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Gardening

Find tips and tricks to make your garden or allotment flourish on our Gardening forum.

Can I save this crabapple or should I cut my losses?

6 replies

Paperwhite209 · 15/02/2026 12:32

As you can probably tell I'm very much not a gardener!

Eight year old crabapple, it blown sideways and been righted with the help of some green fingered friends at least 3 times but as you can see it's still listing and need a massive prune job.

I'm planning to put my house on the market in the next month or two so really need to get it sorted.

My gut feeling is to just get rid, add some tallish log edging and soil and pop some small plants in. Have done similar under the front window which needs freshening up and will weed and pressure wash the hideous paving (which actually looks ok-ish when it's properly clean).

However, I feel bad about ripping a tree out? Am I being daft? Is there anything else I can do to make it look half decent in the next six weeks?

Can I save this crabapple or should I cut my losses?
OP posts:
AlwaysGardening · 15/02/2026 12:50

I'm not one to remove a tree but in this case, I think I would. It looks like all the thin stems coming from the bottom on the left of your photo are in fact coming from the rootstock so will be different from the rest of the tree, and probably in time take over. Once you've removed them the rest of the tree looks pretty awful.

justtheotheronemrswembley · 15/02/2026 12:56

Agree, it would be a waste of time keeping it. There's no 'tree' shape at all, and it is a big messy mass that keeps getting blown over, so it obviously doesn't have a strong root system.

Paperwhite209 · 15/02/2026 13:05

Thanks. I bought it when I moved into this house post-divorce so it's somewhat sentimental but I've never been inclined to gardening and we had a rough few years when everything went by the wayside.

Tbh I think it probably should have gone a while back.

OP posts:
Paperwhite209 · 15/02/2026 13:06

A friend who has helped me with it before thought it might be salvageable but I think the time has come.

OP posts:
MabelAnderson · 15/02/2026 13:09

I think it needs to be properly pruned. All The spindly lower stems need to go, and you need to thin out and shape the upper branches. Then stake it for a while and feed it. They are tough trees, it just needs a bit of love and attention.

Seaitoverthere · 15/02/2026 21:08

I think before you make a decision as poster above said, get it properly pruned and see where you are at with it.

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