How to Grow Apple Trees From Seeds

Before you decide to grow an apple tree from a seed, you need to prepare for a difficult process. Additionally, you should remember that it’s a lottery. Even from a seed of the best apple, you might still grow a completely wild tree that will give you nothing but inedible, sour fruit. So, if you can, it’s better to use a seedling.

5-Minute Crafts is going to help you grow an apple tree from a seed. We should mention that you will only see the first apples around 8 to 10 years after planting. Be patient and prepare for some hard work.

Preparing the seeds

• Take the seeds out of an apple. You can use several different apples to increase the chances.

• Put the seeds into water. Use a wooden stick to stir the seeds for 3 minutes. Be careful. Also, pay attention to which seeds are floating on the surface and which ones are on the bottom. The latter are better for planting.

• Put the seeds on a paper towel. Give them time to dry well. Turn them over every 2 days. In about a month, you will see the seeds change their color from dark to light and become drier.

• Mix the dried seeds with sand and add some activated carbon. Sprinkle them with some water. Put the entire mix into a container that can be firmly closed — a sealed zip-bag is fine.

• Put the container into the fridge. The seeds need to go through stratification to grow. This stage will take about 3 months. During this time, watch to ensure that the soil stays humid. Don’t forget to check the condition of the seeds and throw those that get covered in mold out right away.

Recommendation: It’s best to start preparing the seeds in the fall so that they’re ready to be planted.

Planting the seeds

• Prepare a container for planting. If you don’t have many seeds, you can plant them in a pot. If you have many seeds, use containers. There has to be a drainage layer for the excess water. Pebbles or wood chips serve as great layers.

• Prepare the soil. You can use the special soil sold at gardening stores.

• Plant the seeds. Place the seeds about 1 inch from one another, about 0.5-inch deep. Put a bit of soil on top. Be extra careful with the seeds because they’re still very fragile.

• Moisturize the soil. Take a pulverizer gun and sprinkle the top layer. Place the containers with the seeds on the windowsill and make sure there’s a lot of sunlight.

• When the sprouts are strong enough, repot them into bigger containers. Keep doing it for a year after you first plant the seeds. After that, it’s time to plant the sprouts in the garden.

Planting the sprouts

• Choose a spot in the garden. It has to be a place with a lot of sunlight — that’s what a young tree needs. Make sure there are no other trees around to mess with the development of your apple tree. Additionally, it’s important that there are no puddles or other forms of excess water. Apple trees love water but not too much.

• Prepare the soil. Remove the rocks and weeds. Dig into the ground and add some humus but don’t add any manure because the young roots of the sprout might not survive it.

• Plant the sprout. Be extra careful not to damage the roots. Put some soil on top. Water it with a watering can.

Recommendation: Protect the sprout by putting a metal grid around it.