Plumb tree questions

[Pete S]

We have 2, 10 year old plumb trees. From the day they were planted, we have never harvested plumb one!

This year we have quite a few little hard plumbs that have shown up.

What if anything can we or should we do to help ensure a crop of plumbs?

I believe these are a Stanley variety.

Thanks!

[western mainer]

You have to plant them close 4-5 feet apart. And it would help if you had honey bees.
Brian

[500592]

I know that sometimes the fruit doesn't always set and some years you might not get any and another possibility is maybe they don't get pollinated well and I think some trees need a male and female tree so if this doesn't help I would try a google search. Western mainer I don't think you Ned to p,ant them that close my grandma has a single plumb tree and she gets nice plums from it.

[C.Wilcox]

Pete,

Did your trees bloom well? If they did and you still aren't getting any plums I would say you need another type of plum tree to cross pollinate. If they didn't bloom well I would say they're either just not mature enough yet or they may be stressed by other factors (too wet, too dry, etc.).

[jasonl6]

Fruit spikes never hurt either.Make sure it has plenty of food to feed on.

Jason

[maple flats]

We grew plums for years (a plumb tree as opposed to a slanting or leaning treegrows perfectly straight up) but have given up. They seemed to be too prove to fungus and fruit rot problems. We tried several varieties with very little success. Try peaches, if your winters don't kill the crop potential. We have successfully grown peaches for almost 30 years after co-op ext told us we couldn't. We only get about 10 years from a tree before it produces so heavy that the branches split the trunk apart even with braces under the limbs. Our best success comes from a variety called Reliance, but some others have done ok too. If you get colder than -20 F you may not be able to grow them. We used to get colder every year but with global warming we have not seen colder than -20F very often in the last 30 years.

[Ausable]

We have tried three types of Plum trees and had Serious Fungus problems on all three types - I'm giving up on Plums. Have had good luck with apples and tart cherries as long as I spray them. Have Black Elderberry that do good as long as I leave them alone and just pick the fruit when ready and they like wet feet. Guess with different fruit trees - you have to find the place where they are happy - Sun - Moisture - soil type etc... LOL - Never could figure out what the heck Plum Trees want though ---- Mike

[maple flats]

We do not need to spray peaches. In our locale apples are impossible it seems. Our fine city has decided crab apples should be planted along the streets as ornamentals. They host the pests for apples and even with spraying we do not get any that look good. We do use some for apple sauce and such but they need far too much removal of bad spots, both worms and scab, along with many deformities for eating fresh. We just gave up.
We grow peaches and pears and especially Asian pears. The Asian pear is so hard that pests do not bother it. We eat some out of hand and we can a lot. Last year we put up over 100 qts and they will likely be few if any left as the new crop is ready. We also sell fresh Asian pears at a local market and they sell very well at prices like $.50 to .75 each. Every time we take some to market the previous batch has sold out and we restock 2-3 times a week, with about 20-30 and sometimes even 50 each time. We have now about 10 Asian pear trees and they start producing in the second year. Different varieties ripen over a wide range, from mid Aug til late Nov.
We also grow 4.5 acres of blueberries. I tend the blueberries and the maple expansion while my wife does the peaches, pears, Asian pears, and a whole array of other fruits and vegies. About 2 yrs ago she wanted her own roto tiller. Now she is happy (I got her a Husky, she found our old Troy Bilt Horse too bulky and heavy)

[KenWP]

Glad somebody besides me has problems with a Troy Bilt Horse. Stupid thing hits something hard and away we go into the wild blue until I remember to take my hand off the lever.
Plumbs seem to have problems here also.Friend has some and they hardly give much. Some apples do well here and non of mine do much .I have one good apple tree but its 50 feet high and can't get to the apples before they fall. I tried a couple of the Asian pears and will see what they do. Only a couple of feet high right now.Can't get a blackberry to grow for some reason either. Is the same size as when I put it in in 2008. The mulberry keeps getting frost in the spring until this year as it started late for some reason.

[maple flats]

My old Troy bilt was designed differently, it was "shifted" into drive, high or low speed. To stop forward motion it needed to be "shifted" out. My wife's new Husky requires her to hold the handle tight to go, just let go and it stops but the engine keeps running. I liked to Troy Bilt, my wife likes the Husky. I believe all tillers now must stop forward motion when the operating lever is released, for safety.

[Justin Turco]

Hey Pete, What about some 10 10 10 or some other type of mix that adds nitrogen and other essential minerals.

I started fertalzing some blueberry bushes that weren't doing well recently and man did they take off. I use Holytone for them.

Justin

[maple flats]

My guess is that you need several things for good plums. First I suggest you thin the fruit moderately heavy. Next I suggest you prune the limbs to allow good sun and air circulation and then I suggest you study up and find the right funguscide for plums. Read and follow the label. I suggest you look on Cornell website for answers, I never had the patience and the chainsaw prevailed.

[lakeview maple]

Well ,I know a little about some stuff and alot about nothing, but I do know that if my fruit trees arent producing ,and I have quite a few,peaches, pears, apples,3 varities,300 blueberry ,plants and a bunch of other stuff,I was blessed with a green thumb and My grandpas love of gardening so here goes nothing,this fall go out and spread a couple of handfuls of 10-10-10 around the trees as wide as the crown,the widest branches if you didnt know,then next spring when the trees are pinking which is when the buds are ready to blossom go out with a 2x4 and beat the tree up along the trunk,not real hard to knock off the bark but enough to bruise it up.What you are doing is shocking the tree into producing fruit ,it is going into survival mode when you beat it,it will not hurt the tree as long as you dont knock off the bark, I was told this along time ago and it does work great.Good Luck and God Bless ,Al @LakeView Maple,and LakeView Blueberries

[maple flats]

I beat my plums up with a chainsaw. They didn't produce any! I never heard of the 2x4 idea, sounds interesting. Our problem was not in getting fruit, but in getting fruit that could be eaten. A huge majority grew a fungus.mildew/mold(?) and they weren't any good to eat.

[500592]

All you have to do is pick the blossoms off and that would be better than beaten it up

[KenWP]

The entire NE US will be beating up trees next spring now.I can see the news now.Buddy has plum trees and I can eat all the plums they produce in about 20 seconds unless they happen to have two plums. His pears have fruit but they allways split and look like Haynes.