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Gumming Greengage

joelchalfenjoelchalfen Posts: 2
in Fruit & veg
We planted a greengage tree nearly 5 years ago and in all that time it has flowered beautifully in Spring but then not only produced no fruit, it has rained sap from early summer and produced amber sap from various places (known as gumming, I believe) AND been attacked and covered in aphid/greenfly.   UNTIL THIS YEAR!  It still was gumming just as badly and was also covered in greenfly but IT PRODUCED WONDERFUL FRUIT!   And we were about to cut it down.  Can anyone offer any advice on how to control the gumming and greenfly?  It seems the tree does want to live on….Many thanks!

Posts

  • BobTheGardenerBobTheGardener Posts: 11,385
    edited September 2021
    I'd say 5 years before fruiting is about right for a gage/plum.
    Gum dripping from the trunk or branches of prunus species is a sign of infection or damage (eg insects etc.)  The stuff raining down is known as 'honeydew' and is the waste excreted by sap-sucking insects, which can't digest the sugars in the sap they suck.  Check for scale insects on twigs and branches as those can slowly take build-up in numbers and reduce vigour.  You can't do much about aphids other than attracting small garden birds to the tree, so hanging a bird feeder on or near the tree may help.  One of the most common issues with fruit trees is lack of water, so make sure it gets plenty and give it a few bucketfuls twice a week during any dry periods, especially late summer and autumn, as that is when the fruiting buds are forming for next year's blossom and fruit.  Other tips are to rake-up and burn or dispose of all the leaves when they fall, and keep a circle of about 1 metre diameter free of plants, especially grass and weeds, which always win the battle for the food the tree needs.  Mulching that circle with home-made compost or even bark chippings will help, as will a yearly spring sprinkling of a slow-release fertiliser, such as fish, blood & bone.  Also, never prune the tree in the wintery wet months, or you risk it getting 'Silver Leaf disease'.
    Good luck - you can't beat a ripe greengage for taste! :)
    A trowel in the hand is worth a thousand lost under a bush.
  • bertrand-mabelbertrand-mabel Posts: 2,697
    Our 2 gages also flower very well in the Spring and then little fruit is set due to frosts and few pollinators around.
    This year we managed to harvest a grand total of 10 from Reine Claude and non from the old green gage.
    Same with our peach.
    We thankfully (and hopefully this will continue) don't have problems with honeydew and aphids.
  • joelchalfenjoelchalfen Posts: 2
    This is my first post.  My first time using any such forum.  And it is a delight to get such swift and informative responses!!  Thank you both.  Watering and clearing leaves is something we can do right away.  Unfortunately it is in the centre of a smallish garden so currently the lawn may be getting preference.  But maybe we can think about that….We already have the bird feeder - which has been attracting good attention.  Main immediate question might then be on pruning - to do now or not?
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