Family
Rosaceae
Botanical Name
Malus domestica 'Pinkabelle'
Plant Common Name
Apple, Dwarf Apple, Eating Apple, Pinkabelle Apple
General Description
Discovered in 1999 in Donnybrook, Western Australia, this sport of 'Cripps Pink' bears tasty, beautiful apples similar to those of its parent, but on dwarf plants. Like 'Cripps Pink', it tolerates hot summers and mild winters.
Ripening late in the season and holding well in storage, the medium-sized apples are rosy pink with yellow undertones. Their flesh is crisp, juicy, and slightly tarter than that of 'Golden Delcious'. The apples ripen in mid-fall on trees that grow only to head height. Self-fertile, this cultivar will bear most heavily if planted near another apple that blooms midseason (such as 'Golden Delicious'). Although deciduous, this cultivar holds its leaves well into winter in mild climates. It is one of the best apples for warm districts such as southern California. Requiring more than 200 days to ripen its fruits, it is not suited to gardens with short growing seasons. It makes a great container plant for small or cold-climate gardens.
There is nothing more satisfying than growing your own apple trees. The domestic apple is most commonly a medium-sized tree with a rounded to oval canopy. It originates from southeastern Europe, Siberia, and southwestern Asia and has been in cultivation for thousands of years. In spring, these trees offer sweet, fragrant flowers of light pink, white or rose, and in fall reward us with crisp, juicy apples.
These fruits have a wide variety of colors, textures and flavors and may be eaten out-of-hand, pressed for cider, frozen, canned or baked in a variety of ways. There are thousands of cultivars available, including many interesting heirlooms as well as fresh new varieties. Different selections vary in height and may bear fruit in late summer or fall.
While the domestic apple prefers full sun and well-drained soil, it will tolerate light shade and bouts of drought. Apples are susceptible to many pests and diseases, but resistant varieties are available.
Most apples are grafted onto rootstock that provides a wide range of benefits such as vigor, pest and disease resistance and dwarf stature, depending on the stock. This cultivar is a genetic dwarf that does not require dwarfing rootstock to remain small.
