How to plant and care for Apple (Cox's Orange Pippin)

Malus domestica

🌳 Tree 🍓 Fruit 🔁 Perennial

England's classic aromatic dessert apple: crisp, sweet-sharp orange-flushed fruit in autumn. Needs a pollination partner and a sheltered, well-drained spot.

At a glance: harvest in September.

When to plant and care for it

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

Harvest

Prune

Timed for a typical UK garden (last frost mid-April). The app uses your own town's frost dates.

Growing Apple (Cox's Orange Pippin): what it needs

Light: Full sun · 6+ hours a day
Watering: Water weekly in dry spells for the first two summers
Soil: Fertile, well-drained loam · pH 6.0–7.0
Spacing: 3–5 m apart (MM106 rootstock)
In pots: Only in large containers
Feeding: Feed with a potash-rich fruit feed in late winter; mulch with compost in spring
Hardiness: USDA zones 5–8
Difficulty: Intermediate

Step by step

On planting day
Plant the Tree
Plant the apple tree at the same depth it grew in its pot, in a hole twice as wide as the root ball. Firm the soil and water well.
Straight after “Plant the Tree”
Stake and Tie
Drive in a short stake on the windward side and fix it with a soft tree tie. Check the tie each spring so it never cuts into the bark.
1 day after “Stake and Tie”
Water In Deeply
Soak the root area with a full watering can, then keep the soil moist (not wet) for the first few weeks.
7 days after “Water In Deeply”
Mulch the Base
Spread 5–8 cm of compost or bark mulch in a 1 m circle, keeping it clear of the trunk.
30 days after “Mulch the Base”
First Feed
Scatter a general-purpose fertiliser over the root area and water it in.

Every year

January
Winter Pruning
Prune while dormant: remove dead, diseased and crossing wood and shorten the main leaders by a third to keep an open goblet shape.
March
Spring Feed and Mulch
Scatter a fruit feed over the root area and top up the mulch.
May
Check for Scab and Mildew
Cox is prone to scab and powdery mildew. Remove mildewed shoot tips and clear fallen leaves.
July
Thin the Fruit
After the natural June drop, thin to one or two apples per cluster, 10–15 cm apart, for bigger fruit.
August
Summer Pruning
Shorten this year's side shoots to three leaves to let light reach the fruit.
September
Harvest Apples
Pick when an apple comes away with a gentle lift and twist. Store unblemished fruit somewhere cool; Cox keeps until Christmas.
November
Clear Fallen Leaves
Rake up and remove fallen leaves and fruit to cut down scab next year.