Global climate change has led to increasing phenomena of high temperature and water scarcity. Misting water-saving irrigation technology can effectively alleviate the damage caused by high temperatures to plants. As the mist irrigation provides only limited amount of water, therefore this irrigation system needs to be combined with other technologies like drip irrigation. However, the research on the combined effects of mist and drip irrigation on apple trees is in the preliminary stage. Therefore, further research needs to be done to explore the comprehensive impact of the combined systems and for determining the optimal control strategy for young apple trees. The experiment was set up with four levels of drip irrigation (W1: 75 % similar to 90 % theta(f), W2: 65 % similar to 80 % theta(f), W3: 55 % similar to 70 % theta(f), W4: 45 % similar to 60 % theta(f)) and four durations of misting (T1: 2 hours, T2: 1.5 hours, T3: 1 hour, T4: 0.5 hour). With the goal of saving water and safeguarding the efficient growth of young apple trees, the integrated effect of coordinated control of mist-drip irrigation was clarified. The results showed that under the W2T3 treatment, the total growth of young apple trees, photosynthetic rate at different growth periods, and water production rate were at the highest level throughout the entire growth period. Compared with W1T1 treatment, they increased by 11.52 %;33.61 %,52.73 %,66.65 %,46.93 %;113 % respectively. The leaf area, relative chlorophyll content, and dry matter weight also reached a high level. The comprehensive evaluation system for young apple trees, constructed using the Analytic Hierarchy Process -Entropy Weight Method-Weighted Grey Relational Analysis, showed that the W2T3 treatment ranked the highest, with a correlation degree of 0.910149 to the optimal solution, indicating the optimal overall effect. This means that the growth and development of young apple trees is optimal under conditions of 65 % to 80 % theta(f) and a misting time of 1 hour on a sunny day. In summary, this study provides a theoretical basis and scientific reference for the efficient cultivation and irrigation system optimization of apple trees in the semi-arid region of northern China.