Is the Xifu crabapple a deciduous or evergreen plant?

The Xifu crabapple is the city flower of Baoji, Shaanxi. Baoji was known as Xifu in ancient times, and the Xifu crabapple gets its name from this. So, is the Xifu crabapple deciduous or evergreen?

1. Is the Xifu crabapple deciduous or evergreen?

The Xifu crabapple is a deciduous small tree with strong upright branches, and it is a plant endemic to China. The Xifu crabapple grows well in the dry regions of northern China and is a relatively popular product in landscaping projects.

2. The value of the Xifu crabapple

1. Ornamental value: Among the flowering crabapples, the Xifu crabapple has a steeply upright tree form, like a graceful young maiden. With red flowers, green leaves, and beautiful fruit, it is extremely attractive whether planted alone, in rows, or in clusters. Its flowers are brilliantly colored, and it is generally cultivated in courtyards for landscaping. Among the flowering crabapples, the Xifu crabapple has a steeply upright tree form, like a graceful young maiden. Its flowers are a mix of red and pink, its leaves are tender green and lovely, and its fruit is fresh and enticing; whether planted alone, in rows, or in clusters, it is extremely beautiful. It is best planted by the water's edge and in a corner of a small courtyard.

2. Edible value: The fruit is called crabapple fruit, similar in taste and shape to hawthorn, sweet and sour and tasty, and can be eaten fresh or made into candied fruit.

3. Health benefits: Stewing the leaves of Prinsepia utilis together with plantain and crabapple fruit and taking it as a decoction has anti-inflammatory, cooling, and detoxifying effects. If humans or livestock are poisoned by accidental ingestion, taking the juice squeezed from crushed Prinsepia utilis leaves can eliminate and neutralize the toxins. The tender leaves of Prinsepia utilis, eaten as a vegetable or pickled into salted vegetables, have good therapeutic effects such as stimulating the appetite and aiding digestion, clearing heat and reducing internal heat, and inhibiting oral and intestinal inflammation.

The Xifu crabapple is named for growing in Xifu. With its elegant floral posture and brocade-like blooms, it has been a famous flower appreciated by both refined and popular tastes since ancient times, long known as the immortal among flowers and the imperial consort of flowers, and praised as the “national beauty”; scholars and literati of past dynasties have never ceased writing poems and inscriptions about it.