Apple, Pink Lady, Bare Root

Pink Lady Apple (Malus domestica)

Pink Lady, the familiar name associated with ‘Cripps Pink’, is grown for firm pink-blushed fruit and a bright sweet-tart flavor. It needs a long season to ripen well and is especially useful for fresh eating and storage.

Key Characteristics

Sweetness with a refreshing tart finish

Dense, crisp flesh gives the apple a substantial bite. Its flavor works fresh, in salads, and in baked dishes where you want both sweetness and acidity.

Choose a site with enough autumn warmth

Cripps Pink is among the later apples to mature. A long growing season matters more than choosing a tree simply because it fits a winter-hardiness zone.

Store sound fruit and manage the canopy

Good refrigerated storage helps preserve its firm texture. Keep branches open to light and monitor for scab and fire blight rather than assuming the cultivar has broad disease resistance.

Pollination Partners

Plant at least one different, compatible apple variety for cross-pollination. Options in our 2027 selection include Freedom, Granny Smith, Gibson Gold, Gala, Ambrosia. A second tree of the same cultivar on another rootstock is still the same variety. Cross-pollination depends on overlapping bloom, not matching harvest months.

For additional orchard pollen diversity and spring flowers, consider Indian Summer crabapple, where its bloom overlaps the apples it supports.

Rootstock and Mature Size

Standard Rootstock: approximately 20–30 feet; Semi-dwarf G935 Rootstock: approximately 10–15 feet; Semi-dwarf Rootstock (M106 or M111): approximately 12–20 feet. Mature size varies with soil, training, and pruning. Give dwarfing rootstocks secure support; the M.106/M.111 option may be either rootstock, so allow for the larger end of its range.

Product Details

• Sun: Full sun to light partial shade; full sun is best for fruiting.
• Soil: medium to medium-dry, well-drained soil; avoid standing water.
• Mature height: Approximately 10–30 feet; see rootstock and pruning guidance above.
• Bloom: Mid-season; pink buds opening to white flowers.
• Fruit: Pink blush over yellow-green skin; dense, crisp flesh with bright sweet-tart flavor.
• Uses: Fresh eating, salads, pies, tarts, and winter storage.
• Ripening: October–November
• Chill hours: Approximately 500–600 hours.
• Pollination: Cross-pollination with a compatible cultivar required.
• USDA hardiness: Zones 6–9.

General Apple Orchard Guidance

A good start

Choose well-drained soil and enough room for the mature tree. Water consistently while roots establish, mulch with space around the trunk, and keep vigorous grass and other competitors away from the young root zone.

Fertility and fruit-tree guilds

Use a soil test to guide lime and fertilizer rather than feeding heavily by default. Our Tree Planting Kit fertilizer blend is an optional planting supplement; keep concentrated fertilizer away from bare roots and avoid excess nitrogen.

Interested in permaculture and stacking functions around your fruit trees? Explore our fruit-tree guild guide for ideas on combining plants for flowers, ground cover, and mulch while giving your tree room to grow.

Practical pest and disease care

Prune for light and airflow, thin crowded fruit, and remove fallen or mummified apples. Monitor for codling moth, apple maggot, and plum curculio; bagging clean young fruit after thinning can help in a small orchard. Identify a problem before choosing a treatment, and avoid insecticides during bloom to protect bees.