There's no botanical difference between crabapples and "normal" apples per se it's the same plant just crabapples are allowed to let the wonky apple genetics de

There's no botanical difference between crabapples and "normal" apples per se it's the same plant just crabapples are allowed to let the wonky apple genetics deal do its thing. So what kind of crabapple you get is just random, some taste better than anything you can buy, most are hard sour and astringent. Apples are also like this if planted from seed and left alone. And because of the size they have a higher skin-to-flesh ratio which does make them a little bitter but also more complexly flavored if you balance it out. And for the same reason they have more pectin and cook up thicker, which is good for pies once you account for it and ideal for jams. So yeah overall I agree, people should taste the crabapples around them and see what they can score. It's one of the most easy/fun/accessible/practical intros to urban foraging for sure.