We planted the latest addition to our tree family by the pond this week, a malus × moerlandsii ‘Profusion’. It’s a young tree, and we can’t wait to see this space around the pond mature. We now have a row of ornamental cherry trees and this new crab apple.
We considered putting in another ornamental cherry tree, but we wanted to give the birds and wildlife another food source option and crab apples are jam-packed with goodness. Blackbirds, robins, starlings, finches and crows love them, as do field mice, voles, foxes and badgers. Crab apples can also be home to over 90 species of insects.
We can’t wait for spring when the trees will be in blossom adding a lot of vibrant colour around the pond. The moerlandsii ‘Profusion’ has copper-coloured leaves followed by a profusion (hence the name) of rich purple flowers that transform into small, blood-red fruit, and it should stand out among the pale pink cherry blossoms.
Watch us plant the tree in the very short video below, and as standard practice, to give the tree a healthy nutritional boost, we gave it a dose of the excellent Ecoworm Tree & Bushes to help it get established.