This Forum will close on Wednesday 27 March, 2024. Please refer to the announcement on the Discussions page for further detail.
Plum Tree Problems
sandra255
Posts: 65
in Fruit & veg
The previous owners of our home said they didn't get anything from their plum, pear and apple trees, so as I know next to nothing about fruit trees and had other major concerns in the new garden, I just slapped a sticky band on the trunks and left them to it. Now the plum tree looks like this, and what isn't dropping off is leeching goo, getting this blight or being pecked by birds. I'm guessing we should have thinned out the fruit. Is it too late now? And how? If I'd known it was going to be so prolific I'd have prioritised it. 
0
Posts
If you can reach them pick off the damaged rotting ones with the spots on. Dispose of them away from the garden do not compost. Remove any fallen fruit similarly. Wash your hands or rubber gloves if used before looking at any of the other fruit. It is a bacterial rot quite common. You will loose some more fruit but some may ripen ok & be useable. A winter wash spray will help for next year.
And you could thin them out even at this stage and make some pickled plums http://family-friends-food.com/pickled-green-plums-middle-eastern-springtime-treat/.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Thanks Iain R. We'll give the winter wash a try.
And thanks Dovefromabove, I'll give that recipe a try. When you say 'thin' them, do you mean pull of some of the clusters or just thin each of the clusters out?
I would thin each of the clusters out ... they'll be less congested that way so less prone to rot.
I've only done it earlier in the season myself, but if I was faced with your tree that's how I'd do it.
Fingers crossed.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Yes take out some fruit from each cluster to let in more air it will reduce the humidity & reduce the chance of the rot. Note we are saying reduce -expect some further losses. Some of these bacterial rots are cased by Fungal damage but there are no fungicides for food crops available to us amateurs any more. (Mind you who wants their fruit covered in fungicide?)
Just to add, been on Allotments & thought I better practice what I preach. Thinned my greengages as my Plum finished already. You may need to snip off the excess fruit rather than pull at the clusters as the whole lot might come off! I used a pair of pointed flower snips. If you saw Monty thinning grapes the other week on GW you get the idea- no need for fancy scissors though!