- 1). Study the leaves of the tree in question. Crabapple leaves come in every shape imaginable, including elliptical, triangular and serrated. The color of the leaves changes in the fall from green to chartreuse before the leaves fall for winter, leaving the tree bare.
- 2). Look at the tree's blossoms. American crabapple blossoms are white and white-pink in color and very showy.
- 3). Smell the blossoms. American crabapple trees have earned the name sweet crabapple because the blossoms smell so sweet.
- 4). Look at the fruit. American crabapples are greenish-yellow when ripe and roughly 2 inches or less in diameter.
- 5). Taste the fruit. American crabapple fruit is extremely bitter.
- 6). Look for bugs on the tree. American crabapple trees attract many pests including aphids and Japanese beetles.
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