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Valor Plum pollination
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gkowen
Rochester, WA
218 Posts
(Offline)
1
April 10, 2008 - 8:54 am

Pollination is something that still confuses me. I have a Valor plum that looks like it is going to be loaded with blossoms. One website says it is self-sterile and needs a pollinator, another says it is self fertile. Last year I did get one plum from it. I have other plums in my orchard: Santa Rosa, Satsuma, Victoria, Shiro, Italian Prune. Unfortunately, none of these are near blooming. It appears the Valor is going to be in bloom by itself. If the 4 sub 25 degree days we had last week didn't kill the virility (vitality whatever it is ??) of the blossoms, I'd like to find a pollinator. My plan is to find a compatible variety and see if I can find one potted locally to buy. I did graft one branch onto it of a pollinator called Imperial Epineuse, but it is only going to have 2 blossoms on it it appears. How would you pollinate this plum tree? Thanks for any information

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John S
PDX OR
2953 Posts
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2
April 11, 2008 - 11:04 pm

I would try to get a variety that flowers at about the same time. A lot of catalogs (One Green World, Raintree, Burnt Ridge) list their fruit trees in order of ripening. Some might list in terms of pollinating. Internet search for pollination order might work better. My two cents.
John S
PDX OR

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gkowen
Rochester, WA
218 Posts
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3
April 18, 2008 - 3:00 pm

After researching this, it seems early for my Valor plum to be in such full bloom. My Santa Rosa is just starting to bloom. I am wondering if the label on my Valor was wrong when I bought it? I hope it sets some fruit so I can find out.

On another note, its snowing in with the rain. What is this cool spring weather going to do to pollination? I have seen my mason bees working but they are all probably out looking to buy small fireplaces for their tubes. Snow and in the upper 20's for the next 2 nights.

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Viron
1409 Posts
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4
April 18, 2008 - 7:52 pm

Greg, funny – I just searched “Valor plum” on Google and first up was your post here on the forum! …Either we’re real popular, or it's a very rare variety… …Actually, it’s new!

Found this: “(H4) 1995 ~ blue, medium-sized plum. Good quality. Moderately good, regular crops. Not self-fertile. Season: late Aug.”

And this: “There are a group of plums called the prune plums. They have a very high sugar content. This is the type of plum that is dried to make prunes. But these plums also taste delicious right off the tree… …The Valor prune plum is dark purple with a greenish pulp that does very well in zones 5-7. This prune plum ripens mid-season.

Quick Facts

In general European Plums are a tree that can spread up to 20 feet wide and 20 feet tall. This plum tree prefers zones 4-9 and loves full sun with fertile well-drained soil. The white flowers bloom in the spring and plum fruit harvest time begins in late summer and runs through the fall.”

Here we go: Plums and Prunes
“There are two types of plums, Japanese and European. Most Japanese plums are used for fresh fruit only. With a few exceptions the Japanese plum is usually larger, a pleasant blend of acid and sugar and somewhat juicier. European plums are actually prunes. They have a higher sugar content which enables them to be used for drying without fermenting at the pit. As a fresh fruit they are sweeter then a Japanese plum.”

[Something we all need reminded of:]

“Japanese and European varieties of plums do not cross-pollinate. European plums have been known to be self-fertile. Two different Japanese plum varieties will be needed to produce fruit.”

So “Valor” is a European plum; and your Santa Rosa is an Asian plum. I see the branch of “Imperial Epineuse” (needs pollinator) you grafted to the Valor is a European prune/plum, but I didn’t search pollination charts… Did you buy it from Raintree? Is the Imp. Epineuse too young to have flowers?

I’ve had Satsuma, Ozark Premiers and now Shiro’s blooming much of this week; with my European ‘prunes’ just beginning to open. So your Valor does sound early for a European…

I’m dreading these killer freezes along with every other fruit grower :? I was watching some Hood River pear growers interviewed this evening on the news … considering millions of dollars in losses if it’s as cold as predicted. I guess the good deal for us amateur-armchair fruit growers is we’ve such a menagerie that if it’s a bad year for one thing – it's usually bountiful for another... Now Let it snow - let it snow - let it snow 8)

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jafarj
422 Posts
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5
April 19, 2008 - 9:18 am

Its crazy, this year most of my fruits are blooming up to a full month later than they did last year. I haven't had them long enough to learn what is normal.

I have several European plum varieties grafted to the same tree. It started as a 3 in 1 from Raintree and I've added since.

Without going outside to check in this crappy weather, I know that the Early Laxton, Seneca, Reine Claude de Bavay, Green Gage, probably Jefferson and a couple of others are in bloom. Some of them started a week ago. I think the Italian Prune is blooming too but I can't recall off hand.

My blackberries don't even show flower buds yet. My apples are at first pink. Compact Stella cherry is in full bloom, and blueberry flowers haven't opened yet.

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Rooney
Vancouver SW Washington
833 Posts
(Offline)
6
April 21, 2008 - 6:20 pm

[quote="jafarj":2xg4adyg]Its crazy, this year most of my fruits are blooming up to a full month later than they did last year. I haven't had them long enough to learn what is normal.[/quote:2xg4adyg]

The other day I couldn't help but notice the same thing that Lyle A. Brooks of Salem Oregon noticed in 1957 which is overlapping blooms of two cherry species that rarely bloom at the same time. As of this moment they are still both in full swing. It is the only species of it's kind as a single tree (ie. p. mahaleb) that I know growing around here and in previous years it had trailed sweet cherry p. avium completely. Comparing my notes to others maybe the last time this has happened was 1957, example;

[quote="Lyle A. Brooks":2xg4adyg]During the spring of 1957 a rare weather occurrence brought the bloom period of both these species together, resulting in a small portion of the seed population having Prunus mahaleb as seed parent and Prunus avium as pollen parent. . [url:2xg4adyg]http://www.google.com/patents?printsec=abstract&zoom=4&dq=cherry+mahaleb+hybrid&id=M9MqAAAAEBAJ&output=html[/url:2xg4adyg][/quote:2xg4adyg]which is according to a patent that was honored for selections of hybrid cherry rootstocks that had resulted from that 1957 event.

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