Spring / Summer 2025Pre-order now for delivery September onwards.
Tel. 01759 392007

Laura crab apple trees

Malus
Check pollinators >
Laura has received the RHS Award of Garden Merit
  • Self-fertility: Self-fertile
  • Blossom colour: Crimson
  • Awards: RHS AGM (current) 2012

Laura is one of the best of the columnar crab-apple trees, with a striking upright form, superb dusky pink blossom, dark red fruits - and also easy to grow.

Laura has a compact upright columnar or "fastigiate" habit. It is also naturally dwarfing and slow-growing, so it makes a good choice if you are looking for a an interesting crab-apple that will not take up much space in the garden.

The young leaves are bronze when they emerge, turning to a light bronze-green over the summer.

The blossom appears at about the same time as the leaves. It is very attractive, featuring dark pink flowers with lighter centres. The blossom stays on the tree for several weeks, noticeably longer than for regular apple trees.

The maroon-coloured fruits are large and persistent. Their size makes Laura an excellent choice for crab-apple jelly - and the red flesh lends a pretty red tint. Although it always remains a small tree, once established you should achieve a yield of 2kg of crab apples or more in good conditions, which will produce about 800ml after cooking, suitable for further processing into deep red jelly or sauce.

Laura crab apple trees for sale

Pot-grown

All our pot-grown trees are grown for us to our specification by the Frank P Matthews nursery.

All pot-grown trees are suitable for planting out in the garden, some are suitable for growing in containers.

  • PG12-year 12L pot-grown tree Semi-vigorous rootstock£61.50
    Grown for us by Frank P Matthews nursery
    Small tree (1.5m-2.5m after 10 years)

Bare-root

  • BR11-year bare-root treeSemi-vigorous rootstock£36.75
    Small tree (1.5m-2.5m after 10 years)
    (80cm)
    Out of stock
    Please try next season
  • BR22-year bare-root treeMM106 rootstock£47.50
    Medium tree (2m-3m after 10 years)
    Out of stock
    Please try next season

Need help? Ask our fruit tree experts

Call us on 01759 392007 or fill in our contact form.

Tree specification

Photos of trees as supplied | Tree sizes and forms

Pre-ordering

Pre-order now for delivery in September 2025

Delivery charges

Delivery for a single tree starts at £9.95, it is calculated based on your postcode.

Growing and Training

Laura is a naturally dwarf slow-growing crab apple variety and the mature height will usually be around 2m-3m - although it will take 8-10 years to reach that height.

It is easy to grow, and has good disease resistance.

It has a strongly columnar form. Side shoots may develop, but they grow vertically close to the main stem.

If planting several together you can achieve a nice effect by spacing them about 1.5m - 2m apart.

We recommend that you do not prune this variety.

Typical yield in good conditions from a mature tree will be around 2-3kg of crab apples.

History

Laura was developed in the late 20th centry by UK fruit tree enthusiast Hugh Ermen, who also raised a number of successful garden apple varieties such as Scrumptious.


Laura characteristics

Growing

  • Gardening skillBeginner
  • Self-fertilitySelf-fertile
  • Flowering group2
  • Pollinating othersGood
  • Climate suitabilityTemperate climatesMild damp climatesWarm climates

Using

  • Picking seasonLate
  • CroppingGood
  • Food usesCulinary

Problems

  • Disease resistanceAverage

Identification

  • Country of originUnited Kingdom
  • Period of origin1950 - 1999
  • Flowering monthMay
  • Blossom colourCrimson
  • AwardsRHS AGM (current)

British-grown trees Trees grown in the UK.

Unlike many garden centres and online retailers, the vast majority of our fruit trees are grown in the UK. Find out more.

In addition, all our trees are certified under the Plant Healthy scheme, supervised by the Plant Health Alliance. Other stakeholders include Defra and the RHS. The scheme aims to improve UK biosecurity by setting standards for all growers and retailers involved in selling plants in the UK. Find out more

Guaranteed fruit trees

When you buy your fruit tree from Orange Pippin Fruit Trees we guarantee it for the first season in your garden whilst it gets established. If it doesn't grow successfully, we'll either replace it the following season or offer a refund - subject to some conditions. Find out more.

More about crab apple trees

We have a huge range of crab-apple trees, with blossom colours from white to dark crimson, and fruitlet colours from red to orange to yellow, and lots of different sizes and forms.

It is well-known that many crab-apples (especially the ones with white blossom and green leaves) are excellent pollinators for mainstream apple varieties. This is because they produce huge quantities of pollen, usually over a long period, and with good compatiblity. Evereste, Golden Gem, Golden Hornet, John Downie and Red Sentinel are popular for this purpose.

While crab-apples are primarily used for their ornamental value, many are also useful for crab-apple jelly, and providing natural pectin for cooking with.  Have a look at Laura, Jelly King, Pink Glow, and Harry Baker.


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