What Happens When You Grow an Apple Tree FROM SEED, 9 Years Later!

[@harriettejensen479]

I have been growing fruit trees from seed for about 10 years. The first one was a wild plum that tasted wonderful. It came true from seed. Then I tried some granny smith seeds. Only one survived. The trunk is pretty knarly, but like you, my apples were small, sweet and pretty. I originally thought I'd graft another variety onto it, but now I think I'll make cider. The peach pits I planted grew great, but I was never able to get any to eat because they all got brown rot every year. I did, however, graft a Suncrest peach scion to a plum rootstock and it was the best peach I've ever eaten. The original variety is one that is not available in the stores because it is soft and won't ship well. If you want a particular variety, I suggest buying rootstock (they're cheap) and going to a scion exchange. In CA, we have the Rare Fruit Growers Association and they have annual exchanges where, for $5, you can get as many scions as you want and they have both rare fruit varieties and more commercial ones and they will teach you how to graft.

[@tashaking8998]

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[@tashaking8998]

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[@leewillis2908]

That’s great. Thanks for sharing.

[@camicri4263]

Awesome, thanks for the info!

[@progers86]

Pretty dope! Thanks for the idea!

[@renatehaeckler9843]

I grew a bunch of apple trees from seeds I found sprouting inside pink lady apples. So far 3 have borne fruit, 2 are full size apples but one attracts lots of insects and the fruit are covered in bug bites, the other is right next to it and had no insect damage and the fruit was hard/crisp with a wonderful complex flavor, very sweet but tart and some pleasant spicy flavors. The third made really bright red crabapples that were kind of bitter but I'm ok with leaving them for the birds to eat in winter. I tried some nectarine pits and got 1 tree, it makes a hard green fruit that never seems to ripen, they stay green and hard. A peach tree volunteered out of our compost and makes very good peaches now that I've moved it to a better location.

[@GardenerScott]

Great introduction of the Prigioni Apple. It's a crap shoot when growing apple seeds and you've done a great job explaining not only the time and risks involved but also the enjoyment when success happens.

[@JHaven-lg7lj]

Yes, congratulations on your Prigioni apple! I can’t wait to hear your plans for it, and to see how the other trees develop

[@JHaven-lg7lj]

Will you be trying the Prigioni apple in different ways? It might be a good baking apple, or good for sauce, juice, or cider - I’d love to see updates as you try it different ways!

[@irisgadermaier5313]

I found a wild apple tree next to an old one in my horse pasture. It must me a seedling. And I´m so happy! It fruited so early as a tiny tiny tree and the apples taste just as good as the ones from the mother tree. Only a bit smaller. Like a normal size apple. I feel so lucky.

[@camillabarnes6678]

I am too jealous !

[@virtuousgardeningmore3551]

Let’s go! I grew a lemon tree from seed. This is amazing! 💕💕💕

[@jamesprigioni]

Let's Gooo!!! OOOhhh that's a great one! A Meyer lemon?

[@virtuousgardeningmore3551]

@@jamesprigioni yes it is! Be blessed! 💕

[@candyrighetti9725]

Thanks!

[@jakobtrahey846]

2 years ago I decided to plant some apple trees from seed for #TeamTrees, and I'm pretty sure that's what started my love in gardening. I've also started a "nursery", which is really a single locust tree seedling at this point & a bunch of dead stuff lol

[@dogslobbergardens6606]

You're way ahead of most people. Don't feel bad about a failure here and there... I think I've killed more plants than most people ever grow :D

[@l_alvarez_1k]

Oooh i would love to see those apples in a big bowl on my kitchen counter! I love fruit that is snack size! You should totally market that apple. I could see it take off kind of like those mandarins called"Cuties".

[@Gkrissy]

That is so cool that you grew your own apple tree. Thanks for showing us! We love how tuck tuck is ready for his piece of the apple☺️

[@Mr.Pennington]

Been following for years, its exciting to finally see how your signature apple turned out! You could do a program where friends who volunteer to help you in the garden could get a graft.

[@meanqkie2240]

I'm seven years ketogenic, so small tart fruits would be great! I want apricot trees like the one my grandma had where I grew up! Tiny and tart and absolutely the best flavor I've ever had!

[@notmyfault6835]

Love your enthusiasm!! Life is like a tree of apples... you never know what you're gonna get! 🥰

[@olderendirt]

My dad planted miniature apples in the 1980s and a couple years ago our Rome uprooted in a windstorm. My golden delicious is almost dead now and a Cortland isn't doing too well. Unfortunately, I think it's because of two black walnuts I let grow that are only about 10- 15 feet away. They were about 20 feet tall. I didn't know about the juglone they produce that ruins the soil for other plants. Just a bit of a warning incase they're around. They were all really good, too. Those little apples look like our wild crabapples and they're good if we get them before the deer! Tucker does a great job supervising. Thanks!

[@Mikhail-Caveman]

Nice! I was inspired by you so I planted one this spring, and it grew! It's two feet tall already with purple leaves, can't wait to see it grow up! Thanks for the idea!

[@TheMillennialGardener]

I bet the smaller apples on that tree would work to your advantage for making apple butter. They likely won’t store well since they are small, but they’d be easy to process through a food mill.

[@JodBronson]

Apple Cider and you can freeze Apple Cider for a long time too.

[@ericajones991]

After seeing your video about them, a coworker gave me some pawpaw seeds and they’re actually sprouting in my fridge! Thanks for sharing your knowledge! It’s been super helpful because we both live in the same planting zone!

[@davidtseng5565]

I have some success in growing apples from seeds. When seedlings are 2 to 3 years old, I look at the leaves, from that I could expect what kind of fruit it will bear. I have a tree which bears fruits taste similar or better than Honey Crisp and it can be grown in zone 2.

[@suzit242]

So many people planting Apple Trees this year. I just got 4 dwarf Apple and 1 Apricot for my small back yard garden. I really enjoyed hearing about the success of your Apple trees!

[@self-aware-potatoe3266]

My daughter (4) and I love your videos. We are planning on planting a Jonagold apple tree soon, thanks and much love.

[@marcob1729]

As you kind of alluded to, a standard tree doesn't have to be 30' tall! Aggressive pruning will keep a tree at almost any size. Dave Wilson's nursery has a video series about a backyard orchard, and the results of their pruning are pretty impressive.

[@dogslobbergardens6606]

I'll second that, it's a great series about keeping fruit trees under control and healthy. Very straightforward and easy to understand, even for a total newb to fruit trees like me.

[@Vannabee13]

Bonsai trees are proof that a tree can be maintained at any size you want it to be (people think bonsai trees are "dwarf" trees. they are just regular "full sized" trees that are maintained a certain way to keep them small) there are even bonsai fruit trees that still produce fruit despite the size of the tree.

[@mawkernewek]

I've had a couple of times when I've bought apples and found pips inside already sprouting. I think this is an effect of having been in cold storage for some time and then being brought out, in both cases they were Pink Lady from Chile, (I'm in Great Britain) and they could have been a year after harvest. I planted those pips and had some grow on, none of them have flowered or fruited yet.

[@heidimisfeldt5685]

It takes a few years, but well worth waiting for. 🍏🍎🍏🍎🍏🍎🍏 Actually it usually takes a few years, but sometimes more then that. Absolutely worth waiting for, you might have a brand new variety and that can be exciting. Maybe even worth some good money, who knows.

[@dogslobbergardens6606]

@@heidimisfeldt5685 it's more likely to be a waste of time and energy... a plot of land you tied up for years and the fruit all turns out to be worthless. The trees themselves are still good for the land/soil in general regardless, so that's something. It depends how much land you have, I guess. I don't have enough to set a bunch aside for a lot of trees and just hope for the best in five or ten years. Not trying to be a downer, just being realistic. Growing apples from seed isn't for everyone.

[@ellenorbjornsdottir1166]

even if the fruit is a bust, the wood is apparently good burning, and good smoking for meat and cheese

[@Skitdora2010]

@@dogslobbergardens6606 There are different types of apples you know, some best for fresh eating which most people want, some for baking and some for cider. If you get all types of apples, you make the lot into apple cider or hard cider. If you make cider you don't use just 1 type of apple and the different flavors makes it complex and flavorful otherwise you would just have apple juice. Hard cider was used more than tap water in the past.

[@deborahnottelling1760]

My apple tree flowered for the first time and I also grew it from seed. I am beyond excited!!!

[@busker153]

I'm going full steam ahead with my gardening! I started last July, and am going to be planting citrus trees and apple trees from seed, with the intention of grafting known scions onto them. I'll leave a natural branch, to know what the seed produced, but I will get fruit from the scions first, I expect. I'm so excited!

[@Crystal-jw7ji]

Never seen an apple that small before,it's pretty amazing what your garden can produce...awesome video👍🏻

[@annahau8588]

It's a cherry grape

[@ohio_gardener]

It has been fascinating watching the progress of this tree. I have 6 apple trees started from seed (all from different varieties of apples) in various stages of growth, and can't wait to see what the apples are like in a few more years.

[@WesamSeddik]

Did any apple tree fruit tell now ?

[@mistyriennett5902]

I am happy for you... Grats on your apple babies.

[@fenrirgg]

I had a lime shrub grown from seed in my mom's garden when I was a student, it produced fruit just one season, but the limes were very acidic and dry, I seriously wanted it to produce juicy super acidic limes and I had prepared the soil and compost for the next season, but it was killed 😐. I will have to grow another lime shrub in my house after watching this haha.

[@cleoharper1842]

I wish I lived in an area that apples thrived. One day I will move north - but until that day I love to watch your channel and learn how to garden for that climate. And believe it or not, there's hardly a teacup in my house that isn't full of seeds from things that can't grow in Florida! People make fun of me but it feels like such a waste to just throw them away. When I do go north, perhaps I'll throw them all over my property just to see what happens.

[@Fatimasroots]

I hope you get to experience this🌿🌸

[@cleoharper1842]

@@Fatimasroots Thanks so much!

[@austinblanton4658]

Have you tried growing dragonfruit?

[@ddoyle11]

Your enthusiasm is wonderful! I would love to have a plot of dirt to experiment with. Thanks for sharing your beautiful garden with us.

[@pawlet]

If you are limited on garden space, check out "Robbie and Gary gardening" on KZbin. Robbie plants in containers. She shows you how to make your own dirt (compost in place). She grows in totes and buckets.

[@ChuanfaBuddha]

All I can say is “ perfect “ nothing like a small sweet apple not too much just enough. You have inspired me to be patient and wait for my perfect little apples that I will try to grow from seed as well thank you

[@janeteholmes]

I planted a small heritage apple tree grove this year. Can’t wait for all the apples!

[@kuswiningsihkuswiningsih9772]

Everything you show always wows me, James. Super!

[@marieknight9385]

My grandma planted a dwarf apple tree about 3 decades ago and it produces a lot of delicious apples every year, we didn't even need to prune or harvest the first year fruit because the wild horses did it for us, I actually love that apples have so many variations now and it's all do to direct sowing and almost zero graphing when they were first introduced to North America

[@taylorIndependenceHall]

Just purchased my first 3 blueberry plants, going to grow them in my apartment and baby them until i buy a home and can plant my own food forreest. Thank you for who you are.

[@rickershomesteadahobbyfarm3291]

The small apples look like cherries. That’s pretty cool.

[@praewaygarden]

Growth from seed it takes a lot of time, but worth it.

[@jacksaffell3981]

awesome video James. I am an amateur rose hybridizer. Working with nature to produce a better thing than you started with is so extremely exciting. I grow Honeycrisp and Fuji apples. Right now I have more Fuji's since the Honeycrisps are now done. Thank you for your channel. You and Big Tuck keep it up. Have a great winter.

[@dr.rev.lindabingham]

Blessings to all!

[@patriciakimyeanwong8442]

Goodafternoon James Hey Tuck how's it going boy.❤❤❤❤ You both have a great weekend 😀 🇨🇦

[@jamesprigioni]

Hey Patricia! The little guy is great, he's resting up now but he had a fun day. Thanks for the kind words, we hope you have a great weekend as well ❤️

[@rebeccaketner816]

I like the gamble and mystery of growing apples from seeds! The stems on the Prigoni variety are long, like cherries. Very nice!!

[@mickeytylerofficial]

I'd love to see what definitions come out of spirit run from those apples. I am currently growing an apple tree from a red delicious/ Granny Green hybrid growing on my parents farm. ( grew from when my grandpa uses to toss apple cores at the end of the driveway while waiting for the school bus. Can't wait to see what fruit I get 10 years from now 😁

[@chapter1o1]

Hi James, I share your enthusiasm, yes, Christmas came early for me, , my 11 year old apple tree grown from seed actually has three the first three flowers ever, Unexpected, I saw a bumble bee on the tree and on close inspection there was a flower.

[@NS-kz3we]

I wish apple will grow in Philippines😅 I never tasted and seen a crispy green apple yet, first time on this video. Mostly in the market is like cotton🤣

[@faceman96]

I've decided to do the same thing. I know it will not produce good apples for eating but I am hoping for good cider apples. After reading about all the different cider apples out there I noticed most of them weren't much different than the crabapples I find growing in an abandoned field or hedgerow out in the country. I've always been told that they make the best hard cider. I'll find out in a couple of years.

[@jwrightgardening]

My apple tree that I grew from seed has sweet but tiny apples on it very similar to that. What I learned is that many commercial orchards plant crab apples in among their commercial varieties to help with the pollination of the blossoms so I figure a lot of seeds from commercial apples are going to be cross pollinated with crab apples. This the sweet but tiny apples. My goal now is to collect fruit from old neglected apple trees that grow on the edges of old farms around here and don't have crab apples in the area to get some really diverse apple genetics.

[@jcomm120]

The aesthetic aspects of your namesake apple are really good, very pretty size and color!!!

[@Dreamzz101]

I cut open a granny smith one day a 2 summers ago and there was this seed already sprouting wanting to grow so I planted it.. its now about 3ft tall and doing well.. its in a pot and will transplant it soon to a large 5gal bucket .. but I am excited to see what I get.. I also have 2 lemon trees that I planted as well in buckets.. I live in PA zone 5b so I am scared to plant them in the ground .. ty for the info I love apples too!

[@WesamSeddik]

Did you see your granny smith fruits yet ?? How does it taste like ?

[@natyabeil6023]

Love it❤️the Prigioni apple your personal signature, that sounds so damn good😏

[@eviemarino3562]

Your apple tree is beautiful, saw all those tiny apples and said wow. Love your enthusiasm! Hey Tuck ❤️❤️

[@blanquitochulito7466]

Could you make a video of the best places to get fruit trees on the web. I live in rural middle of nowhere and there's no good places locally to get fruit trees. Thanks James, love your content!

[@stephenremo9200]

If you want to try this look for a local farmer.much less likely to be crossed with a high pollen crab apple.

[@wildedibles819]

I planted sevral seeds ten years ago some have fruited nicely but a couple flowered for the first time this year But the blossoms froze so i need to wait another year Its rewarding wait and you can always use your seetree for grafting stock I really want to try that

[@hamzs6299]

I got a apple tree a few days ago and it has flowers!

[@jamesprigioni]

Let's Gooo!!! Hamz S!

[@hamzs6299]

Thanks!

[@losandreas6443]

what i noticed in my garden is that a lot of the smaller, runts of the batch of seeds (vegetables and fruits) i grow almost always have a sweeter, or more intense flavor. But i used to feel down and out when i saw how small they turned out until i tasted them.

[@MYFeatheredShenanigans]

I'm just now starting to germanate some apple, and lemon seeds! I hope they do welll...

[@jamesprigioni]

Let's Gooo! I hope they grow well and produce well for you ❤️

[@victoriacrawford683]

@The Garden Channel With James Prigioni Do you mind doing a tip video on how best to take an apple tree started from seed (mainly from sapling stage) to tree? How can I get them to grow stronger at this stage to ensure they will become trees? Your apple is amazing! It looks like a cherry, but crunches like a tasty apple. Keep the videos coming please and thank you. Also, we love you Tuck!

[@shelm-b8p]

Thanks so much for the update about your apple trees from seeds. I have 2 I am growing since 1 year. I am just impressed that I got them through the winter in Tahoe. They both look strong. I hope for the best.

[@arthurwellsjr.4082]

When did you collect, stratify & plant your apple seeds? What time of year would you start stratifying? How do you store apple seeds? How long do you store before stratifying?

[@aeastman59]

I love this story! we did this last year with acorns and now have about a dozen different oak trees which produce food for insects and wildlife!

[@SysterYster]

I have grown my own apple trees from seeds for about 1,5 years now. Out of the 6 or so I planted, I have two left. My first, and my last one. One of them seemed to be hardy against mildew. When all the others got it, this one just stood there, unaffected in their midst. I think it's a keeper. It's also growing well. It remains to be seen if that one or the other one has good apples though. Though that's not my main goal with them. I'm gonna make them into bonsai. But I want them to bear fruit (even if they're tiny). :D

[@charliehoos9773]

My daughter’s fiancé is allergic to fruit and I just started wanting to add fruit to my property because of your inspiration. I planted 4 blueberry bushes, have one apple tree and one pear tree (but the trees don’t flower/produce). Can you please go over what bushes you have that produce fruit? I might keep the fruit growing in one area of the property so we can limit exposure on visits.

[@kcl060]

So wait, you want to keep him away by planting fruit? 😂😂. So, what was it that you were really saying about his allergies? Are you hoping the home grown stuff won't be an issue?

[@curtisnt]

one of the best free content sources on the planet love tuk and the garden!

[@janeteholmes]

The tiny apple is fabulous!

[@krzysztofrudnicki5841]

I found wild apple tree in the meadow and the apples are amazing.

[@giftyunho]

That’s so cool. Love your excitement! Thank you for sharing as always :) Your videos put a smile on my face. God bless you.

[@billclinton6040]

If you really want to develop your own variety of apple that both tastes great and is large in size (in addition to disease resistance and so on), you really need to do controlled pollination between carefully selected varieties that way you can have some control over the variables versus just leaving things to chance. As other posters have mentioned, the tree that produced the Prigioni seed was likely pollinated by a crab apple, hence the smaller fruit. I don't really care for apples, but your passion for them I think warrants more controlled experiments similar to how pepper growers are always experimenting.

[@sleepyheads7513]

You should grow Indian/ Bengali limes from seed. I grew some 4 years ago and got fruit 3 years later. The trees are kept small so we can bring it inside from the NYC weather but the flowers are beautiful and fragrant. The leaves are also fragrant and floral and can be used in cooking. Also, like you I would also vigorously trim it and make cuttings. The cuttings from the original tree gives me more flowers and fruit!

[@gitgud6310]

Now i NEED my own unique apple from seed.

[@bullfrogjay4383]

Just planted 6 apple trees from seeds. Not sure what I will get but I am amped !! I planted like 5 grafted trees 5 years ago but moved so now it's time to start over. 3 peach, 2 cherry and 6 random apple. Maybe some pear next year.

[@bsweat9230]

Love your enthusiasm! If I had patience I'd try apples. I'm still trying to understand my 2 lemon varieties. 🍋

[@teresalindholm3166]

My son is growing apple tress and he got it right and fruit tress love thesma apple bottling

[@theBeags]

Those apples are the cutest things imaginable

[@Tsuchimursu]

I have several hectares of land so I planted LOTS of apple trees from seeds this summer. I planted them way too close to each other but I'm expecting to lose some to rabbits and voles, and only a few to actually be tasty. I can later jsut chop down the ones I don't like. I mostly use apples for cooking pies and such anyway, so it doesn't matter if they aren't the best in the world.

[@thyme4coffee203]

Send me that cutting so I can graft it.. Actually in the spring. I have some stuff for you too!

[@jimathey6153]

OLD LEATHER SMITH here. I always get something out of your videos!! Thanks 👍. GOD'S BLESSINGS ✝️⚾🙃

[@amandaforeman2626]

Beautiful! It looks like a crab apple type ! Love the coloring on it !

[@noneofyourbusiness2253]

I like James energy. Watching from Manila Philippines.

[@SelenabatYahuah7]

I started my own apples from seed this year and I can't wait to see what I end up with 🙃

[@heidimisfeldt5685]

Be patient, it is well worth waiting however long it takes.🍎🍏 Certainly a few years. Some grow pretty tall, but at some point, fruit goes down with a wind gust.... easy enough to collect on the grass.

[@shellywilks883]

Congrats James👍👍

[@jamesprigioni]

Thanks Shelly! ❤️

[@MaryAnnNytowl]

Great explainer on seeds that don't grow true - that's applicable to many, many kinds of commercial food seeds.

[@danamama6766]

Love the tree. That is very exciting for sure :)

[@HowToGuroo]

I love your passion for growing food! Your energy is infectious thank you sir

[@Truth-101-a]

Which nursey do you suggest for fruting trees?

[@tempestvideos9834]

Growing from seed can be a great way for growing for production. Starting numerous seedlings in pots (which quickens initial fruiting) then selecting those most productive with most desired traits can result in a very productive orchard with unique types of apple. If the apples are the size of a quarter or less then they not apples they are crabapples.

[@HacknBuild]

I am growing from seed for a few reasons, one being that I can select for a tree that grows best in a specific spot. I am looking for a tree that tolerates black walnut and that's not a characteristic that's been selected for with commercial root stocks. If you don't like the fruit, you can always graft on something that you want or keep it as an ornamental and pollinator. There will be a lot of variety in the seed grown trees, so it's fun to see what comes up. You can also use the trees to improve your grafting and pruning skills.

[@maryhow9898]

Cherry Apples!🤗💕

[@jamesprigioni]

Yup! Cute and delicious!

[@tammyfreeman4525]

So cool. I had crabapples in my yard growing up, so I’d love to have something different. Its nice to see someone’s garden from the same area (state). I am in South Jersey near Philly. Keep the videos coming! 😃

[@MattIsntYoung]

Incredibly rare to get store size/quality apples from seed, due to the pollination being facilitated by trees with tonnes of pollen, but with tonnes of pollen/flowers, often come small fruit.

[@nonyadamnbusiness9887]

One thing people starting from seed should know is that most grocery store apples are pollinated by crabapple. This means the fruit from the offspring will most likely be small. It's much better to use seed from someone's backyard apple tree. Seedling fruit trees can actually make a decent hedge. You can put a lot of seedlings in a hedge.

[@jerrymarcarolasan4195]

Nice garden.🥕

[@carlyblankevoort3856]

Such fun, for free, life in a food forest. Love it, James!

[@michaelromero1873]

I grew a mango tree from a seed. 23 years later I got my first crop of mangos. They are large and sweet and just a little fibrous. It came from a Hayden tree.

[@Nurtureddreams815]

I just started growing the pink lady apple seeds back in September. They were sprouting within the apple. So, I just gave it a try to see if they would grow. A lot did not make it. Only three of them survived. When I transplanted them from the inside pot to outdoors in ground, one died after a while, but two are still thriving. I’m not sure for how long though because of tonight’s freeze. I’m curious to what will become of them. I did put them within close range, too.

[@ImRegarded]

How are they doing?

[@Nurtureddreams815]

@@ImRegarded They survived and looks to be growing well. I’m curious of one thing though. They are still growing side by side as I left them as they were thriving. I began wondering the other day if they should be separated from each other. They are about 3/4” apart in ground. WHAT SHALL I DO? I have them covered under crate for protection, also, to keep anything from trampling on them.

[@joegreen8440]

Have you tried trimming off some of the young apples on the tree so it has more energy to focus on less fruit? You might get bigger fruit out of the tree if you trim clusters down from 3-5 to 1 or 2 apples in late spring.

[@dogslobbergardens6606]

I wondered that too. One of the first things I've learned reading about this stuff was to limit the number of fruits a young tree is trying to produce, or none of them will reach their full potential.

[@RDubdo]

I have grown many fruit trees over the years, never picked the first year fruit and the trees that made it always thrived. This is a myth that keeps being repeated and no one seems to check it out.

[@joegreen8440]

@@RDubdo thank you, I should have looked into it more before I spoke about it.

[@dogslobbergardens6606]

@@RDubdo I never saw anyone say the trees themselves were harmed/stunted, or to remove all the first year's fruit. Just that each fruit might not reach its full potential if you don't thin them out.

[@LandElevated]

Learning lots of things about gardening. We are looking forward to more videos.

[@adamfraser4509]

Awesome results. Smoking wood is another great reason to grow from seed. Just needs old mate time. 👍

[@boredpeep]

Love the info and all your videos in general…. This one started with a good scare when you first started talking and said “what’s going on” to us. Loved it (:

[@frozengardens5803]

I wish more garden people had this mind set !!! Your a legend! Granted I only had this same mind set beacuse there was no photo period cannabis available that would finish in my area before I got to work 😅

[@janicebinoya7748]

wow many fruits congrats!

[@jamesprigioni]

Thanks Janice! ❤️

[@breakingburque2200]

I’ve been wondering about the Prigioni apple tree. Thank you for the update.