Diseases of Ornamental Crabapple Trees

摘要

Spring blooming crabapple (Malm species) is the most popular flowering tree species in residential and urban landscapes. Crabapple (hardy in zones 3-5) are easy to grow and tolerant to a wide range of soil conditions. However, they grow best in slight ly acidic soil (pH 5-6,5) and in sunny locations. The tree comes in a variety of forms - weeping, erect, horizontal or rounded. They can have a spectacular display of white, pink or red flowers in single, semi-double or double flowered forms. Unlike othe r ornamental trees of Rosaceae (cherries, plums, pears etc.), crabapple bear small fruits (1/4 inch to 2 inches in diameter) of various colors - red, orange or gold -that attract birds into the landscape Attractive foliage comes in a variety of colors: r ed, maroon, purple, burgundy, bronze or green. Some cultivars are extremely susceptible to foliar diseases, such as scab, cedar-apple rust, and cedar-hawthorn rust. Fire blight is an occasional problem, too There is a wide selection of disease-resistant crabapples suitable for any landscape.