Selecting Crabapples for the Desert

Q. I am hoping to plant two semi -Dwarf Crabapple trees on
the west side of my house. Could you please tell me which cultivars will do
well here? I am looking for crabapples that are good for raw eating, jelly, and
apple butter. I also need to know which are good for cross pollinating each
other.  Also, does our local nursery stock these in the fall and spring
for planting, or will I need to order them off line?

A. I don’t like the idea of putting a crab apple in a Western exposure in our hot desert environment. You run a very big risk of sunburn on the limbs and borer infestations due to the sunburn.

I have never done any trials with crabapple here so
Information is limited. I did contact Tom Spellman at Dave Wilson Nursery in
California and he confirmed that Dolgo has done well under desert conditions
and the fruit has performed well under our conditions. It is an old variety
with good fruit and is self-fruitful so you don’t need a pollinator. 

dolgo crabapple from Dave Wilson nursery

Dolgo crabapple is a
good pollinator for crabs that need pollinators. I would start with this one.
There are some crabs at Gilcrease but I don’t think they know the variety. It
is very possible that some or all are Dolgo. Try to choose varieties that have
fruit which mature during cooler times of the year for best flavor.