Hi,
I was at a local nursery yesterday and came across this crabapple cultivar. The fruit was just about ripe and looked like mini red delicous but with reddish flesh. I had to bite into one and it was pretty good. I think I may swing by and pick it up this morning.
Anyone have any experience growing this variety?
Thanks,
-Jeremiah
I planted a few last year. I have started to collect every red fleshed apple I can find as well as other oddball varieties. I can’t say much about firecracker yet, just hat it seems to be a lower vigour variete…
Hi 39th. I thought of collecting red apples too. After reading quite a lot about them, many of them are short in the taste category. They are either, very dry, sour, or bland. I then decided to buy Arborose, and Scarlett Surprise only. I had serious deer damage last year so my two red apples were eaten back down to two feet tall. They are now protected and should bloom next spring. They have been in the ground for three years. My ‘hot’ pink apple Mott Pink, is one of the most delicious apples I’ve ever eaten.
Grafted a number of red-fleshed apples here years ago, in defiance of Ed Fackler, who told me they would be crap. He was right… they’re just not good here in my HOT zone 6 setting. YMMV
Almata is decent for fresh eating.
Winter Red Flesh, Giant Russian, Geneva…only good for jelly here, though GR & Geneva are pretty big.
I see them as a oddity that might be useful as ingredent in cider to add color. If there was one that tasted great out of hand it would be a best seller.
I went back this weekend and someone had snagged it 
Should have grabbed it while I had the chance!
Can anyone recommend a good crabapple tree with relatively large fruit that we can grow in Maryland? I was trying to find a WICKSON or DOLGO CRABAPPLE… but can’t find a garden center with this variety
Whitney and Chestnut would be worth trying to find.
Any idea where I can can find a POTTED CHESTNUT CRABAPPLE in Maryland? I found a PrairieFire crab (AAGardenCenter), Whitney (MeadowsGardenCenter) and Firecracker (HomesteadGardens) … but not CHESTNUT. (I planted a Whitney last year, but want a 2nd type).
No idea about Maryland nurseries, sorry
Any updates you can add to this subject?
Seems most are smaller trees and also small apples…
Redfield being biggest possibly (but not great eating).
I’ve gotten to taste 5, and have some that may bloom first time this year. Of those first 5 none are an improvement on Niedzetzkyana in my opinion.
I finally have some seeds to plant this spring of some crosses.
Callaway crab is a good one.
Centennial (DolgoXWealthy) and Kerr (DolgoXHaralson) are both excellent apple-crabs, aka ‘lunchbox apples’ that should do well in MD.
Bastian Orange crab is exceptional, here.
While ‘Callaway’ is a family favorite here, its fruits hardly qualify as ‘large’, except in comparison to most ‘ornamental’ crabs… 1" to 1.25", but, boy, it really produces!
My Firecracker did not seem to produce true to type. Most of the other redflesh I grafted are in production now. I would say Mott’s Pink is the best tasting out of hand so far. That may be because the fedflesh is not as prominent. They all seem to have good disease resistance and the color / tannins makes great cider.