Royal Raindrops Crabapple

Full bloom

Malus 'JFS-KW5'

Rosaceae · broadleaf deciduous tree · introduced

Last updated

Quick Facts

Height
15-20 ft (J. Frank Schmidt Crabapple Chart: 20 ft; Missouri Botanical Garden: 15-20 ft) (source: J. Frank Schmidt Chart; Missouri Botanical Garden)
Spread
12-16 ft (Missouri Botanical Garden; J. Frank Schmidt: 15 ft) (source: Missouri Botanical Garden; J. Frank Schmidt Chart)
Growth Rate
Medium to fast (faster than many crabapples; reaches mature size in 15-20 years per missouri botanical garden) (source: missouri botanical garden; j. frank schmidt)
Light
Full Sun (Essential For Saturated Purple Foliage Color And Disease Resistance; Partial Shade Reduces Both) (Source: J. Frank Schmidt; Missouri Botanical Garden)
Soil
Well Drained; Tolerates A Wide Range Of Soil Textures Provided Drainage Is Adequate (Source: J. Frank Schmidt; Missouri Botanical Garden)
Water
Moderate
Hardiness
Zone Zones 4–8 (J. Frank Schmidt Crabapple Chart; Missouri Botanical Garden)
Bloom Time
Late April to mid-May (Puget Sound); mid-season blooming (source: HortGuide regional interpretation based on Morton Arboretum bloom timing)
Fall Color
Orange-red (genuine fall interest; uncommon among purple-foliage crabapples) (source: missouri botanical garden; j. frank schmidt)
Origin
Cultivar; open-pollinated seedling of Malus transitoria 'Schmidtcutleaf' (Golden Raindrops®); selected by J. Frank Schmidt & Son Co. of Boring
Watch for this season
Fire BlightHigh

Bloom Infection Window

Powdery MildewModerate

Spring Emergence / Primary Infection

Codling mothModerate

Pupation

Phenological Calendar

As of May 13, 2026, Puget Sound stations range from 1906.2 to 2098.2 GDD₃₂. Royal Raindrops Crabapple has passed full bloom (1305 GDD₃₂).

Regional Season Tracker

GDD₃₂ accumulation across 7 Puget Sound stations · as of May 13, 2026
Station GDD₃₂ Current Stage Next To Go
Issaquah / East King 2,098 Full bloom — —
Kent / Auburn 2,089 Full bloom — —
Seattle / UW 2,063 Full bloom — —
Olympia / Tumwater 2,025 Full bloom — —
Tacoma / Puyallup 1,993 Full bloom — —
Bellingham / Whatcom 1,972 Full bloom — —
Sequim / Rain Shadow 1,906 Full bloom — —
Stage GDD32 Typical Window
Beginning of flowering BBCH 61 990 Late April (Puget Sound); mid-season blooming
● Full bloom BBCH 65 NOW 1305 Late April to early May (Puget Sound)

Sources: HortGuide regional interpretation based on Morton Arboretum bloom timing ; thresholds estimated from genus-level OSU phenology catalog About GDD₃₂ →

Season tracker for Kent / Auburn as of May 13, 2026. Predicted dates use 16-day weather forecast through May 29, 2026, then climate normals.

Diseases: Regionally Documented (3)

Diseases: Other Associations (1)

Pests: Regionally Documented (3)

Royal Raindrops® has become a fixture in Puget Sound residential and commercial landscapes since its 2003 release — it's one of the crabapples you'll see most often at Bothell, Tukwila, and Issaquah nurseries today. The combination is genuinely distinctive: deeply lobed purple cutleaf foliage that holds color through summer, saturated magenta-pink flowers, tiny maroon fruit, and orange-red fall color in a single tree, plus excellent disease resistance. For Puget Sound clients seeking a purple-foliage crabapple, Royal Raindrops is the default modern choice — better disease resistance than older purple cultivars like 'Liset' (which suffers from stem splitting) and a finer-textured visual appearance thanks to the cutleaf foliage. The saturated flower color makes it dramatic in mass planting or as a focal specimen. Bloom timing is mid-season (~220-290 GDD50), making it a good complement to earlier-blooming cultivars like 'Spring Snow' or 'Coralcole' for extending the ornamental bloom window. Combined with 'Adirondack' (white, late-blooming, narrow upright) and 'Prairifire' (deep pink, similar bloom timing, mid-late), Royal Raindrops rounds out a low-disease-pressure crabapple selection that gives PNW homeowners reliable performance without heavy spray requirements. Cutleaf foliage texture also reads well in compositions with finer-textured companion plantings.

— Chris Welch, ISA Certified Arborist

Data Maturity
Structured Multiple sources. Expert review underway.