Golden Hornet crab apple trees
Malus x zumi
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- Self-fertility: Self-fertile
- Blossom colour: White
- Fruit colour: Yellow
- Awards: RHS AGM (former) 1999
Golden Hornet is a traditional and popular crab-apple, which features a profusion of pink-white blossom in spring. In autumn it produces a mass of small yellow fruit which will stay on the tree until late in the year providing a useful colour feature in the garden.
The leaves also turn an attractive yellow colour in autumn.
The fruits are useful in the kitchen, for crab-apple jelly and a good source of pectin for jam-making. The fruits are quite persistent (they hang on the tree for a period) but if you are intending to use them in the kitchen, be sure to pick them before they start to drop.
Golden Hornet is an excellent pollinator for most apple varieties, particularly late-flowering varieties (flowering groups 4 and 5), as it produces a lot of blossom over a long period. It is a common sight at the end of rows of apple trees in commercial orchards.
Golden Hornet crab apple trees for sale
Pot-grown
All pot-grown trees are suitable for planting out in the garden, some are suitable for growing in containers.
PG12-year 12L pot-grown tree Semi-vigorous rootstock £60.50
Large tree
(3m-5m after 10 years)
Bare-root
BR11-year bare-root tree Semi-vigorous rootstock £36.75< 5 in stock
Large tree
(3m-5m after 10 years)
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Call us on 01759 392007 or fill in our contact form.
Next deliveries
Order now for delivery from week commencing 6th January.
Delivery charges
Delivery for a single tree starts at £9.95, it is calculated based on your postcode.
Growing and Training
Golden Hornet can be somewhat prone to leaf-scab in wetter climates. It is also susceptible to fireblight, although this is not an issue for UK growers.
It can also have a tendency to grow in a straggly fashion, although this is a minor inconvenience and does not detract from its usefulness for crab-apple jelly or as a pollinator of other late-flowering apple trees.
History
Golden Hornet was raised by John Waterer and Sons nursery, and introduced in 1948. It is believed to be a seedling of two other crab-apple species, Malus sieboldii calocarpa and Malus prunifolia coccinea.
In 2013 Golden Hornet lost its RHS AGM award, which was subsequently given to another yellow-fruited crab-apple, Comtesse de Paris, which has a better growth habit. However Golden Hornet remains in most respects an excellent choice if you want a persistent yellow-fruited crab-apple which is good in the kitchen. The fruits are arguably more attractive than those of Comtesse de Paris.
Golden Hornet characteristics
- Gardening skillAverage
- Self-fertilitySelf-fertile
- Flowering group5
- Pollinating othersGood
- Climate suitabilityTemperate climates
- Picking seasonVery late
- CroppingHeavy
- Food usesCulinary
- Disease resistanceAverage
- Scab (Apple and Pear)Some susceptibility
- Fire blightSome susceptibility
- Country of originUnited Kingdom
- Period of origin1900 - 1949
- Blossom colourWhite
- Fruit colourYellow
- AwardsRHS AGM (former)
British-grown trees 
Unlike many garden centres and online retailers, the vast majority of our fruit trees are grown in the UK.
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In addition, all our trees are certified under the Plant Healthy scheme, supervised by the Plant Health Alliance.
Other stakeholders include Defra and the RHS. The scheme aims to improve UK biosecurity by setting standards
for all growers and retailers involved in selling plants in the UK.
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Guaranteed fruit trees
When you buy your fruit tree from Orange Pippin Fruit Trees we guarantee it for the first season in your garden whilst it gets established. If it doesn't grow successfully, we'll either replace it the following season or offer a refund - subject to some conditions.
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