them not ideal for the balcony. Nevertheless, a kind of bonsai can also be grown from these trees if regular and targeted pruning is provided.
Small apple varieties for the balcony
Nowadays there are numerous apple varieties in specialist shops that are particularly suitable for growing in pots on the balcony due to their smaller growth habit. These include in particular the columnar apples, which do not form a wide crown at all and whose fruits hang on a narrow, towering trunk. Choose the columnar apples according to your individual taste from varieties such as:
- rondo
- sonata
- bolero
- Elstar
An apple tree also needs care on the balcony
When growing apples on your own balcony, you should consider that a successful harvest is only possible with good care. The apple tree should also get enough sunlight on the balcony in order to be able to generate energy for the development of the fruit. The bottom of the pot should have a drainage layer and drainage slits to prevent waterlogging. Do not water the tree every day, even in summer, as this can damage it. In winter, when there are particularly deep night frosts, it may be necessary to protect an apple tree in a pot from the cold so that the roots do not freeze.
tips and tricks
The pollen from another apple tree is always needed to pollinate the apple blossoms. If there are no other apple trees in your area, you should have at least two apple trees in pots on the balcony. They can be mutually pollinated by bees or other flying insects such as bumblebees and bear fruit.