There are about 19 to 40 species of plums. Japanese and American plums have a spreading growth habit. Japanese varieties are almost always grown strictly for the fresh market (University of California, 2015). However, they can also do well with modest amounts of shade. Plum trees can grow in any type of soil, provided that proper watering, sunlight, and humidity are available. Dried plums, or prunes, are made from the varieties that are richest in sugar and solids. Plums need a location in full sun, with about 6-8 hours of direct light per day. 1. American Wild Plum Tree. The European varieties are mainly grown for processing into dried plums (also known as prunes), but are also grown for the fresh market. Plums are globally produced, and China is the world's largest producer. Dry leaves and fruit during the growing season discourage plant disease. It is best to plant plum trees where they are protected from late winter frosts, as these trees bloom early and frost can damage and significantly reduce flowers and fruit. They appear to Growing Conditions for Plums. Today, commercial plum production is topped by China, Romania, Serbia, and the United States. Popular varieties include Methley, Ruby and Sweet Morris. Plums are easy to grow in Scottish gardens, allotments and historically we had a lot of plum trees growing commercially in the Clyde Valley until recently. First video in a new series about growing plum trees - or at least my second attempt at it! The largest producer in the world is China at approximately 5.6 million metric tons. Plum trees grow fastest and produce the most fruit when exposed to full-sun. Plums grow best in areas where rainfall occasionally falls during the summer and the humidity stays low. Position. Moisture-retentive clay or loam. Soil Requirements. Plums in the Winter. Chile is the main plum supplier in the South Hemisphere. 3. Plums are edible fruits with great nutritional value. There are two types of plums: the European plum, which is suited to cool climates and the Japanese plum, which grows better in warmer areas. These plum-like fruit trees grow up to 20 feet tall, while their dwarf counterparts grow to about half the size. China is the top producing country accounting for 6,663,165 tons followed by Romania with 512,975 tons and Serbia with 463,115 tons. Nursery bought plum trees grow from grafted rootstocks, but wild plums need no such process to produce numerous delicious fruits. Plum (Large) Growing Guide Crop Rotation Group. Plums have quite high moisture demands, so they are best planted on good clay or loamy soils. China is the top producing country accounting for 6,663,165 tons followed by Romania with 512,975 tons and Serbia with 463,115 tons. If you choose your tree carefully you can train it into your preferred shape – as a standard or fan. How to grow plums – where to grow plums Plums grow best in a sunny spot in well-drained, fertile soil. Keep reading for more information on how to grow a plum tree in your garden. Give plums sandy, loamy soil with a pH between 5.5-6.5. When growing in a container, make sure pots are large enough to prevent the potting compost drying out in summer. They have few problems, grow on small trees, come in many sizes/shapes/colors, etc. Mariposa: Small, free-stone pit, good fresh and for cooking. They can grow up to 4m high and wide, but don’t fret if you don’t’ have the space – they’re available in dwarf forms, too. Today, commercial plum production is topped by China, Romania, Serbia, and the United States. They are commonly trained to an open center shape with or five main scaffolds. Most plant diseases attack plum trees when the weather is wet for an extended period of time. All plum varieties need some time in winter when temperatures drop below 45ºF (7ºC) in order to set fruit. Early settlers introduced the European plum to the United States, whereas Japanese plums were first br… Plum trees have a medium hardiness, and without pruning, they can reach a height of 12 meters and spread across to 10 meters. In this episode we learn how to grow beach plums and how to breed beach plum seedling plants that will thrive in your unique conditions. Plum trees start to flower after 80 growing days. Plums. French prune: Good for fresh eating and drying. Plum trees are adaptable to a wide range of climates, so there is likely a variety for nearly every garden. Other large plum producers include; Serbia, Chile, France, Iran, Turkey, Italy and India. Plum trees thrive in California’s Mediterranean climate with mild winters and hot, dry summers. Well-draining soil is best, although plums will grow in a wide range of soil types. Other top plum producing countries include the United States, Turkey, Iran, India, Spain, and Italy. Work in some compost before … No-one should miss the joy of eating plums fresh from the tree. Damson plum trees are related to plums, but, unlike plums, you cannot eat them straight off the tree as they are quite unpleasant. Plum varieties suitable for colder climates down to zone 3 are: Plum varieties for somewhat warmer regions of zones 5 to 9 include: Plum varieties that do well in the warmest regions of zones 9 and 10 include: Many plum varieties do well across several hardiness zones. Newly planted plum trees do not produce fruit for several years, and trees grown from seed may never produce fruit or may have fruit entirely different from the parent tree. Despite plums being produced across the world, some countries have a different version of what they call plums as compared to the fruits in the Americas and Europe. Varieties of Plum and How to Care for Them, Growing Avocado Trees in Different Climate Zones, Plum Pox Virus: A Serious Disease in Plum Trees, Identifying and Controlling Plum Curculio Beetle. By Benjamin Elisha Sawe on September 4 2018 in Economics. The Leading Producers Of Plum In The World They possess a Mediterranean climate, which is the preference of fruit trees of this variety. A soil ph of 6.6-6.4 is ideal. Stanley plums are available right around the start of apple season in September. Plum fruits are used to make juice, and the juice can be fermented to make plum wine. The planting hole should be large enough so the root ball can slide in easily, in other words, the planting hole should be two times the width of the root ball. Otherwise, they may not perform well. Check with your local nursery to find out which varieties are best for your particular area. The plum is a fruit of both the subgenus and genus Prunus. Growing plum trees is not too difficult as long as you give them what they need. Santa Rosa is a plum from California that has about a 700 hour chilling requirement that does well across Texas. Sun Requirements. Dried plum fruits are either called prunes or dried plums even though prunes are a different type of plum and may have preceded the fruits today commonly known as plums. Description: **Plums are a good fruit crop for a home gardener. Plums are excellent fresh but also make a wonderful jam or jelly. Feeding. Do wild plum trees produce fruit? Frost tolerant. Common cultivars grow wild around ancient centers of human habitation, suggesting plums may be among the earliest crops cultivated by people. Satsuma: A popular sweet, dark-fleshed plum. Yes, but it is important to choose varieties known to grow well in your area to reduce risk of losing blooms to spring freezes. Beauty: A Japanese plum with purple fruit. Most prunes are freestone cultivars (the pit is easy to remove), whereas most plums grown for fresh consumption are clingstone (the pit is more difficult to remove). Plums originated near the Caucasian mountains and in Asia. Plums do not do well when planted in clay-heavy soils or in locations where their roots will be constantly wet. Beach plums are beautiful, tough and produce delicious fruit and yet this productive shrub is overlooked by many growers. Plums are used as a fresh fruit and can also be used in manufacturing jam or other recipes. Plum trees prefer sandy loam to loamy soils and will do reasonably well in other soils provided they are well drained. Check the drainage by digging a hole 1 foot (0.30 m) deep and filling it with water. Plums should really only be planted in a prime location featuring all of the following characteristics. If you live in an area with cold winters, consider an American hybrid plum variety (like the alderwood plum), some of which can do well in temperatures as cold, like those found in USDA hardiness zone 3. Another is Methley. They are extremely adaptable having a native range that stretches across the Northeast, the Southeast, and over through the prairies up to North Dakota. Most trees in the plum family come in sizes to suit all gardens. Miscellaneous Soil. Plums are packed with a variety of nutrients such as minerals and vitamins that add a great deal of nutritional value and healthy benefits. But sites also need to be well drained as plums, and gages in particular, hate waterlogged soils. But what damson plums lack in terms of fresh-off-the-tree eating, they make up for in jams, jellies, and preserves! Plant your plum trees in a well-drained, wind-sheltered, full sun location. Michigan grows more of the European style prune plums like the Stanley variety but you can also find the Japanese varieties grown in the state. Three of the key varieties include: Angeleno, with its purple skin, Larry Ann, with its intense red skin, and the dark Black Amber. Common cultivars grow wild around ancient centers of human habitation, suggesting plums may be among the earliest crops cultivated by people. But 87 countries in all have some commercial plum cultivation, an indication of how adaptable plum trees are to diverse locations. Here in Central Texas where we’re looking at 700-600 hours of winter chilling (hours below 45°), there are a couple of varieties that do well. The Species: Prunus Americana is just one of several species of native plums. Plums are a versatile group of species with the commercially significant plum trees being medium-sized and are mostly pruned to five or six meters high. Germany, Romania, and Chile also grow the edible fruit in large numbers. 95% of the plum production in the US comes from California because they have the best climate conditions to foster the growth of plum trees. There are three basic types of plums: European, Japanese and American. masuzi April 6, 2020 Uncategorized 0. Space standard trees at 20 to 25 feet apart, semi-dwarf at 12 to 15 feet apart and dwarf trees at 8 to 12 feet apart. Trees grow best in deep sandy loam soils with good drainage, but are tolerant of a wide range of soils. The plum tree flowers in early spring with approximately 50% of the flowers being pollinated and developing to become plums within a year. The Japanese plum, probably originating in China, was introduced into the United States in 1870. Best Climate for Growing Plum Trees Plum trees are very hardy, and many varieties can handle cold winters. Add bulky organic matter to sandy or shallow chalky soils prior to planting. Growing wild plums is easy in North America, as they are very adapted to many types of regions. The fruit is more pointed at the apex than that of the common European plum, and its varieties are yellow or light red but never purplish-blue. Learn about growing purple leaf plum trees purple pony plum trees at nature how to grow the purple leaf plum tree purple leaf plum trees growing care. Plums require full sun and well-drained, sandy soil in order to thrive. Sunny spot, with excellent air circulation. Plums blossom during different months in different parts of the world for instance in Taiwan they blossom around January while in the United Kingdom they blossom in early April. Planting plum trees on mounds or ridges (5’ or more wide, approximately 6” high after soil settling) helps if the soil is heavier or is generally wetter than optimum. Training and Pruning Japanese and American Plums and Hybrids. The plum's subgenus is differentiated from other subgenera species such as bird cherries, peaches, and cherries in the shoots having individual side buds and terminal bud, the flowers in groups of one to five congenial on short stems and fruits that have a groove running down one side with a smooth pit or stone. Plum trees grow best in areas with minimal summer rain, low humidity, and winter moisture. The climate that is too dry can hinder the development of plums past a certain stage, and instead, the fruits start to fall off from the tree while they are still small. Where Do Purple Leaf Plum Trees Grow. Japanese seedlings usually have several branches. Use organic or good a garden soil. A prune is a dried plum of any cultivar, mostly the European plum (Prunus domestica).Use of the term "prune" for fresh plums is obsolete except when applied to varieties (of plum) grown for drying.. All maps, graphics, flags, photos and original descriptions © 2020 worldatlas.com, The World’s Largest Oil Reserves By Country, Top Cotton Producing Countries In The World. Feed with a mulch of high nitrogen fertiliser in spring. Other top plum producing countries include the United States, Turkey, Iran, India, Spain, and Italy. Care for home-grown plum trees in the same way as trees purchased at a plant nursery by watering, fertilizing, and pruning regularly. There are two main commercial types of plums: the European plum (Prunus domestica) and the Japanese plum (Prunus salicina), each having many varieties. If the plums are not harvested early enough before they are ripe, the fruit could be attacked by brown rot fungus. Humid conditions foster disease problems in many plum varieties. Most plum production occurs in Tulare and Fresno counties within the San Joaquin Valley (USDA 2014). Plum trees grow in a variety of climates, though the majority of the fruit that is commercially produced hails from Europe, Asia, and North America. Methely: Prolific crops of red fleshed fruit. Because we import a lot of fruit in this country, you can find plums in the store year round. 4. If the soil retains water, it might cause your tree’s roots to rot. As long as where you live is within the climactic conditions of the USDA plant hardiness zones 3 to 10, there is a species of plum tree you can grow successfully, as long as the tree is planted and tended properly. Plum fruits contain antioxidants which may be helpful in treating cancer, diabetes, and obesity. Plant plum trees in loamy, well-drained soil. Plum trees grow best in U.S. Department of Agriculture hardiness zone 3–8. The plum fruit has a smooth peel and a natural waxy surface that is attached to the flesh. Wind can also damage blossoms, so choose a planting location protected from strong winds. 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