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nafex - Re: [NAFEX] plums

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  • From: "Donna &/or Kieran" <holycow@cookeville.com>
  • To: "North American Fruit Explorers" <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [NAFEX] plums
  • Date: Thu, 31 Aug 2006 22:11:39 -0500

Regarding Thomas Olenio's recomendation of cherry plums; We picked a bunch of these plums in 1980 in the High Plains of New Mexico, and they were absolutely wonderful! I figured out that they were some of those cherry plum crosses, but the books say they get too much brown rot if grown in the east. So I have never tried them here, nor have I ever met anyone else growing them. Basically, most of the plums I have seen do well in Tennessee were seedlings of wild plums. I note that Japanese types are more resistant to curculio if they can get through the frosts, which is a rare occurance.
I have picked from several blue Europeans and over in the Tennessee Valley I knew of two places where there were yellow European plums. The Europeans never seemed to have curculio damage and tended to crop pretty regular. I got suckers of both types, but they just won't grow in our poor acid clay. I started out with 5 trees and am down to 3. None have grown. By contrast, I have another European sent to my by Michael Pavalek in Mechanicsburg PA on peach rootstock (which I read this winter is an impossible combination) and the tree nearest the garden has actually grown some, not that it has actually bloomed yet in 5 years. Michael said that everyone in his area grew the "German Prune" till black knot came through and killed the lot. He found one tree that was resistant, and has a seedling of it too. Peaches do better in our soil, but they have the worst curculio problem. I have moved one of yellow plums next to the garden where I hope it will take off. Donna




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