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What is the superhero of the fruit tree world? Why the humble Plum, able to thrive in places other fruits have long forgotten, live in famine or in deluge, and be able to produce at a very young age. This is one fruit tree you need in your garden. They are stunning in full bloom or fruit.
There are so many native and garden plums that are on the market today, the choices are endless and come in all the colors of the rainbow. From deep blue fruit, and purples, to orange, red, and yellow and even a few greens thrown in the mix, plum trees are simple and easy to grow in a wealth of colors and tree sizes. Most of this wonderful family of trees tends to stay on the small side but they have been known to reach highest of twenty feet and more if left unpruned and in the right spot. So let's take a look at this wonderful fruit and the possibilities of planting one in your garden.
Trees on the whole should be on dwarf root stock or they tend to get way too big for the normal fruit orchard. Just two or three trees is all that are needed to supply a family with all the fruit they can eat and put some away for the rest of the year. Care needs to be taken to plant different varieties of plums to insure pollination of the fruit. Plums ripen in the early to mid summer and they might be the call for all the birds in the world to come to your yard. Wasps also love the fruit and might cling and eat the juice out of a damaged fruit so be careful when you pick the fruit that you don't have friends out there first!
Plant trees in the fall and mulch well with a two inch layer of compost and top this with another two inches of straw mulch. Repeat this each and every year and your yields will be so heavy you will have to thin the fruits. Pull off all suckers each year when they form. Remove the soil to the level of the sucker, hit the root, and tear the sucker off the root. Do not cut them off or they will come back with twice the vengeance. You will need netting to keep the birds at bay so just buy one when you plant the tree and you will be ready when the day comes.
Plum trees are easy and no fuss. It is simple to order online and have the tree come in the fall or early spring for planting. The trees will flower between their first and second year of life in most climates and might set fruit shortly thereafter. So there is no need to buy them locally to insure the right fruit.
In late winter, apply more compost or one pound of 10-10-10, or 10-6-4 over the branching area. Do not fork this into the soil and never, ever plant under a tree. Plum trees hate to have their roots disturbed. Just sprinkle the fertilizer on the surface and let it work its own way into the soil.
Seeing the branches are too brittle to hold much fruit, you will need to thin your fruits when they are the size of shooter marbles. When the fruits are the size of shooter marbles take off all but one fruit in each bunch. This fruit will grow to full size and the branch should have no more than one or two fruits on it when you are done thinning them out.
Growing a plum tree in the garden is very easy and a beginner fruit tree for the garden. They are wonderful and will be an asset to the garden. They need not be hidden away in the corner or an out of the way place but displayed with pride in the forefront of the garden in wonderful full bloom and fruit.
Thank you to Jeff_Beck for the images.
About M Fitzgerald
I am a pentecostal preacher, gardener,husband, and a father. I love natives, daylilies, iris, and roses. I love teaching others, be they children or adults, about the garden and plants.
Posted by paulineristeau (from Warren, MI) on September 3, 2008 at 3:34 AM:
My Uncle Jim just mentioned last time I was home how he'd "kinda been thinkin "he would like a plum tree !Now you know as he is one of my favorite people in this world (reminds me a bit of a male Aunt Bett) that he is going to be getting a plum tree or two : ) Would you have a recommendation as to what would be best for him in Northern Lower Michigan? Lives in a little town called Central Lake about 50 miles north of Traverse City.Lots of snow and gets very cold there in the winter so I need something pretty hardy for him.What do you think? Your help is greatly appreciated.
Thank you
Pauline
...
Posted by MitchF (from Lindsay, OK) on September 3, 2008 at 1:11 PM:
Pauline,
Brrrrrr... I hate to say this but I have no idea what plums myself would take that many chill hours. I would call or email this place - [HYPERLINK@www.treesofantiquity.com] they really know their stuff and i just love the way you are treated with them.
Mitch
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Posted by DianeEG (from Galva, IL) on September 5, 2008 at 5:13 PM:
I know I'm not quite as far north but things have to a very hardy zone 5 or better yet a zone 4 here on "windy" hill country. I have a very nice dwarf plum: Ciruelo enano variedad "Stanley" doing well since 2002. It is a European hybrid plum that produces blue, medium large fruit with greenish yellow flesh. Produces a large crop annually, ripening early Sept. Described as an exceptionally hardy type of Italian plums. It is self fertile. It blooms rather later than most fruit trees so late frosts usually don't have any effect. Good as fresh fruit, desserts, or canning. Mitch is so right, it is an all around beautiful and productive tree. Wishing you and Uncle Jim good plantin' & pickin'!!
...
Posted by paulineristeau (from Warren, MI) on September 24, 2008 at 12:26 PM:
Thank you very much forthe information now off to the nursery!! : )
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Subject: the pits
Posted by wormfood (from Lecanto, FL) on September 1, 2008 at 1:05 PM:
Can I grow them from the store bought plums? I planted the pits already. Maybe just wishfull thinking. And also something I should investigate, if they do grow, will the wild Carolina plum mix with the good plum and make crappy friut?
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Posted by MitchF (from Lindsay, OK) on September 1, 2008 at 8:17 PM:
They will grow but you never know what you are going to get fruit wise that way.
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Subject: Our plum tree is beautiful BUT...
Posted by Aunt_A (from Tulsa, OK) on August 26, 2008 at 11:32 PM:
Mitch,
We love the blossoms on our plum tree each Spring, but in 5 or more years, we have never eaten a plum.
The plums all fall off before they are ripe. :-(
Nevertheless, I will never chop down the tree; it is too pretty. Thanks for the article.
Aunt April
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Posted by MitchF (from Lindsay, OK) on August 27, 2008 at 12:00 AM:
oh sad - do you know why?
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Posted by Aunt_A (from Tulsa, OK) on August 27, 2008 at 12:28 AM:
I have no idea; haven't really looked into it. If you are moving here, maybe you'd like some Keifer pears.
We could have fun at Grandmas digging up Wisteria, too...I think she left some to root.
And, I've got a few forscythia. Oh yeah, fun!
Aunt April
...
Posted by MitchF (from Lindsay, OK) on August 27, 2008 at 12:33 AM:
Wonderful - I can check into it for ya when I am up there. I had severla trees in TX and even one wonderful tree that I grafted 6 other plums into.
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Subject: Great
Posted by phicks (from Lakeland, FL) on August 26, 2008 at 12:46 PM:
Good Article Good Pics Paul
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Posted by Hemophobic (from Kannapolis, NC) on August 26, 2008 at 12:54 PM:
Great article. I have a new appreciation for plums, having acquired one in the yard of my house in Asheville. It was an old tree, lots of dying limbs which fell regularly. Last year I fertilized it well and this year it had a bumper crop of Damsons on it! I harvested some and made a delicious Damson pie. Yum.
Trees on the whole should be on dwarf root stock or they tend to get way too big for the normal fruit orchard. Just two or three trees is all that are needed to supply a family with all the fruit they can eat and put some away for the rest of the year. Care needs to be taken to plant different varieties of plums to insure pollination of the fruit. Plums ripen in the early to mid summer and they might be the call for all the birds in the world to come to your yard. Wasps also love the fruit and might cling and eat the juice out of a damaged fruit so be careful when you pick the fruit that you don't have friends out there first! 
Seeing the branches are too brittle to hold much fruit, you will need to thin your fruits when they are the size of shooter marbles. When the fruits are the size of shooter marbles take off all but one fruit in each bunch. This fruit will grow to full size and the branch should have no more than one or two fruits on it when you are done thinning them out. 
Thank you to Jeff_Beck for the images. 
