Crab apples are best grown in a sunny location and have no particular soil preferences. Root pruned trees transplant most easily. Tree size, flower color, fruit color, and growth habit vary with the cultivar grown. Large fruited types can create a maintenance problem. A few crab apples have good fall color and double flowered types hold blossoms longer than single flowered cultivars.
Some crab apples are alternate bearers, blooming heavily only every other year.
There are hundreds of crab apple cultivars with single or double, red, pink, or white flowers. Fruit size and disease resistance varies. Only cultivars with resistance to apple scab are described. Scab resistant cultivars do not show scab related symptoms under normal disease pressure. Scab tolerant cultivar leaves become infected but little defoliation occurs.