Having no outdoors for growing apples doesn’t mean that you can’t grow them. You can grow an Apple tree indoors! Are you surprised to hear that? Well, then I will say don’t be surprised. I am 100 percent sure you can go for growing apples indoors if you have the proper guidelines.
Apple is one of my favorite fruit to add to my deserts. Now you may say that I can buy them anytime from super shops. Then why take all the hassles of growing them, right?
Then let me tell you that picking the fruits from your tree and using them immediately in cooking is a mesmerizing feeling. That’s why my family started to grow them indoors in my childhood.
Here I am going to share the proper guideline so that you can avoid some specific problems. Let’s dig in deeper!
Table of Contents
Which apple tree can you plant indoors?
There are many varieties of this fruit tree. Especially this tree has some dwarf variety. So you can easily pick those dwarf varieties as your indoor fruit tree.
Growing an apple tree from seed is not preferable. It’s better to buy dwarf grafted trees from a local garden center or nursery. These dwarf trees are grafted on dwarf rootstocks for maintaining their height, size, and production. These trees are disease resistant also.
For selecting the dwarf apple trees, you can pick one among the rootstocks of M27, M26, Bud9, G16, or M9. Apple trees growing on those rootstocks usually don’t grow more than 8 feet in height. So, they are ideal as indoor plants.
Besides this, you have to consider one more thing before buying a tree. The apple tree is not self-pollinating. So, either you have to buy two apple trees for cross-pollination or buy self-pollinating varieties.
In addition, dwarf apple trees survive the most in the hardiness zones from 3 to 8. This tree needs cold weather for blooming during winter. Apple trees can tolerate too low temperatures but not too hot temperatures.
Also, they can’t grow in the all-time summer climate. However, it does not need freezing temperatures but a chilling one. So, if the weather is mildly cold, you can choose a low chill apple variety.
On the other hand, if the weather is harshly cold, you can go for a high chill apple variety.
Four easy steps for growing apple trees indoors!
Setting an apple tree as an indoor tree in your indoor garden is not a difficult task. You have to follow the steps and be careful with all the processes.
Let’s move forward to know the details.
Step 01: Pick a location
An apple tree needs direct sunlight for 8 hours per day almost. So, make sure you are choosing a sunny spot for placing the container.
But during summer days, in warmer regions, place the pot at a partially shady place so that the plant doesn’t have to face the afternoon lights. Also, that place should have good air circulation but not be too windy.
However, never put the container near some wall or surface as it will need enough space to grow in width. You must have enough indoor space for growing an 8 feet tall and wide tree.
Step 02: Select the appropriate container
Initially, a 12 inches wide and deep container is perfect for growing this plant. After a period, you can change the container size when there are mature, bound, and stronger roots.
You can identify whether the plant’s roots are bound or not by noticing their vertical growth. Once it stops growing in length means the plant’s roots are bounded.
Don’t plant the tree suddenly in larger containers. Gradually change the sizes. Once it reaches the desired height, stop switching pots. You can choose a 20-25 gallon pot as the final container.
Finally, then you can prune the plant and trim the roots frequently to maintain the shape.
Step 03: Prepare the container and plant the tree!
It is wise to select slightly acidic potting mixes with a pH range from 6 to 6.8. But if you want to use garden soil, this tree prefers loam soil. You can use sandy loam or light clay soil too.
However, keep in mind that the soil or potting soil should have better drainage quality and high fertility.
So, fill the container half with potting mixes. Then put the dwarf rootstock in the center of the pot and fill the pot fully with more potting mixes.
Press the potting mixes while filling the container so that there leave no holes in the container.
Step 04: Take care of the plant!
Watering:
Always use a pot with drainage holes so that the water doesn’t get clogged. Waterlogged soil can be the cause of root rot. That’s why you should use a container with several drainage holes, and well-drained potting mixes, and don’t do overwatering.
Water more during the flower blooming period and less during winter. Water deeply for the root growth at an average rate avoiding overwatering during the whole year.
Also, watering is required to keep the soil moist. So, check the moisture before watering and water it only when the soil feels dry.
Fertilizer:
Fertilize your plant with a light fertilizer during its growth period. Choose a moderately intense fertilizer. You need to apply it after every two weeks during the young days of the plant.
You can choose any fruit fertilizer for the mature tree. Also, reduce the amount of the fertilizer from the late fall and stop using it during winter.
Pest control:
Like outdoor spaces, aphids, moths, scabs, powdery mildew, brown rot, and spider mites can attack the indoor plant. But you can use insect killer soap or spray to control them.
So, don’t worry, and it will be easier to control the pests, as the tree is in an indoor space.
Repotting:
Repot the young plant every year for maintaining an equal interval of time until it is mature.
Overwintering:
Hard frost or too cold temperatures can damage the roots of the plant. So, for protection, cover the container and soil surface with plastic bubble wrap.
Pruning:
Dwarf fruit trees don’t need much pruning. But a little bit of pruning is always required, right? You have to prune the tree to remove damaged, dead, dry, or diseased branches from the tree. Besides that, pruning off some disturbing small stems that are crossing each other is also needed.
Also, for maintaining the tree shape, pruning is a must. You can prune the plant during late winter or summer.
Moreover, pick off all the flowers from the plant for the first two years, and during the third year, pick off some fruits when the flowers turn into fruits.
By this, the plant will get more energy for growth. Once the plant grows healthy and strong, you can enjoy a bountiful harvest.
Few Last words for you
Growing an apple tree indoors is easy as there are dwarf varieties available. Though the apple tree is kind of a tricky plant to deal with, hopefully, you can grow it by following the steps one by one.
This tree has a lot of requirements, but don’t give up! You can do it. Just grow it. With some hard work and patience, I hope you will pick the fruits from your tree within a few years.