Note the clean, glossy green foliage and shiny burgundy fruits. Fruit Apples and crabapples are in the rose family, Rosaceae, in the genus Malus. Crabapples are differentiated from apples based on fruit size. If fruit is two inches in diameter or less, it is termed a crabapple. If the fruit is larger than two inches, it is classified as an apple.
Fruit is borne in the summer and fall.
Colors range from dark-reddish purples through the reds and oranges to golden yellow and even some green. On certain selections the fruit can remain attractive well into the late winter. The larger fruited cultivars offer a bonus because the fruit can be spiced or used in jelly. Growth Habit and Size Crabapples have diverse growth habits or tree shapes. Flowering crabapples vary greatly in size.