Friday, August 16, 2013 at 5:57 p.m. & Sunday, August 18, 2013 at 9:35 a.m. I'm Charlie Nardozzi and this is the Vermont Garden Journal. Logan Smith once said, "What is more mortifying than to feel that you have missed the plum for want of courage to shake the tree? Plums are special and second only to apples as a cultivated fruit. There are different types of plums, but most are small trees that fit in any sized yard. The native plum of the Americas is a hardy, tough tree or bush that early colonists found along the shores. The European plum beckons from Russian, and spread throughout Europe and into America in the 1700's. The Japanese plum is a more tender species from Asia.
The best plums for Vermont are the American hybrids, such as Alderman and Waneta, that are hardy to zones 3 and 4. If you live in zone 5, try some of the European varieties, such as 'Green Gage' and 'Mt. Royal'. It's best to buy two different varieties within the the same group to pollinate and produce an abundance of fruits. Europeans and Americans don't cross pollinate each other. Some varieties such as 'Mt Royal' are self-fertile, but even it will produce more with a friend growing within 100 feet.
Plums bloom early and are susceptible to late spring frosts. Ideally plant on an eastern-facing slope to delay flowering. Plums are easy to grow, but do have some issues. To prevent alternate bearing of fruits (one year a glut, followed by few fruits the next year), thin plums when small to be spaced 4 inches apart, prune annually in winter and fertilize in spring with a balanced organic plant food. Prune out any signs of black knot disease, sterilizing your pruner between cuts. Control plum curculios by letting chickens feed on them under trees and spraying kaolin clay on the leaves.
And now for this week's tip, now is a good time to refresh bark mulch in flower gardens and pathways. Remember to weed the areas well before mulching so next spring you'll have less work to do.
Next week on The Vermont Garden Journal I'll be talking about the mosaics of Montreal. Until then, I'll be seeing you in the garden.
Resources:
Plum Curculio Control
Growing Stone Fruit in New York
