Yesterday, whilst walking along my home street, built around 1960, I saw a tree, planted possibly when house built, in a front garden, never noticed it before, (photos: quantity of photos five, tree with purple leaves, includes two of trunk of tree) and wondered what these strange looking fruits are? Location: Edenbridge, Kent England. Then, today, my daughter sends me photos (quantity of photos two, overall green) of a similar plant in her new allotment, in Manchester, England. Asks for help in identifying. Do they look similar, or different varieties of the same, or are the two plants different? I D’s appreciated. Thank you
1. None of these pics show Mespilus germanica...common name Medlar The fruits are very distinctive...pics below. 2. Your daughters 2 pics...131851/ + last pic Look to me to be rose hips with the leaves of roses. 3. Your pics look like a Malus..common name apple. There are a few named cultivars.
Pl@ntNet has some bizarre suggestions, although with a low degree of confidence, but it does suggest several crab apples, showing highest confidence at 41% for Malus hupehensis (Pamp.) Rehder, Chinese crab apple (World flora) - Pl@ntNet identify.
Leaves show evidence of being purple. Apples are dark in colour. Really need to know what colour the flowers were to begin to take it further. It might/maybe be one such as Malus x purpurea Crimson Cascade? https://www.frankpmatthews.com/catalogue/ornamental-trees/malus/malus-crimson-cascade/ There are many others that it might be.
As mentioned, flowering crabapples are identified to the cultivar or species level using the habit, leaves, flowers and fruits. And yes, the second mystery is a rose.
