×
  • Home
  • Daily
    • Buyers Guides
    • Composting
    • Container Gardening
    • Easy Healthy Recipes
    • Food Preservation
    • Garden Design
    • Garden Tools
    • Gardening LIfe
      • Animals in the Garden
      • Funny Business
      • Gardening History
      • Gardening Humor
      • Gardening Mishaps
      • Gardening Poems
      • Gardening Romance
      • Gardening Science
      • Gardening with Kids
      • Healing Gardens
      • Joy of Gardening
      • Mystical Gardens
      • Ornamental Gardening
    • Growing Fruits & Berries
    • Indoor Gardening
    • Pests & Diseases
    • Seeds & Seedlings
    • Soil & Fertilizer
    • Spice & Herb Gardening
    • Vegetable Gardening
    • Watering & Irrigation
  • Freebies
  • Videos
  • Magazines
    • Food Gardening Magazine
    • GreenPrints Magazine
    • RecipeLion Magazine
  • Books
    • GuideBooks
    • Cookbooks
      • Beverages
      • Bakery
      • Breakfast
      • Appetizers
      • Salads & Dressings
      • Soups
      • Entrées
      • Side Dishes & Sauces
      • Desserts
    • Story Collections
    • StoryBooks
    • Recipe Collections
  • Kits
    • Garden Calendars
    • Garden Plans
    • Recipe Cards
    • Greeting Cards
    • ArtPrints
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Affiliate Program
  • Sponsor Program
  • Give a Gift
  • Privacy Policy & Terms of Use
  • Authors
  • GreenPrints Writer’s Guidelines
  • Keyword Index
  • Join
Celebrating 5 Years of Food Gardening

Food Gardening Network

Growing food, fun & more

Give a GiftJoin
Mequoda Publishing Network
  • Daily
    • Buyers Guides
    • Composting
    • Container Gardening
    • Easy Healthy Recipes
    • Food Preservation
    • Garden Design
    • Garden Tools
    • Gardening Life
      • Animals in the Garden
      • Funny Business
      • Gardening History
      • Gardening Humor
      • Gardening Mishaps
      • Gardening Poems
      • Gardening Romance
      • Gardening Science
      • Gardening with Kids
      • Healing Gardens
      • Joy of Gardening
      • Mystical Gardens
      • Ornamental Gardening
    • Growing Fruits & Berries
    • Indoor Gardening
    • Pests & Diseases
    • Seeds & Seedlings
    • Soil & Fertilizer
    • Spice & Herb Gardening
    • Vegetable Gardening
    • Watering & Irrigation
  • Freebies
  • Videos
  • Magazines
    • Food Gardening Magazine
    • GreenPrints Magazine
    • RecipeLion Magazine
  • Books
    • GuideBooks
    • Cookbooks
      • Beverages
      • Bakery
      • Breakfast
      • Appetizers
      • Salads & Dressings
      • Soups
      • Entrées
      • Side Dishes & Sauces
      • Desserts
    • Story Collections
    • StoryBooks
    • Recipe Collections
  • Kits
    • Garden Calendars
    • Garden Plans
    • Recipe Cards
    • Greeting Cards
    • ArtPrints
  • Sign In
  • Search

Growing Apples from Seeds, Grafting, or Saplings

Gardening Guide: Audacious Apples

arrow-left Previous
Next arrow-right

Growing Apples from Seeds, Grafting, or Saplings

By Norann Oleson

Young Apple tree seedling

Young Apple tree seedling

Can you grow apples from seed? Yes. Should you? Probably not. Apple trees grown from seed will not be the same as the tree from which the source apple came; they do not grow true to type. On top of that, it will take years before the tree is mature enough to produce fruit—and even then, what you get will be a surprise.

If you already have an apple tree and you’d like to reinvigorate it by growing another type of apple, you can graft a scion from another tree onto a branch of your existing tree. It’s not a particularly difficult process, but it does require some patience.

Your quickest route to fresh apples is to buy a sapling. Planting a young tree that’s already begun its journey to maturity gives you (and the tree) the best chance at having apples to harvest. Depending on the age of the sapling, you may still need to exercise patience for a year or two, but eventually you’ll be able to pick predictable apples.

Seed Planting Process

So, if you take the Johnny Appleseed approach to growing apples, you’ll want to settle in for the long haul. It will be seven to 10 years before your tree produces fruit. And the fruit it produces will likely bear no resemblance to the apple from which it came. It’s possible to grow an apple tree this way, but it’s not the best way to grow one if you want to grow a specific type of apple—and if you want to be able to harvest apples in a reasonable amount of time.

If you’re really determined to try growing apples from seeds, plant them outdoors in the fall, when it’s cool and moist.

Grafting

Grafting is joining two plant parts together: the scion (twig or cutting) and rootstock (lower portion). The rootstock becomes the root system of the tree and controls the tree’s final size. The scion determines what type of tree it will be.

Now, you can order rootstock and start pretty much from scratch by joining it with the scion of a dormant apple tree. This could be a twig that you’ve taken from the previous year’s growth of a tree you already have.

If you have a healthy apple tree already and you’d like to try out a new cultivar without planting a whole new tree, you can graft a new scion onto your existing tree. This approach will give you quicker results, since the rootstock is actually a mature tree instead of a sapling.

There are several methods to grafting apple trees, including whip and tongue grafting and rind grafting. You don’t have to be a master gardener to graft, but you do need to be methodical and patient. It’s worth consulting your local extension center or nursery for advice on the method that will work best for your circumstances.

Growing Saplings

Apple tree sapling being planted in the soil

Apple tree sapling being planted in the soil

The quickest route to a fresh apple from your own tree is to plant and nurture a sapling. Someone has already taken care of the grafting for you, and tended the young tree to a manageable size.

One of the advantages of growing saplings is that you’ll get apples sooner. You also have a wide choice of rootstocks from which to choose; those will determine the size of your tree. So, you can get a sapling grown on dwarf rootstock to save space and still get full-size apples come harvest time.

Keep in mind that almost all apple trees need a pollination buddy—an apple tree that blossoms at the same time. Most apple trees are not self-fertile, so they need that cross-pollination in order to produce apples. If you only have one apple tree and no pollination buddy, you’ll get lovely apple blossoms in the spring, and that’s it.

The good news is that the humble crabapple can make a fine pollination buddy, provided it blossoms at the same time as the cultivar you’ve chosen. Be sure to check pollination times when you’re choosing your apple trees.

There is one other pollination hack you can use if, for some reason, you can’t grow a second tree or there’s no crabapple tree nearby (or it doesn’t flower at the same time). You can take flowering branches from another variety of apple tree, put the branches into a bucket of water, and hang the bucket from your tree. The bees won’t notice that they’re harvesting pollen from cut branches. Of course, you’ll have to find a suitable source for such branches. All in all, it’s probably easier to just plant a second compatible tree.

Have you tried growing apples from seeds, grafting, or saplings? Which approach do you prefer—and why? Please share your experiences with us.

arrow-left Previous
Next arrow-right

Tags

an apple tree, apple trees, gardener, growing apples

Comments
  • Rudy A. April 5, 2023

    If I have a wonderful apple tree, can I get cuttings from it that will grow roots and create another tree? I know all new apple varieties come from one original tree, but do they have to use root stock from another tree too, or can the branches somehow be convinced to grow roots, similar to willow trees?

    Reply

Click here to cancel reply.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

TABLE OF CONTENTS

  • Curator’s Corner
  • Introduction
  • Feature Articles

  • Growing Zones for Apples
  • Types of Apples
  • Growing Apples from Seeds, Grafting, or Saplings
  • Where to Grow Apples
  • Planting Apple Trees in the Ground
  • Growing Apple Trees in Containers
  • Nurturing your Apple Trees
  • Harvesting & Storing your Apples
  • Winterizing your Apple Trees
  • Dealing with Apple Diseases
  • Dealing with Apple Pests
  • Essential Tools and Equipment for Growing and Enjoying Apples
  • How to Identify the Worst Apple Diseases
  • Plant Profiles

  • Whitney Crabapple Tree
  • Macoun Apple Tree
  • Gold Rush Apple Tree
  • Enterprise Apple Tree
  • Freedom Apple Tree
  • Cortland Apple Tree
  • Cox’s Orange Pippin Antique Apple
  • Recipes

  • Upside-Down Maple Apple Cake
  • Apple and Cheddar Galette
  • Apple Cinnamon Chia Pudding
  • Apple and Onion Tarte Tatin
  • Caramel Apples
  • Annie’s Apple Crisp
  • Baked Stuffed Apples
  • Apple Cider
  • Baked Apple Chips
  • Waldorf Salad
  • Additional Articles

  • Nutrition Facts about Apples
  • Home Remedies and Health Benefits of Apples
  • Resources about Apples
  • Apple Glossary
  • Related Articles

  • The 10 Most Beautiful Flowering Fruit Trees
  • 7 Foolproof Tips for Pressure Canning Apples
  • How to Dehydrate Apples in the Oven
  • The Easiest Method for Freezing Fresh Apples for Baking
  • Apple-Growing Adaptation Strategies for Climate Change

Enter Your Log In Credentials

This setting should only be used on your home or work computer.

  • Lost your password? Create New Password
  • No account? Sign up

Need Assistance?

Call Food Gardening Network Customer Service at
(800) 777-2658

Food Gardening Network is an active member of the following industry associations:

  • American Horticultural Society
  • GardenComm Logo
  • GardenComm Laurel Media Award
  • MCMA logo
  • Join Now
  • Learn More
  • About Food Gardening Network
  • Contact Us
  • Affiliate Program
  • Sponsor Program
  • Give a Gift
  • Privacy Policy & Terms of Use

Food Gardening Network
99 Derby Street, Suite 200
Hingham, MA 02043
support@foodgardening.mequoda.com

To learn more about our Email Marketing and Broadcasting Services, Exchange Program, or to become a marketing partner with any of our publications, click here to contact us at Mequoda Publishing Network.

FREE E-Newsletter for You!

Discover how to grow, harvest, and eat good food from your own garden—with our FREE e-newsletter, delivered directly to your email inbox.

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest

Powered by
Mequoda Publishing Network
copyright © 2025 Mequoda Systems, LLC

Food Gardening Network®, Food Gardening Magazine® and GreenPrints® are registered trademarks of Mequoda Systems, LLC.