WILD FOODIES' HOME PAGE
PLANT PROFILE LIST

  

 

NAME: Apple

SPECIES / FAMILY:  Malus Sieversii / Rosaceae

OTHER COMMON NAME(S):  wild apple, crabapple

CONDITIONS: sun-partial shade
 

PARTS:

EDIBLE cid:image001.jpg@01D3EC3E.A305A520

TASTE

RAW/COOK

SEASON

All

  

 

 

 

Shoots

 

 

 

 

Leaves

        

Stalk/Stem

 

 

 

 

Buds

        

Flowers

 

 

 

 

Fruits

cid:image001.jpg@01D3EC3E.A305A520

sweet-tart

 

Sep-Oct

Pods

  

 

    

Seeds

 

 

 

 

Nuts

 

 

 

 

Roots

 

 

 

 

Bark

 

 

 

 

 

PORTION: medium

 

COMMENT: Wild apples and crabapples may not always be the exact same thing, as some wild apple trees may be escaped cultivars. The taste of apples varies from sweet to tart, although crabapples are known to be too bitter to eat raw, but very edible when cooked. If you cook apples long enough, you can make fruit leather from it. // The domestic apple as we know it has been around some 6,000 years and came from Kazakhstan...The fascinating aspect of apples is that every apple seed is totally different than the parent tree. Something like snow flakes no two apple seeds are genetically alike thus what kind of tree each will produce is a mystery.(2) So, it appears that the only way to make cultivated apples identical, is to clone them, which also interferes with evolution and might consequently, sabotage their resilience to pests, illness, etc.. https://dnrtreelink.wordpress.com/2015/01/09/genetic-diversity-vs-cloned-trees-and-disease-resistance

 

The History of the Apple-Tree by Henry David Thoreau > https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1862/11/wild-apples/411517

 

CAUTION: Seeds. All members of this genus contain the toxin hydrogen cyanide in their seeds and possibly also in their leaves, but not in their fruits. Hydrogen cyanide is the substance that gives almonds their characteristic taste but it should only be consumed in very small quantities. Apple seeds do not normally contain very high quantities of hydrogen cyanide but, even so, should not be consumed in very large quantities. In small quantities, hydrogen cyanide has been shown to stimulate respiration and improve digestion, it is also claimed to be of benefit in the treatment of cancer. In excess, however, it can cause respiratory failure and even death.(1)

 

NUTRITION/MEDICINAL: https://www.webmd.com/vitamins/ai/ingredientmono-298/apple  / https://draxe.com/apple-nutrition

 

LOOK-A-LIKES or RELATED:  https://minnetonkaorchards.com/siberian-crabapple The Siberian Crabapple have been planted in the U.S., but can't be considered "wild" as it has not spread (naturalized) throughout the country.

 

POISONOUS LOOK-A-LIKES: 

 

OTHER USES: Used a root stock for cultivated apples. Also used to smoke meat.

 

SOURCE LINKS (may include nutritional and medicinal info, plus other uses):

  1. https://pfaf.org/User/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Malus+sieversii
  2. http://www.eattheweeds.com/apples-wild-crabapples
  3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malus (genus)
  4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malus_sieversii (species)
  5. https://preparednessmama.com/crab-apple-recipes
  6. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/5-things-to-do-with-crabapples-1.1859353
  7. https://www.chelseagreen.com/2019/surprisingly-sweet-crab-apples
  8. https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/blog/2018/10/crab-apple-recipes
  9. https://www.organicauthority.com/live-grow/how-to-use-crab-apples-so-they-dont-make-you-crabby
  10. https://www.bates.edu/canopy/species/donald-wyman-crab-apple
  11. https://www.healthygreensavvy.com/uses-for-crab-apples
  12. Philly's POP https://www.phillyorchards.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Crabapple-Plant-Info-Sheet.pdf