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Plum (Prunus domestica)

AI-generated illustration — check edibility and toxicity notes, never eat from the picture alone.

Plum

Prunus domestica

EdibleZones 4–8canopyunderstory

Crops young and heavily. Prune only in summer to avoid silver leaf, and thin the fruit in a glut year so branches don't break.

Prunus domestica is a species of flowering plant in the family Rosaceae. A deciduous tree, it includes many varieties of the fruit trees known as plums in English, though not all plums belong to this species. The greengages and damsons also belong to subspecies of P. domestica.

Description from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).

At a glance

Sunlight
Full sun
Water need
Medium
Mature height
4 m
Maintenance
Medium
Hardiness
USDA 4–8
Layers
canopy, understory

Functional roles

foodfruit

Pollination & soil

Needs a pollination partner

Varies by variety; some (e.g. Victoria) are self-fertile, many need a partner.

Soil
medium/loam, heavy/clay
pH
Neutral

Fine on heavier soils; likes moisture but not waterlogging.

Propagation

How to make more of this plant for free — the permaculture way.

graftingsuckersmoderate

When: Graft late winter; lift suckers when dormant

Cultivars

Buy the cultivar, not just the species. “Ready” means its size and pollination are sourced; anything else needs confirming with the supplier first.

  • VictoriaConditional

    Self-fertile, so one tree crops. Thin the fruit in a heavy year or the branches break, and prune only in summer to avoid silver leaf.

    Uses
    dual, preserve
    Mature spread
    Not yet checked
    Pollination
    self-fertile

    Pollination: Keepers Nursery, NIAB

    • no sourced footprint: neither its own habit nor a compatible rootstock gives usable dimensions.

Prune in summer to avoid silver leaf.

Seed data pending expert review. Identification photo and description are sourced from Wikipedia/Wikimedia; always confirm a plant in person before eating any part of it.