[Arid_gardener] Fruiting plum

[Tyler Storey]

Good morning Mike,

Without a doubt, the Santa Rosa plum is the finest fruiting plum for this
area.  It's a vigorous Japanese plum, bred by Luther Burbank many years ago,
and it thrives in the desert.  It has purple-red egg-sized fruit with amber
flesh, sometimes tinged with red, excellent for fresh eating, cooking, and
for preserves.  It is reliably self-fruitful, so doesn't need a nearby
pollinating variety, and the fruit generally ripens here in the Valley
around the middle of June.  

Plant your plum in a hole dug no deeper than the plant's root-ball, and
about twice to three times as wide.  Place the tree at the same level as it
was in the container, and back fill with the native soil you took out of the
hole, with no added soil amendments.  Plums tend to some chlorosis in our
alkaline native soils, so if you want to mix in a light handful of chelated
iron or soil sulfur, it won't hurt.  

Do remove any nursery stake that came with the tree and stake it only if it
really needs it by using two stakes about a foot or more away from the tree,
set in a line perpendicular to the prevailing wind.  There's a good chance
that it won't need staked, and you will have a stronger, more vigorous tree
if you forgo the staking and allow it to lean slightly and sway in the wind.


Use your left-over soil to build an earthen dam a few inches high in a
circle (or a square, if you feel like it) about two-and-a-half feet from the
trunk.  This is your first-year watering basin. Water the tree deeply, being
certain to wet the existing root ball and the surrounding soil, then lay a
good layer of organic mulch, such as small chipped bark, keeping the mulch a
few inches from the trunk base to avoid rot.  

Don't do any pruning now, except to remove broken twigs.  The new tree needs
all its leaves and twigs to develop a strong structure, to feed itself, and
to shade itself from the Summer Sun.  If it develops twiggy growth along its
trunk, let it grow; this growth will shade and strengthen the trunk.  If it
develops sprouts from below the bud union, remove these at their point of
attachment with a quick twist and pull.

If you plant soon, as your note says, your plum tree will need some extra
attention this Summer.  Fruit trees and other non-native plants planted in
the desert at the end of April and beginning of May, don't have time to
develop the new root growth that will help them survive Summer drought and
heat.  Be certain that the root ball and surrounding soil don't dry out
completely.  For the first few weeks, keep the soil moist, though not
sopping wet.  For the balance of the Summer, water any time the soil is dry
an inch or two down, watering deeply each time.  If you see any wilting,
check the soil; if it's dry, water immediately. Water to a depth of three
feet every time you water, and your tree will develop a strong and vigorous
root system; surface sprinkling will do nothing for your tree.

If you want to fertilize the tree, water it first, then sprinkle on a
handful of all-purpose fertilizer, then water again; it won't need a lot the
first year.  

In future years, you will do some pruning to shape (not much), expand the
watering zone to the drip line of the tree, add some iron or sulfur to the
soil in Spring if the new tree leaves are pale, and throw some netting over
the developing fruit to prevent the birds from pecking it.  But the above
should get you started.

I hope this helps,
Tyler

tyler at tylerstorey.com
http://tylerstorey.com
http://tylerstorey.blogspot.com
602-738-2978

-----Original Message-----
From: arid_gardener-bounces at CALS.arizona.edu
[mailto:arid_gardener-bounces at CALS.arizona.edu] On Behalf Of mamf at cox.net
Sent: Tuesday, April 29, 2008 4:17 PM
To: arid_gardener at Ag.arizona.edu
Subject: [Arid_gardener] Question from Home-Hort WWW page

Mike
85296
mamf at cox.net

Hello, I plan on planting a plum tree soon.  In your opinion which is the
best tree for the Gilbert area and what should be done after planting, such
as, pruning, feeding, etc.

Thanks,
Mike in Gilbert.


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