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Apple trees have grown throughout North America for hundreds of years. However, few people know the proper time and way in which seeds should be planted or saplings should be grown. In this article, I will discuss the following: when apple seeds should be purchased and where, the best time of year to plant and harvest, and the life-cycle of an apple tree.

Seeds go through a process called germination before they can sprout. This process involves the right environmental conditions (such as where the seed was planted), water, and temperature. Seeds need oxygen in order to develop properly. If the soil they’re in is too wet, there will not be enough oxygen to sustain the seed. Additionally, the best temperature to grow seeds at is 64 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit. The germination process takes about two weeks when under the right conditions. However, a seed can be subjected to the opposite conditions and be made dormant if one wishes to wait to plant it.

Because of how the germination process works, the best time to plant apple seeds in Indiana is in the spring, between April and May. This means the best time to pre-order seeds from large retailers is often the summer before the spring you intend to plant in. Seeds can be ordered through large retailers, but are most commonly found from local chain stores such as Lowe’s, Walmart, Meijer, and even in some branches of CVS and Walgreens pharmacies.

An apple tree usually takes three to five years to produce fruit after it has been planted. The tree sprouts small leaves in the late spring. These leaves remain bright or dark green until fall, when the fruit is ready to harvest. After the apples have either been harvested or fallen off the tree, the leaves begin to turn red, yellow, orange, and brown, to eventually die and fall off the tree. In the winter months, the apple tree goes into a dormant state in which it protects its new buds with a fuzzy coating. After it waits out winter, the cycle begins anew. A healthy apple tree goes through this annual cycle throughout its life, and apple trees often live for close to a hundred years. This basic information about apple trees should help you kick-start your journey of planting trees of your own. For more information, consult your local nursery.