Pink Lady Apple Tree

Pink Lady Apple Tree (Cripps Pink) brings vivid color, crisp texture, and a refreshing sweet-tart balance to the home orchard. The medium-to-large apples develop rosy pink to red skin over a green background, while the dense white flesh stays firm and juicy. Their lively flavor is excellent for fresh eating, salads, baking, sauce, and storage, and the flesh is slower to brown after cutting than that of many apples. This is an especially appealing variety for gardeners who want a late-season apple with both polished appearance and dependable kitchen versatility.

Rootstock and size: The Geneva 969 option is marketed as “Dwarf,” but G.969 is a semi-dwarfing rootstock. Dave Wilson Nursery describes trees at approximately half standard size. Actual size depends on cultivar, site, and pruning; a compact maintained canopy requires regular pruning.

Developed in Western Australia, Cripps Pink became widely known by the Pink Lady name. It performs well in warmer apple-growing regions, requiring 300–400 chill hours and growing in USDA Zones 6–9. Harvest is late season, approximately October–November in Central California; actual timing varies with climate, elevation, and season.

Pink Lady is self-fruitful, so another apple tree is not required for fruit production. A compatible apple with overlapping bloom can nevertheless support stronger fruit set. Suitable orchard companions include Golden Delicious, Gala, and Fuji Red.

This product includes more than one tree form. Choose the exact option shown in the variant selector: a dwarf bare root tree on Geneva 969 rootstock, a semi-dwarf bare root tree on M-7 rootstock, or the separately identified potted option when available. Rootstock, site conditions, and pruning influence mature size.

Pink Lady Apple Tree Details

• Tree size: Semi-dwarfing Geneva 969 rootstock (option marketed as Dwarf) or semi-dwarf on M-7 rootstock, depending on the selected variant
• USDA zones: 6–9
• Chill hours: 300–400 hours
• Harvest: Late season; approximately October–November in Central California; timing varies locally
• Fruit: Medium-to-large apples with pink-red skin over green and dense white flesh
• Flavor and texture: Crisp, firm, juicy, and brightly sweet-tart
• Pollination: Self-fruitful; another apple tree is not required
• Best uses: Fresh eating, salads, baking, sauce, and storage
• Special care: Provide full sun, well-drained soil, and regular pruning appropriate to the selected rootstock
• Something Special: Developed in Western Australia as Cripps Pink, this apple became widely known by the Pink Lady name.

Orchard Planning Resources

• Choose the right bare root tree
• Learn how to plant a bare root tree
• Compare tree characteristics, chill hours and pollination needs
• Compare fruit tree rootstocks