Fall Color: Top Fruit Trees for Fall Harvest

It’s the most wonderful time of the year – the time when fall color bursts through and lends dramatic dimension to summer greenery. Crisp reds, yellows and oranges meld in a dazzling, artful show of nature’s beauty.

Well, thanks to our selection of fruit trees, fall color isn’t just limited to maples, oaks and your other staple backyard varieties. With fruit trees, you have autumnal beauty and bushels of bold, robust, and delectable treats, right from home. There’s nothing better than trees that moonlight as a fresh focal point and your own, at-home orchard.

And though we have an amazing array of personal favorites, we’ve narrowed it down to our top 5 fruit trees for fall color and seasonal succulence (because it’s hard to choose just one or two!).

1. Red Columnar Apple Tree

It’s not the instantly-recognizable Red Delicious, Granny Smith or Fuji Apple, but it’s in a league all its own: the Red Columnar Apple Tree. Although it’s not as well-known as the typical store-bought picks, the Red Columnar is pretty amazing, especially when it comes to fall color.

For starters, it’s pretty cold hardy, tolerating temperatures down to -20 degrees, and thrives in growing zones 4 through 8, a large area of the country. Plus, with Red Columnar, you won’t have to wait years for home-grown fruit – it bears rich, red blush apples in one year or less. Basically, the Red Columnar marries vibrant fall color and easy, fast growth.

2. Yellow Delicious Apple Tree

It’s not really fall without the classic, crisp flavors and fresh looks of the timeless apple tree, is it? And the Yellow Delicious Apple Tree is no exception when it comes to enduring fall color and delectable fruit.

Best of all, it fruits during its first year, with a harvest between September to October (otherwise known as the ideal time for apple picking). And Yellow Delicious is self-fertile, meaning that it produces fruit with only one tree, but with lush looks like this, there’s no need to stop at one. More fruit trees equal bigger bounties and a heightened landscape, after all. For best results, we recommend pairing Yellow Delicious with the Gala, Fuji or Granny Smith.

3. Summit Muscadine Grape Vine

Nothing embodies the feeling of fall quite like visits to vineyards, wineries and far-away orchards, which is why the Summit is one of our prime picks for the season. For starters, this vine’s grapes are sweet and delicious, with timeless flavors that are truly second to none.

Even better? It’s easy to grow.In fact, it’s known as the beginner’s vine since it requires little to no maintenance once it’s planted. And with ripe, vividly-toned fruit emerging around September (plus a harvest during the first year), it’s synonymous with fall color and everything else that’s wonderful about the season.

4. Kieffer Pear Tree

Another favorite fruit for the season, the pear is famous for its juicy, delectable taste and PB&J-style partnership with the apple. But the Kieffer Pear Tree is one-of-a-kind because it not only boasts a striking ornamental silhouette, with warm, yellowy fall color, but also produces exceptionally large fruit.

In other words, the Kieffer is a luxuriant landscape staple that sets itself apart: fruit in one year or less and an opulent October harvest with plush pears made for canning, preserves and more. And it ticks all the boxes of a go-to tree since it’s super easy to maintain, with superior strength and long-lived roots.

5. Luscious Pear Tree

Last not but least, the Luscious Pear Tree. We love this amazing little fruit – can you tell? It’s pretty easy to see why: a unique fall color palette, fruit in just a few years (or sooner with best care), and cold hardiness down to around -20 degrees.

Aptly named, it’s a strong, luscious little tree. And its amazing strength belies its natural good looks because it has the best of both worlds: rich, deeply-saturated greenery that’s juxtaposed against classic fall hues…and your own backyard orchard.

Plus, because it blooms during spring, you get extraordinary curb appeal for months, translating to dramatic dimension from season to season. So, though it’s well-suited to fall freshness, with flavorful pears ready for harvest in October, it’s highly versatile.

Fast Fruit for Fall Color – and More

Fruit picking, healthy harvests and home-grown feasts. What’s not to love when it comes to fall? With our vivacious variety of fruit trees, it’s even easier to look forward to the season. And when you plant our top 5 picks now, you’ll have bushels of goodness next year, ones that merge fresh flavor with effortless elegance and bold fall color. Get started today, and reap the rewards for months (and years) to come!