Growing the Hollywood Plum Tree

Size and Appearance

The Hollywood Plum is a deciduous tree, typically growing to around 12 feet in height and spread, reaching that size within 10 years. Fast-growing, it will probably have its first crop of plums after just 2 or 3 years, so you won’t be waiting long. Within 5 years you will have big crops, and mature trees can produce a harvest approaching 100 pounds from just one tree. It is unusual for a fruit tree, because the blossoms, which appear on the bare branches in March or April, are as beautiful as most ornamental flowering plums or cherries. They are carried in dense clusters, charming single blossoms with 5 spreading petals, colored the most wonderful spring pink. Before falling they tend to turn to a bright, white-pink. Almost as soon as the petals fall, the leaves emerge, and these are oval, with a pointed tip and serrated edges, about 3 inches long. They are purple when young, turning copper-purple through summer, of great ornamental value, and then in fall exploding into powerful burgundies and dark purples. At first hidden among the leaves, you will soon see the plums growing and developing. Depending on where you are, the first will ripen between late June and early August. The plums are large, round to oval, with blood-red skin and flesh, and a stone that just falls away. They are sweet, juicy and delicious, perfect for eating fresh, slicing into fruit salads, baking into pies, muffins and cakes, and of course for making delicious jams and preserves.

This tree is partially self-fertile, so it will deliver you a respectable crop when grown alone. For the biggest harvest, though, it is best to plant another suitable plum tree. Blooming at a different time, European plums are not suitable. Choose instead a Japanese variety, such as Morris, Bruce, Burbank, or Methley. These will also give you bumper harvest when grown together. If you already have a purple-leaf plum in your garden as an ornamental, it might also act as a pollinator.

Using the Hollywood Plum Tree in Your Garden

With its attractive foliage and pink blooms, this is one fruit tree that can stand proud in an ornamental garden – no need for an orchard. Grow it on a lawn as a specimen, or at the back of a shrub bed.

Hardiness

The Hollywood Plum is hardy in zone 5, and because it needs only 400 chilling hours a year (time with temperatures below 45 degrees and above freezing), it can be grown right in zone 9 – a tree for everyone, everywhere, and ideal for plum lovers in hot states.

Sun Exposure and Soil Conditions

Grow the Hollywood Plum in full sun, both for leaf color and fruit ripening. It grows happily in any well-drained soil, including sandy places and alkaline soils. Plum trees are among the very easiest of fruit trees to grow, and very rewarding.

Maintenance and Pruning

Although some pest and disease issues are to be expected with fruit trees, the Hollywood Plum is generally free of any serious problems, especially when compared to peaches and most other fruit trees. Not much pruning is needed, but after harvesting your crop it is useful to trim back long side shoots (over 12 inches) to about 6 inches long. Nothing else is needed, except to remove some of the branches inside the tree if it gets too dense. Don’t over-prune, as this can affect both flowering and ripening. If you want really big plums, thin-out to just one per cluster when they are still small.

History and Origin of the Hollywood Plum Tree

There are several different species of plums, often similar in appearance to beginners. The European cherry plum, or myrobalan, Prunus cerasifera, is one that produces small, edible fruits, and it has a purple-leaf variety called Pissardii (or Atropurpurea). This is named after the French gardener who found it in the garden of the Shah of Persia (modern Iran) in the 1870s. In the 1880’s the famous fruit breeder Luther Burbank brought Japanese plum, Prunus salicina, to America, and used it in many of his hybrid plums. In 1936 L.L. Brooks of Modesto, California, released a plum tree they called Hollywood, which had been discovered locally in 1932. It is believed to be a cross between Prunus cerasifera ‘Pissardii’ and a variety of Prunus salicina called ‘Duarte’, which has red-fleshed fruits. This identification has not been fully confirmed, and some suggest it could be a re-naming of one of Luther Burbank’s purple-leaf plum varieties.

Buying the Hollywood Plum Tree at the Tree Center

The Hollywood Plum is the perfect choice if you want an ornamental that also gives you a delicious crop – or a fruit tree that is pretty to look at. Either way you will love it, and our growers have been careful to source the correct tree for us. Ideal for plum-lovers in hot regions, this is a great tree that is rarely available. Order now while we still have some – like Hollywood stars they won’t last long.

Growing the Ozark Premier Plum Tree

Size and Appearance

The Ozark Premier Plum Tree sure grows fast, and within a few years it becomes a small tree reaching up to 20 feet tall and 15 feet wide within a decade. It begins to crop within a year or two of planting, and it has attractive fragrant white flowers all along the bare branches in spring, blooming in late March in most areas. This variety is self-fertile, so it doesn’t need a second variety to give a good crop. This is great for smaller gardens, as you only need one plum tree to enjoy fresh fruit right outside the kitchen door. A second variety will possibly give a higher yield, but alone it still carries a heavy crop each year.

A mature tree will carry up to 100 pounds of plum when it is mature, and these are large plums, well over 2 inches long, with a beautiful red to red-purple skin. Bite into the tempting fruit and sweet juice will flow from the pale yellow flesh inside. This is a semi-freestone variety, so it is easy to remove the stone, making preparation for baking and jam making much easier.

Using the Ozark Premier Plum Tree in Your Garden

Perfect for a lawn tree in a small garden, there is no reason why attractive fruit trees like this shouldn’t be part of our ornamental gardens. Grow it near the kitchen door, or at the back of shrub beds. It can be trained as an espalier on a tall fence, or planted in a screen of mixed shrubs and trees.

Hardiness

The Ozark Premier Plum Tree needs a minimum of 800 chilling hours a year, when temperatures are below 45 degrees. So only the coolest parts of zone 8 in the south and central parts of the country are suitable, or of course cooler zones. Zone 8 in the northwest has more chilling hours each winter, so it is completely suitable for this plum. It thrives everywhere in zones 5, 6 and 7.

Sun Exposure and Soil Conditions

Full sun is needed for good crops from the Ozark Premier Plum Tree. It grows well in any well-drained soil, and that includes alkaline and sandy soils, but not in places that are very dry for long periods. Add organic material when planting, and use it as a mulch to conserve water, control weed growth and feed your tree all at the same time.

Maintenance and Pruning

This tree is resistant to several of the major diseases of plum trees, and pests are normally not serious problems. Some simple pruning in late winter or after harvesting your crop will maximize production. Trim back side branches longer than 12 inches to 6 inches long, and remove any over-crowded limbs. If you want the largest plums for eating, reduce the number in the largest clusters when they are still small and green. Water regularly between flowering and harvest, especially during dry spells.

History and Origin of the Ozark Premier Plum Tree

In 1922 a plum variety called ‘Methley’ arrived in America from South Africa. It was a popular variety there, and it became popular in Texas too, but it wasn’t perfect. The fruit became soft quickly, and didn’t store well. It was also disease-prone, but for the times it was a good choice. ‘Methley’ is a cross between the myrobalan plum, Prunus cerasifera, from Europe, and the Japanese plum, Prunus salicina. The Japanese plum was already being grown in America, after being brought over by Luther Burbank, the famous fruit collector and breeder. One of the first plants he brought over was outstanding, and it became known as ‘Burbank’.

Last century breeding of plum trees was done by many different state institutions across the southern part of America, and in the 1930s and 1940s the Missouri State Fruit Experiment Station was very active. They crossed together ‘Burbank’ and ‘Methley’, and created an improved variety they called ‘Ozark Premier’. It was released in 1946.

Buying the Ozark Premier Plum Tree at the Tree Center

If you like a different plum, you will love the Ozark Premier Plum Tree. Its delicious yellow flesh is so sweet and yet tangy, and it gives such great crops without needing a pollinator it’s ideal for smaller gardens all through the cool and warmer parts of the country. Order now, because our stock of popular varieties like this one sells out so fast.

Growing the Morris Plum Tree

Size and Appearance

The Morris Plum Tree is a small deciduous tree, relatively compact, growing no more than 15 feet tall and wide, and achieving that size within a decade. It will bear fruit within 2 years, and be well-grown, with a heavy crop, within 5. When mature you can expect yields of 100 pounds of fruit from a single tree. Flowers appear by late March in warmer regions, or in early April, with charming white blossoms clustered along the bare branches. Get ready for an early harvest, because by mid-June you will be picking your crop, and unlike some other plums, this is a variety that stores well. Place ripe fruit in the fridge, and 6 weeks later it will still be in good condition. Some will even be good after a further month. No need for a ‘harvest panic’ – just take your time.

The large fruit is over 2 inches long, and carried reliably in an abundant crop. These are beautiful plums, with a glossy, rich dark-red skin and juicy red flesh. The flavor is of the highest quality, with that perfect sweet/tangy balance, and the texture is firm but soft, without the ‘mushy’ texture of many older varieties. This variety is not self-fertile, so you do need a second tree for pollination. Often ornamental flowering plums that may be growing nearby will do the trick, but otherwise plant a variety like ‘Burbank’ or ‘Bruce’ will do the job, and be mutually pollinated as well.

Using the Morris Plum Tree in Your Garden

This tree is fine as a lawn specimen, and you don’t need an orchard to grow fruit – just a garden. It can be planted at the back of a shrub bed, or as a fruiting screen mixed with other varieties.

Hardiness

The Morris Plum Tree needs a minimum of 800 chilling hours a year, when temperatures are below 45 degrees. So only the coolest parts of zone 8 in the south and central parts of the country are suitable, or of course cooler zones. Zone 8 in the northwest has more chilling hours each winter, so it is completely suitable for this plum. It thrives everywhere in zones 5, 6 and 7.

Sun Exposure and Soil Conditions

Give the Morris Plum Tree full sun for a good crop, and plant it in any well-drained soil, including alkaline and sandy soils. It is very adaptable, and untroubled by the conditions found in almost any garden.

Maintenance and Pruning

The Morris Plum Tree has moderate resistance to diseases, which are not such an issue in cooler zones, anyway. Pests are rarely troublesome, and no special pruning is needed. After harvesting your crop is the best time to prune, and simply shorten to 6 inches long side shoots that are more than 12 inches long – shorter ones need no pruning. Remove some of the interior branches to keep the structure more open and let the sun in to ripen your crop.

History and Origin of the Morris Plum Tree

People from many European countries spread out around the world in previous eras, and South Africa was a popular destination, first settled by Europeans in the 17th century. Like settlers everywhere they bought their plants with them, but European plums didn’t prove very successful there. One that was grown was the cherry plum, or myrobalan, Prunus cerasifera. It originated in southwestern Europe and eastern Asia, and produces small, red edible plums. As Luther Burbank did in America, they too brought over the Japanese plum, Prunus salicina. At some point these two species were crossed together to create a hybrid variety called ‘Methley’. It proved to be a successful grower and good cropper, and in 1922 it was brought to America, and grown in Texas, where the climate is very similar. It has the advantage of being self-pollinating, but it is prone to all the major plum tree diseases, and the fruit soon turns soft and doesn’t store well. Around 1970 plant breeders at Texas A&M University collected some fruit from a tree that had self-pollinated and grew the seeds. Among them was a tree that was more disease resistant, with better fruit texture and longer storage potential. They named it ‘Morris’ when they released it in 1974 and it became a very popular variety for both farmers and home growers.

Buying the Morris Plum Tree at the Tree Center

If you live in a warm area – not too hot and not too cold – then the Morris Plum Tree is the perfect tree for you. Enjoy its disease resistance and great storage ability, and be eating your June plums in September, and what beautiful plums they are. But order now, because this top-selling variety never stays with us long.

Growing the Burbank Plum Tree

Size and Appearance

The Burbank Plum Tree is a deciduous tree that rapidly develops a rounded crown between 10 and 20 feet tall and wide. It can be kept on the smaller side with some summer pruning or left to make a great shade or specimen tree. The oval leaves are glossy and dark green, and early spring is a big deal, with beautiful pure white blossoms studding the bare branches, looking like a piece of Japanese art. It won’t be long before those blossoms are tiny green plums that grow rapidly, until by mid-July they will be big, plump and beginning to ripen. You will be harvesting over several weeks and the fruit stores well in the fridge, so it’s a long plum season with this tree. It is not self-fertile, so you do need to have another similar variety growing within 100 feet for it to set a good crop. Neighbors might have a suitable tree, or we recommend the Alderman Plum Tree, which ripens a little later, in August, extending the season even further. Other possibilities for partners are ‘AU-Rosa’, ‘Methley’ or ‘Santa Rosa’.

The plums are almost 2 inches long, turning from green first to yellow, and then developing a deep red blush all across them, leaving just some undertones of yellow on most fruits. There is a soft blue-white bloom on the fruit, giving it an artistic look. Polish it off or eat it – it doesn’t have any taste. The flesh is rich yellow, with a great firm texture, and very juicy. The flesh is sweet with a refreshing tang and a distinctive ‘Burbank’ taste you will love.

Using the Burbank Plum Tree in Your Garden

You can plant the Burbank Plum Tree anywhere in your garden – you certainly don’t need an orchard to enjoy home grown fruit. Plant it on a lawn as a specimen or small shade tree. Grow it behind your shrub beds, or on the sunny side of a wooded part of your property. Plant a screen of mixed fruit trees for an edible hedge that will keep you in fruit for months and months.

Hardiness

The Burbank Plum Tree needs just 400 hours of chilling, with temperatures below 45 degrees, so it will grow well in zone 9, through all the southern states except right along the Gulf or in Florida. It is also hardy all the way north into zone 5, so this national treasure can be grown across almost all of the nation.

Sun Exposure and Soil Conditions

Full sun is needed to get a good crop from the Burbank Plum Tree. Plant right out in the open, not under trees or in shade. It grows well in almost any soil, just as long as it is well-drained. Add some organic material when planting, to get it off to a good start. Within a couple of seasons it will be giving you fruit, and plan for a bumper harvest by season 4 at the latest.

Maintenance and Pruning

Although diseases and pests are possible, generally this vigorous tree will grow well with minimal problems. Some simple pruning after you finish picking your crop is all that is needed. Shorten back longer branches to keep the tree compact and remove any over-crowded limbs. Shorten all side-shoots longer than 12 inches back to 6 inches. Shorter branches don’t need trimming. If you want your crop mainly for eating fresh, thin out crowded clusters to leave a plum every 5 inches – these will be very large, very juicy and delicious.

History and Origin of the Burbank Plum Tree

Although called the Japanese plum, Prunus salicina actually came from China originally. The first plants in America were from Japan, which explains the name. They were brought over by Luther Burbank in the 1880s. Burbank is an American icon, and one of the greatest fruit breeders ever. Besides developing the nectarine as a new fruit he introduced and bred many varieties that set California on the path to being America’s fruit basket. He brought over a batch of seedling Japanese plums and grew them for a while, selecting the best, and using them to breed new hybrid varieties. Among those originals was a plant that stood out, and in 1897 the American Pomological Society honored Luther by officially introducing it with the name ‘Burbank’. After more than 130 years we still have that precious heirloom tree to enjoy.

Buying the Burbank Plum Tree at the Tree Center

If you love plums you can’t be without this great heirloom variety. Lovely to look at and delicious to eat, it’s a name that catches everyone’s attention. That is why we can never keep it in stock for long, so don’t miss this chance. Increasingly rare, this variety is not often available, so order now while we still have trees to ship you.

Growing the Bruce Plum Tree

Size and Appearance

A fast-growing deciduous tree, the Bruce Plum Tree will be pushing over 10 feet tall within a few years, and could reach 20 feet tall and 15 feet wide within a decade or so. The glossy green leaves make it attractive enough to be a shade tree in a small garden, and the charming white flowers, carried on bare branches in spring, make a very pretty show, full of promise of the bumper crop to come. Blooms come a little later than on some other plum trees, helping it escape from late spring frosts which can damage the prospects of a harvest. Consequently this is a reliable tree that sets a big crop every year. This variety will only set a few fruits without another suitable plum nearby, as it is not self-fertile. We recommend you plant a second suitable plum tree nearby, such as ‘Morris’, ‘Burbank’, or ‘Methley’. If you only have room for one plum tree in your garden, check out the Au Rosa Plum, a compact self-fertile variety that give a great crop.

The plums grow and develop fast, ripening by mid-June, before the really hot and dry weather arrives. So spring and early summer rains plump them up, giving you a large 2-inch plum with bright red to orange skin and orange-yellow flesh, and a delicious sweet yet tangy flavor. The flesh is yielding, so it’s great for eating fresh, but it also cooks beautifully into cakes and pies, as well as making delicious jam.

Using the Bruce Plum Tree in Your Garden

Urban gardening is the big thing today, and the Bruce Plum Tree is great for that, because it’s tough and reliable, needs little attention and sets a big crop every year. Grow it out on a lawn as a specimen, or, instead of a boring hedge, grow a line of fruit trees – edible hedge anyone? It is also useful at the back of your shrub beds, or of course in a dedicated orchard area.

Hardiness

The Bruce Plum Tree only needs 500 chilling hours over winter – that’s time when the temperature is below 45 degrees. So that means that throughout Georgia, and everywhere north of the Gulf coast and Florida, you can grow this tree easily. Yet it is also hardy in zone 5, so don’t worry, just plant it.

Sun Exposure and Soil Conditions

Full sun is needed for good blooming and for fruit ripening, but beyond that pretty much anything goes. Almost all well-drained soils are suitable for the Bruce Plum Tree, including more sandy soils as well as heavier ground and even urban conditions. Plums are among the easiest fruit trees to grow, and a great way to start an orchard.

Maintenance and Pruning

From the moment the Bruce Plum Tree was developed it was obvious that this was a variety with excellent resistance to diseases. Any bugs or pests will be easy to control with soap spray or neem oil spray – both harmless to you and your family. Complex pruning isn’t needed with this tree, so it’s a great tree to get started with fruit growing. Just remove a few branches to keep it from getting overcrowded, and shorten back side shoots longer than 12 inches to encourage more blooms. Prune in late winter or in summer after harvesting the last plums.

History and Origin of the Bruce Plum Tree

Luther Burbank was one of the world’s greatest fruit breeders, and he introduced many new plants into America towards the end of the 19th century, and bred many more. When it was found that the European plum brought over by the early settlers didn’t grow so well in the West, he brought the Japanese plum, Prunus salicina, over from Japan, although that tree actually originated in China. It was one of the original seedlings he brought over in 1888, christened ‘Abundance’, that is the prime parent of the Bruce Plum Tree. We don’t know exactly who A. L. Bruce of Donley, Texas was, but in the 1920s he crossed ‘Abundance’ with the wild Chickasaw plum, Prunus angustifolia. That plant grows wild across most of southeastern and central America, down into Florida and across to Texas, and was eaten by native Americans. Among the seedlings of this cross was one that caught his eye, and that was released in 1929 as ‘Bruce’, becoming a popular plum for home growers as well as commercial farmers.

Buying the Bruce Plum Tree at the Tree Center

If ‘hot, dry summer’ sounds like you, then the Bruce Plum Tree sounds like your kind of tree. Imagine pulling out a jar of your own jam in the depths of winter, and tasting all that summer goodness you grew so easily. But order now, as this popular variety is always in high demand, and our stocks soon sell out.

Growing the Au Rosa Plum Tree

Size and Appearance

The Au Rosa Plum Tree is a deciduous flowering tree that grows rapidly to around 15 feet tall and 10 feet wide. It forms an upright tree with dark green leaves, and begins cropping at an early age. It has white flowers around the end of March, and these develop into baby plums easily, with no need for another variety of plum for pollination. Cropping is heavy, and within 4 years it could be producing 50 pounds of plums, with older trees soon giving 100 pounds. The plums are over 2 inches across, with a dark red skin and yellow flesh. This is a clingstone variety, with sweet, delicious flesh with a great flavor and lovely texture. The plums ripen in late June, and you can look forward to reliable annual crops when you plant this carefully bred variety. Unlike most older varieties, this plum stores relatively well, keeping for 6 weeks in the fridge almost perfectly, and still acceptable after 9 weeks. Eat it fresh, stew it for desserts, bake it into cakes or turn it into preserves and jams – this is a wonderful and easy fruit that you will love having available from your garden.

Using the Au Rosa Plum Tree in Your Garden

Because it doesn’t need a second variety, and because it is tough and disease resistant, the Au Rosa Plum Tree is ideal for smaller gardens, and for growing among your flowers and bushes. Plant it on a lawn, or at the back of a flower bed to enjoy the spring blooms. Grow it along a fence or as a screen, perhaps mixed with other fruit trees as a home orchard.

Hardiness

The Au Rosa Plum Tree needs 700 chilling hours each winter, with temperatures below 45 degrees. This means it is reliable in zone 7 and in northern parts of zone 8 with cooler winters. It has not been widely tested in cold regions, but there doesn’t seem any reason, given its relationship to the Santa Rosa Plum, that it wouldn’t be reliable and hardy at least in zone 5.

Sun Exposure and Soil Conditions

Grow this tree in full sun for the best and biggest crops. It will grow in most ordinary soils that are well-drained, and it is much less particular about soil than many other fruit trees. Alkaline soils are fine, and really, anywhere that isn’t constantly wet and soggy.

Maintenance and Pruning

Specifically bred and selected for disease resistance, the Au Rosa Plum Tree is remarkable. In trials it proved to be completely free of all important plum diseases including (wait for it. . .): bacterial fruit spot; bacterial leaf spot; bacterial canker; black knot; brown rot; and plum leaf scald. It was the only variety to have zero presence of all these diseases in a trial that included all the important plum varieties.

History and Origin of the Au Rosa Plum Tree

The Japanese plum, Prunus salicina, actually originated in China, but the first plants in America came from Japan. They were brought over by that America genius of fruit breeding, Luther Burbank, in the later decades of the 19th century. Since then it has been used to create the many varieties that are used for most commercial plum growing. Burbank used it along with other species, probably Prunus simonii, the apricot plum from China, and the wild American plum, Prunus americana, to make many hybrids. The most outstanding is the variety called ‘Santa Rosa’, widely grown, but not very disease resistant. In the 1980s Dr. J. D. Norton and his team of breeders and researchers at the Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station, part of Auburn University, started plum breeding. They produced a range of varieties all with ‘AU’ in their names. Perhaps the most outstanding is ‘AU-Rosa’, which has as parents the Santa Rosa Plum and a variety of the Chickasaw plum, Prunus angustifolia. That plant grows wild across most of southeastern and central America, down into Florida and across to Texas, and was eaten by native Americans. The variety you used was an experimental one called ‘Starcher No.1’. After several generations of breeding they had what they wanted – the tree we call Au Rosa Plum.

Buying the Au Rosa Plum Tree at the Tree Center

We are totally amazed at how good this plum is, and how disease resistant. The trees have a good productive life, and make a great addition to your garden. Everyone is searching for these Auburn University plums, they are getting such good reviews, and the Au Rosa Plum is the top variety. We were lucky to find these plants, and if you act quickly, and order right away, you can be lucky too. But don’t wait, or they will all be gone.

Growing the All Red Plum Tree

Size and Appearance

The All Red Plum Tree is a deciduous flowering tree that will grow between 2 and 3 feet a year when young, soon becoming a handsome feature and ultimately reaching up to 25 feet tall or more, with a broad spread. The bark is smooth and glossy on young stems, dark reddish-brown, turning more rough and rugged on older stems and the main trunk. It flowers early and profusely, in March or April, with the flowers opening just as the first baby leaves are showing. The blossoms are each about 1-inch across, dark pink in bud, opening to charming bowls of 5 broad petals, colored light pink. A tree in bloom is a delightful sight and a true ‘welcome’ to another spring season. The leaves expand as the flowers fade, and they are 1½ to 2½ inches long and about 1 inch wide, oval, with fine, soft ‘teeth’ along the edges and a pointed tip. They have a satin-gloss surface and young leaves are a rich wine-red. As the leaves mature they turn more purple, and this color is held well into summer, although in very hot areas they may become more greenish by August.

The fruits of the All Red Plum Tree are relatively small, about 1 inch across, but they are often carried in abundance. Unlike many other plum varieties, this one is self-fertile, and a single tree carries a good crop. The fruit is truly ‘all-red’, because both the skin and the flesh are rich, dark red. The crop is ready in late June or July – well before most other plums are ripe. The flavor is sweet and tangy, and delicious. You will find yourself popping them into your mouth like cherries. They also cook well, into compotes or pies, or they make delicious preserves and jams.

Using the All Red Plum Tree in Your Garden

Truly a dual-purpose tree, you can grow this tree everywhere in your garden, from a suitable spot right beside your home, to the edges of wooded areas, the back of shrub beds, or in your dedicated orchard area.

Hardiness

The All Red Plum Tree needs only 350 chill hours during winter, times when temperatures are below 45 degrees. So it will grow, bloom and fruit well even in zone 9, while the tree is tough enough to certainly survive winters in zone 5. Almost wherever you live, this tree can live with you.

Sun Exposure and Soil Conditions

Full sun is best to develop the leaf colors and ripen the plum of this tree. It will grow well in any well-drained soil, even poorer urban soils, and in different soil types, including alkaline soils, where often the choices of trees are more limited. It has some moderate drought resistance, and given that the crop is going to be over before summer drought arrives, you can rely on an established tree to handle it without much problem.

Maintenance and Pruning

This tree is relatively pest and disease free, especially for a fruit tree, so it’s unlikely you will need to worry about that. Birds can be a problem with many fruit trees, but fortunately, with the All Red Plum Tree, the fruit is largely hidden by the leaves, and since the plums and leaves are the same color, birds generally don’t notice them, and you can gather an easy harvest. Prune for shape and to prevent overcrowded branches, as you would any flowering tree, and shorten new shoots a little so that they don’t break with the weight of the crop they will carry the next year.

History and Origin of the All Red Plum Tree

This tree is a selected form of a tree Prunus divaricata, which is often seen in gardens as the cherry plum, or myrobalan, Prunus cerasifera. These trees are probably in fact simply varieties of the same species. It grows wild throughout Central Asia, from the Caucus Mountains to Iran and even further east. The country of Iran at one time had an absolute, king-like ruler called the Shah. The Shah of Iran in the late 19th century had a French head-gardener at his palace, Monsieur Pissard. In the hills around Tehran he found a plant of cherry plum with pink flowers, while all the other wild trees had white ones. As well, the leaves were red, not green. In 1880 he sent the plant to France, where it became popular and was soon spread around the world. At first called atropurpurea, today we should correctly call it, ‘Pissardii’.

Buying the All Red Plum Tree at the Tree Center

Every garden should be both beautiful and productive. Make yours that way by planting the All Red Plum Tree in it. Fruit production shouldn’t be hard, and with this tree it truly isn’t. But order right away, because this popular tree is loved by all gardeners, and our supply will be gone very soon.

Growing the Alderman Plum Tree

Size and Appearance

The Alderman Plum Tree is a small deciduous tree that grows rapidly, soon maturing and developing into an upright tree that can become 20 feet tall and 15 feet wide. The dark reddish-brown bark is glossy when young, and the leaves are glossy too, making an attractive ornamental tree. The white flowers appear in early spring, and the fruits begin to develop as soon as the petals fall. This plum needs to be pollinated by another plum variety, but often wild plum trees in the surrounding area will do the job for you. Otherwise, plant another plum variety nearby.

The fruit of the Alderman Plum is abundant, and mature trees can carry 100 pounds of fruit. The plums are large, with a bright red skin. The flesh is yellow, and very sweet and juicy, while still with that wonderful tangy ‘plum’ flavor. This is a clingstone variety. This tree will have its first plums within a couple of years, and they ripen in late August. The fruit will last a short time in the fridge, and of course it can be canned or made into jams and preserves.

Using the Alderman Plum Tree in Your Garden

Pretty enough to grow in your flower garden, the Alderman Plum Tree could be planted on a lawn or at the back of a shrub bed. It can be grown in a home fruit garden too, or planted in a row with other fruit trees as an attractive screen for your vegetable garden.

Hardiness

When we say the Alderman Plum Tree is hardy, we mean it. It grows well in zone 4, without any winter damage. Even in zone 3 it is an excellent choice, passing winter well and carrying heavy crops. Plums don’t need the hot summers that many other kinds of fruit need. It will also grow well in warm areas, all the way through zone 7.

Sun Exposure and Soil Conditions

A spot in full sun is best for the Alderman Plum Tree, and that will give you the best bloom and fruit crop. It grows well in most soils, enjoying richer soils like loams and light clays, as long as they are well-drained. This tough plant will grow in almost every garden – just avoid low-lying wet places.

Maintenance and Pruning

Pests and diseases are not going to be major problems for your Alderman Plum Tree. It doesn’t need fancy pruning – simply keep it from becoming overcrowded and shorten back long branches to keep it compact. Prune in summer to prevent disease.

History and Origin of the Alderman Plum Tree

The species of plum called Prunus salicina is usually called Japanese plum, even though it originated in China. In the late 19th century the famous American fruit tree breeder Luther Burbank brought several seedlings and young plants of this species over from Japan, where it had been grown for hundreds of years. One of those original seedlings produced excellent plums and became widely grown. In 1897 the American Pomological Society officially introduced it, with the name ‘Burbank’, in honor of the master breeder. Fruit tree breeding was carried out at many universities across the country at that time, and well into the 20th century. One center that focused on breeding for cold regions was the Minnesota Agricultural Experiment Station, part of the University of Minnesota. That research ended many years ago, but in 1986 the University released an overlooked product of the breeding program, naming it ‘Alderman’ after Professor W. H. Alderman, head of the University of Minnesota’s horticulture department in the first half of the 20th century. It is a cross between ‘Burbank’ and another variety of plum, but more details are not available.

Buying the Alderman Plum Tree at the Tree Center

For easy fruit trees in cold areas, you can’t beat plum trees. Order your plants of the Alderman Plum Tree now, because it’s widely recognized as the best plum for cold zones.

The Spring Satin Plumcot is a deciduous tree that will in time approach 20 feet tall and wide, or a little smaller if pruned regularly. It produces heavy crops of 2-inch diameter fruits, carried in clusters of 2 or 3. The fruit has a smooth, satin surface that lacks the pronounced ‘fuzz’ of an apricot, but is not as shiny as a plum. It is dark red to near black, with a moderate blue-white ‘bloom’ on the surface, and looks, well, good enough to eat. The flesh is golden yellow, turning redder when it is fully ripe. You can pick and eat the fruit according to your taste. It begins to ripen between late May and early July, depending on where you live. If picked when still firm, it has a tangy flavor you will love if you like your fruit with a bite. The longer you leave it, the softer the flesh becomes, and the more sugary and sweet it is. When the fruit is fully-ripe it is one-third sugar, and as delicious and mild as an apricot. That is the stage where most children adore it. The crop ripens over about 2 weeks, and stores for about the same time, becoming riper as you store it. This means you will have enough fruit ripe at the same time for lots of baking and making preserves – plumcot jam, anyone?

Grow the Spring Satin Plumcot in full sun, in any well-drained garden soil. Summer watering during dry periods is beneficial, and plumcots are easy trees to grow. This tree is resistant to some serious diseases that affect plums, such as bacterial leaf spot and bacterial canker, so it is easy to grow, and vigorous. It does need a pollinator to develop a good crop, and we recommend planting it with the Santa Rosa Plum, which is an ideal pollinator, flowering at exactly the same time. The Santa Rosa Plum ripens its fruit shortly after the Spring Satin Plumcot, so they fit together perfectly to give you a long period of fruit for eating and baking.

Some pruning is beneficial, and you should develop your tree into a vase-shaped form. This means pruning to create a circle of 3 to 5 branches radiating out from an area between 18 and 36 inches above the ground. These branches should be spread out evenly, and if one seems to be growing more dominantly, cut back the end of it by a couple of feet. Remove any weak, damaged or crossing branches, and any new growth that comes at the base of the main limbs. When developing side branches, choose ones that make a broad angle to the main limbs, at 10 o’clock and 2 o’clock angles. Removing the tips from longer side-branches will encourage them to flower. Once you can see tiny fruits developing, remove as many as necessary so that each cluster has no more than 3 plums in it. If you don’t thin the fruit, they will be very small, and mostly stone.

The original plumcots were created in California, by the famous fruit breeder Luther Burbank. Although remembered today mostly for creating the nectarine, Burbank also created 100 different plums and plum hybrids. He used the Japanese plum, Prunus salicina, and crossed it with the apricot, Prunus armeniaca. This breeding took place in the late 19th century, and since then his original varieties have been used to make other, newer and better varieties. The problem with most plumcots –also known as the pluot®, is that they were bred for California, and they don’t do well in areas with colder winters (they flower too soon) or humid summers, like the southeast and parts of Texas. William R. Okie, a horticulturist at the Fruit and Tree Nut Research Center in Byron, Georgia, part of the US Department of Agriculture, wanted to develop a plumcot for the southeast. He began with trees at the Center which were hybrid plums (‘Frontier’ x [‘Queen Ann’ x ‘Santa Rosa’]), and collected seed from them, which had been pollinated by apricot trees growing nearby. He planted the seedlings in 1988, and in 1991 selected the best tree, one that was growing well in the Georgia climate, and that had delicious and beautiful fruit on it. During trials it was called BY88Z1092, which became ‘Spring Satin’ once the tree was released to nurseries.

Plumcots combine the best features of plums and apricots, and you will love growing ‘Spring Satin’ in your garden. These trees are always in high demand, so order now, while our stock lasts.

Even in warmer areas the Hanska Plum is a great choice for something unique in your garden. It is fast growing, so you won’t be waiting long to pick your first fruit, and it is beautiful in bloom, adding color and interest to your spring garden. The fruits are small, but they are abundant, and packed with powerful flavors you will adore. Eaten fresh, baked into pies, or turned into preserves, you will love having this very special fruit right from your garden, and knowing exactly how it was grown, for your peace of mind when feeding your family. Unlike other types of fruit, like apples and peaches, you don’t need an elaborate pruning program – just plant it and let it grow, and you will be picking fruit from the second year on.

Growing Hanska Plum Trees

The Hanska Plum grows rapidly into a tree about 15 feet tall, with a spreading crown. Its attractive shape and moderate size make it a wonderful shade tree too, for a smaller space, so it is the perfect dual-purpose tree. In spring the bare branches are covered in beautiful pure white blossoms, filling the air with a subtle fragrance. The leaves are between 2 and 4 inches long, oval, with a soft serrated edge. Over the summer months the fruit develops, and by late summer you will be harvesting your first fruit.

The plums are a beautiful rich red color, dusted with a pale blue powdery ‘bloom’. The flesh is golden yellow, juicy and aromatic, with a firm but delicate texture. The fruit is small, a little more than one and one-half inches across, not like an over-fed supermarket fruit from a commercial orchard, but the stone is very small, so there is lots of juicy goodness in every beautiful plum. They are delicious fresh, and when baked the subtle apricot quality is intensified, creating a unique flavor found in no other fruit.

Planting and Initial Care

The Hanska Plum should be grown in full sun, and with its rapid growth it will be a full 12 feet tall within 3 years. It grows best in well-drained soil, preferring a richer, slightly sandy soil, but thriving in almost any garden situation. This extremely hardy tree can be grown successfully even in zone 3, and it is an ideal choice for zones 4 and 5 too, where many fruit trees will not grow.

It needs no detailed pruning, but removing any dead, weak, broken or crowded stems is recommended. Longer shoots can be cut back by a few inches, to encourage a denser form. Unlike many other stone fruits, this variety is normally free of pests and significant diseases. It is self-fertile, and it will produce fruit when grown alone. For a heavier crop, plant it alongside another plum variety, preferably of the American plum.

History and Origins of the Hanska Plum Tree

Dr. Niel Hansen was a Danish-born plant breeder who worked in South Dakota around the beginning of the 20th century. At the South Dakota Agricultural Experimental Station, part of the State University, he created hundreds of fruit trees for colder climates, often using native plants and plants he had collected while exploring in China.

To create the Hanska Plum he took pollen from the Chinese Apricot-Plum (Prunus simoni), and used it to pollinate a plant of the native American Plum (Prunus americana). His goal was to create fruit that could be grown by the small farmers settling the cold north-west. He called this new plant ‘Hanska’, from the Sioux word for ‘fast’, because of its rapid growth. Many of his plants were given Sioux names, as he worked closely with many Native American people who still lived in Dakota at that time. He released his new plum in 1908. This heritage fruit was almost lost, but with the return of interest in traditional and heritage plants, it has been re-discovered as an ideal tree for gardeners in northern areas.

At the Tree Center we always take pride in offering the unusual and special, and the Hanska Plum is certainly that. We have found a limited supply of these trees, and we know they will soon be sold to the many people in colder areas looking for fruit trees they can grow. Order now, as this rare and desirable tree will soon be gone.