Malus "Royalty"

• Type: Ornamental crabapple
• Latin name: Malus
• Cultivar: Royalty
• Mature height: 4–5 m
• Leaves: dark purple
• Pot: 7 L
• Light: sunny
• Winter hardiness: USDA 4–8

Planting Plant in spring (late April – May) or autumn (September) in a sunny spot with fertile, well-drained soil; wet spots with standing water are unsuitable. Dig a hole twice as wide as the pot, mix the excavated soil with compost, set the plant at the same depth it grew in the pot and water generously. Space plants 4–5 m apart.

Watering Water a young plant regularly for the first two years and more often in dry spells; an established plant needs watering only in long dry periods. Mulch the soil with bark or wood chips.

Pruning Prune in late winter to early spring before bud break: build the crown from 4–5 main branches, remove dead, crossing and inward-growing shoots and keep the crown open for light and air. Never remove more than a quarter of the crown a year. Seal larger cuts with pruning paint.

Feeding and winter care Feed in spring with compost or an organic fertiliser and, if needed, with a complex fertiliser in spring – early summer; give no nitrogen in autumn. Cultivars are hardy in Estonian conditions; protect the trunk of young trees with whitewash or spruce boughs against hares and frost cracks, and clear fallen leaves to reduce scab.