[7] The species was first described as Pyrus sieversii due to its similarities with pears in 1833 by Carl Friedrich von Ledebour, a German naturalist who saw them growing in the Altai Mountains.

[7] Fungal pathogens, such as Phytophthora plurivora and Alternaria alternata, also play a major role in the decline of M. sieversii populations, by degrading vegetative parts such as the fine root systems.

[5] Aside from traditional conservation methods, biofertilizer has shown effective results inhibiting fungal pathogen, Alternaria alternata in wild apple trees.

It does this by improving antioxidant capability of wild apple trees following the infection, promoting root growth and enhancing soil metabolism.

[19] Recently, a combination of innovative methods including cloning and plant hormone treatment has also shown effective results in regenerating wild apple populations.

[7] Wild apple forests were turned into pastureland, which greatly changed the soil covering, and damaged young seedlings and roots.

[7] These and other Malus species have been used in some recent breeding programmes to develop apples suitable for growing in harsh climates unsuitable for M. domestica, mainly for increased cold tolerance.

[22] A study in 2020 has discovered various gene inserts involved in dormancy and cold resistance features, such as heat shock proteins, in wild apples.

[14] In addition, desirable traits such as late flowering, early fruit maturity, short juvenility and stooling capability were studied by many breeding programs.

[23] Malus sieversii has recently been cultivated by the US Agricultural Research Service, in hopes of finding genetic information of value in the breeding of the modern apple plant.

[12] Effects of heat on M. sieversii were also studied in hot and arid regions, and they were found to be considerably drought tolerant and sunburn resistant.

[26] Using M. sieversii for breeding due to its high anthocyanin content has numerous benefits, including preventing cardiovascular disease and protecting against liver damage.