Good Pollenizer

Plants that throw abundant, compatible pollen and bloom long enough to set fruit on their neighbors. A pollenizer supplies the pollen. The bees are the pollinators. Everything here scored 6 or higher out of 10. Check bloom overlap before you pair anything up.

More about choosing a pollenizer

Pollen only works within a group. Crabapples pollenize apples, plums pollenize plums and sweet cherries pollenize sweet cherries. So start with what you want fruit on, then pick from that part of the list. Our pollination maps show which ones bloom together.

For apple trees, Dolgo is the strongest pollenizer here at 8/10, and it's hardy to zone 1b. Siberian crabapple (zone 1) scored 7/10, and so did Chestnut, Hyslop, Transcendent, Otterson, Hewe's Virginia and Red Splendor. Red Splendor is grown for pollen, not fruit, and it blooms every other year, so don't rely on it alone. Every crab here needs another apple or crab to set its own fruit.

For hybrid plums, Toka scored 10/10, the top of our scale. Native American plum scored 8/10, South Dakota and Prairie Red 7/10, and Kaga and Kahinta 6/10. None of them is self-fertile, so plant at least two plums.

For sweet cherries, Gold, Black Gold, Lapins and White Gold all scored 7/10, and all four are rated to zone 3b. Black Gold, Lapins and White Gold are self-fertile, so they'll fruit alone and still pollenize their neighbors. Gold needs a partner. Gold and Black Gold both bloom late, so pair them with other late bloomers.