You Can Grow An Apple Tree from a Seed

Apple trees are major sources of fruit in temperate climates. The trees aren’t difficult to grow from seeds, though it takes time to grow a tree that is large enough to produce apples that can be harvested. Winter is one of the best times to start the process, too.

It needs to be mentioned that apples need to be planted in pairs and the two apple trees need to be different kinds of apples. Apples don’t self-pollinate and the two trees need to be of different kinds of apples in order to produce fruit.

Although this is true, though, if a neighbor has an apple tree growing, you may be able to get away with growing a single tree, provided it is a different kind of apple.

Additionally, many or most of the apples that are sold are hybrids. This means that if you plant seeds from an apple you got at the store, there is an excellent chance that the apples that come off the resultant tree may not be the same kind of apple as that which was originally purchased.

It should also be noted that just because an apple is harvested off of a dwarf tree that is only 10 feet tall, for instance, doesn’t mean that it will produce a dwarf tree. The tree that comes from the seed will probably end up being a full-sized standard tree that stands 30 feet tall or more.

All of this said, the only ‘trick’ to growing apple trees from seeds is that the seeds need to be stratified. That is, the seeds need to go through a period of cold dormancy before they will germinate. The amount of time this takes is usually a little over two months. This is the reason that winter is a great time to start this process.

Stratifying the seeds is easy. Simply put about a half-cup to a cup of damp potting soil in a zip-lock bag. The soil needs to be damp, but not wet. If it is wet, the seeds will be prone to rotting rather than sprouting.

Push a number of the seeds into the potting soil in the baggie, then seal the bag. Place the baggie in a refrigerator after labeling the bag so you know what it is. The seeds should be kept in the refrigerator for about 2 1/3 to 3 months, at a temperature of about 40 F / 4 C.

It is helpful to open the bag periodically to allow air into the bag. However, this can be done on a weekly basis. This is a good thing to do anyway as you can check for germination while giving the seeds fresh air. It is also a good time to check to make sure that the soil stays moist, which shouldn’t be an issue in a zip-lock bag.

Once the seeds are sprouted, they can be planted about an inch deep, in pots or outdoors when there is no danger of frost. The soil needs to drain well, but it should not be fertilized. Finished compost worked into the soil is excellent for the developing tree, but fertilizer can kill it, particularly chemical fertilizer.

Until the tree is about a half-foot tall, it should be watered every one to two weeks, so the soil is kept damp for the developing roots. Again, avoid using so much water that the roots are kept wet as this can cause root rot.

In 5-10 years, depending on growing conditions, you could be harvesting apples off of your own tree, started from seed. This can be a fun and productive project and you can even make it more interesting by taking pictures of the tree as it grows.