Plums
Pollination seems to be an issue with plums locally. There are years when we and other growers have prolific flowering with little fruit set, then other years when many plums are produced.
Brookred
This is a small (1 to 1 1/4" in diameter) but tasty plum. It is free stone and begins to fall from the tree as soon as it is ripe, but the flavor continues to improve in those plums that hang onto the tree. It has an intermediate bloom time, overlapping somewhat with Manchester, Lee Red and Vic Red. It ripens after Dave's Yellow Plum but earlier than Vic Red.
Dave's Yellow Plum
A seedling plum discovered by Dave Rankin of Anchorage. It is small (about 1" in diameter), bright yellow when ripe, free stone and tasty. The skin does not have the bitterness that some plum skins do.
It appears to be quite hardy (as plums go) and grows vigorously. It flowers and ripens earlier than most of the other plums.
We haven't had success grafting it directly onto American Plum rootstock, so we haven't had any to sell. We will try othe rootstock. In our orchard it is growing as a branch on a brookred.
Lee Red 2014
Lee Red
This was the first plum tree of ours to produce a small crop. The fruit are red and fall from the tree when ripe.
They are good to eat before fully red. About 1” in diameter, slightly oblate and freestone. Flesh is sweet and juicy and skin has a nice tangy flavor.
Tree seems vigorous, with abundant waterspouts. Seems fully hardy in our location and a very fast growing tree on Prunus salicina rootstock. However, it died, possibly die to rootstock incompatibility as the root was about twice the diameter of the scion when it died. Have since planted another on P. Americana. Early flowering, so a good pollenizer for Manchester.
Manchester
Small orange-red purple plum, great tasting with a very nice texture and free stone.
Hard to graft. Slow growing. Early flowering.
Vic Red from our orchard, 2020
Top photo by Vic Johanson.
Vic Red
This is a graft from a an American Plum (P. americana) seedling planted and grown by Vic Johanson. Prolific fruiting, tight upright habit with narrow branching may make management a challenge. Vigorous growing variety, late flowering and late ripening, there is almost no overlap in flowering time with Manchester.
The fruit is larger than many that we grow, about 2 to 2 1/2" in diameter. The fruit begins falling from the tree in late August or early September, but the flavor continues to improve until late September. This is not a freestone plum.
Assiniboine Plum
A large plum, oblate, about 2” long. Generally a slow growing tree, but ours is growing vigorously, and doing well on P. americana rootstock. Although our trees have done well, 2020 was the first year that we got some actual ripe plums. Like the tree and the blossoms, the plums are visual stand-outs, bright red and shiny. They have thick skins and soft, tart flesh that most people don't find terribly appealing for fresh eating.
Although this tree was slow to fruit, we have been glad to have Assiniboine in our orchard because, with its red sepals, white blossoms and lovely shape it is simply beautiful. The year that we finally got fruit we also had flowers on Pembina, Isaac and Brookred plum trees, so perhaps those were the successful pollinizers, or perhaps it just took a long time for the tree to be ready to fruit. Pembina is a likely pollenizer, because, like Assiniboine, it is a Prunus nigra variety, or maybe Prunus salicina - depending on which source you are relying on. .
Assinboine plums, September of 2020
We have also grafted and have for sale Pembina plums. This is a new-to-us variety so we don't have pictures or detailed information, but you can read more about it here: https://wintercovefarm.com/pembina-plum/.
Isaac, and Brookgold are also grown in Fairbanks, and we will add information as we can. Isaac appears to flower quite early, as does Dave's Yellow Plum.
Varieties Currently Grown in Anchorage
Superior
A plum tree for northern gardens. This robust tree produces abundant crops of fire-red fruit with sweet, juicy, yellow flesh. Dessert plums like these are ideal for eating fresh off the tree. Cold-hardy. Clingstone. Ripens in August. Tree is vigorous, a good pollinator of later-blooming plums, very precocious, fruits resistant to brown rot, dark red, very large, firm, juicy, clingstone sweet yellow flesh. Excellent for fresh eating, ripens late August in Idaho. Hardy to –34F in MN.
Alderman
Here’s a delicious, large, Japanese-style plum that is so cold-hardy, it will gladly bear huge crops of beautiful, red plums even after the coldest winters! Developed in Minnesota, Alderman yields fruit as early as one year after planting. Burgundy-red skin gives way to golden flesh, which is sweeter than most other Japanese plums. Tree: somewhat spreading, vigorous, and precocious. Large, white, profuse flowers. Bloom date is mid to late; best pollinated by South Dakota or Superior, but Waneta and Toka okay. Fruits 2” across, dark red skin, golden sweet, juicy flesh, clingstone, very good eating and keeps well. Ripe about Sept. 1-5 in central MN.
Toka
Upright growing habit, narrow leaves, excellent pollinator for early to mid-season blooming plums. Fruits small to medium sized, bright red with aromatic yellow flesh, moderately juicy, candy-like sweetness. Pits are freestone when fruit is ripe. Ripens late August in central MN and has fruited in Fairbanks, Alaska although unable to ripen fully there. A.k.a. Bubble Gum Plum. One earned a place in the orchard. Does not shed its leaves in the fall, and maybe doesn't harden off adequately in Fairbanks. We do have one of these planted in the orchard. It grows a lot each year, does not lose its leaves, and then experiences die back each winter. We are considering grafting another variety on to see if that will encourage it to get ready for winter.
Other Plum Varieties that may be viable in Alaska:
Waneta
Early and super juicy! Bite into one of these large red-skinned plums to reveal its sweet and juicy yellow flesh. Enjoy delicious plums sooner in the summer with Waneta. Start harvesting in late August through September. Trees are prolific producers so you’ll have plenty of plums for snacks, desserts and canning. One of the largest Japanese-American hybrids available. Enormous clingstone fruit with sweet golden flesh. Upright to spreading tree, satisfactory pollinator in MN for Toka and Alderman, productive and precocious bearer of 1-1/2” to 2” large, dark red skinned, pointy plums with orange, sweet, moderately juicy flesh, pick when firm. Very reliable in bearing.
Seneca
Tree is upright, precocity average, partially self-fertile, blooms with Opal but ripens late Aug. in SW Idaho. Fruit is very large, reddish purple skin, oval shape, attractive; flesh is amber, firm, fine-grained, quality good; fruit is slightly susceptible to brown rot under MN conditions. Excellent for fresh eating and drying.
Pipestone
Very large fruit with red skin. The flesh is golden-yellow, sweet, juicy, clingstone and of excellent quality. Very hardy and a heavy yielder. Needs cross pollination by another red variety. Tree upright to spreading, vigorous; pollen is sterile. Fruits large, with deep red, tough skin that peels easily. Yellow flesh is excellent quality. Has been pollinated successfully by Superior and Alderman in central MN, or consider Toka or South Dakota as pollinators. Ripe mid to late August in central MN.
McLaughlin
This is a large yellow plum with very sweet flesh. Pies, August.
Pembina
This is a dark red plum with orange flesh that is soft, juicy, and sweet. It is good for jam and canning. Ripens: Late August to Early September. Eating, canning. We have a few of these that seem to be doing alright, but growing slowly. No fruit yet. .
Tecumseh
Medium size with red skin and yellow flesh. A good quality plum that is juicy and sweet, Baking, Eating, Sauce. Mid August.We have one that has been alive for 3 years and now is above the snow line, It is alive, but not thriving.
LaCrescent
Upright to spreading vigorous tree, blooms late with superior frost tolerance. Fruits are 1-1/4 inch diameter, yellow with pink blush, tender yellow, thin, non-astringent skin, sweet yellow flesh with apricot-like flavor, juicy, small nearly freestone pit. Ripens late July in central WA, early to mid August in central MN.