To clarify, the reason you are likely ending up with a wild apple phenotype is not because that is intrinsic to the nature of apples. Otherwise, new varieties c

To clarify, the reason you are likely ending up with a wild apple phenotype is not because that is intrinsic to the nature of apples. Otherwise, new varieties could never be developed. Crabapples are used as pollinators for farmed apples since apples aren't self fertile, and you'll end up with a hybrid. If you've got the space and the time (in this case a lot of time), breeding is a great hobby for anyone. Another factor is that apples from seed take a lot longer to fruit, and as you mentioned, you can really control the growth characteristics of the tree with the rootstock. Unlike mangoes, the rootstock can result in the same scion variety of apple growing into a 50 foot tree or a 5 foot shrub- thats a huge amount of control!