A month and a few days later, my plum trees are just starting to bloom. Warm sunny weather for the first part of the weeks should really get them going, and I will post my observations then. Very little flower buds on the two Waneta I allowed to over crop last year, go figure, but plenty on Superior which was also loaded with fruit last year.
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Here’s my list of plum bloom times, roughly in order from earliest to latest-
Superior
Underwood
Vermont
Toka
LaCrescent
Purple Heart
Waneta
Northern Blue (not)
Opal
Alderman
Burbank
Santa Rosa
South Dakota
Kaga
Prunus americana seedling
Stanley
Beach plums (at least one week later)
Hope to share a harvest report in late summer, I promise not to be as long winded as last season!
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You had a very compressed bloom- your plums were just starting to bloom 3 days ago and now your list is complete! I think the difference between my first and last was a lot longer. Toka was my last non-Euro plum by quite a bit, after Purple Heart by a decent amount. Maybe our Toka or Purple Heart are different. You sent me a bonus scion of Purple Heart this year, so now I’ll have PH from two different sources and can compare.
It’s funny that Superior was your first to bloom and it was around the middle of my list. I think that is mostly a factor of the types of plums I have- pure Asian plums and plutots seem to be a bit earlier.
Long winded isn’t bad- it just means lots of info! 
Truth is that some are not yet blooming, or just beginning to. A shot of warm weather has sent my trees into overdrive, so I reckon they will all be blooming in the next few days,with exception of the beach plums.
Beach plums are just starting to open up their first flowers, 10 days or so after my early hybrid plums. This is the first season my beach plums have bloomed, one bush is only 2’ tall but loaded with flower buds, compact little guy. Hope there’s some fruit to try from these…let the anticipation begin!
The delayed bloom of beach plums would seem to make them a surer bet for frost prone areas.
To update this thread for 2017, it looks like most of my plums followed roughly the same timing. At least, I didn’t noticed anything which jumps out at me as far off, when looking at the list in my first post.
I did notice several additional plums which flower on new wood. I know because I grafted them last year, so I can clearly see which wood grew after the graft was made…
Vermont
South Dakota
Kahinta
Underwood
Elephant Heart
A couple Euros, grafted on the Asian plums did as well:
President
Early Laxton
Also, I took note of Euro plums. It doesn’t seem like there is that much variation in the Euros. They fall into 3 groups:
Early (almost done and leafed out):
Jefferson- B, 17
Mid (full bloom now):
Rosy Gage
Golden Transparent Gage- C, 20
Opal C, 21
Jam Session
Kirk’s Blue- D, 23
Seneca
Castleton
Valor- C
Bluebyrd
Late (soon to open):
Reine de Mirabelle
Vision
Stanley
Count Althann’s Gage- D, 22
The notes after some of the cultivars are the pollination group assigned by Keeper’s Nursery, which has a ton of Euro plums.
In addition to being the earliest bloomer, the Jefferson is noteworthy in that it is only a 2nd year tree. Of the 6 other 2nd year Euro plums I have, only Middleburg (6-7 flowers) and Ersinger (1-2 flowers) have any at all. And Jefferson doesn’t just have a few, but looks pretty well covered.
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That order is very similar to what I have seen. I don’t have all of those varieties, but Jefferson is definitely early for me and Reine de Mirabelle is my latest. Castleton, Bluebyrd and Rosy Gage have been mid bloomers. My Castleton is a fairly small tree but is loaded with blooms this year, the rest have light to moderate blooming. Over 90% of Jefferson’s blooms got fried, but I still have a fair amount of fruitlets forming right now. Hopefully they hang on.
On a related note–> As advertised, Surefire pie cherry is supposed to be the latest blooming stone fruit, and it still hasn’t bloomed yet this year. It probably will in a few days. All my other pie cherries have already been in full bloom for several days.
I think you’re generally way ahead of me. None of my cherries have bloomed yet.
Here’s an example of the difference, as illustrated by a Valor branch grafted on a Vision tree.
On 2nd look at the tree, it isn’t the whole tree that is covered, but only one branch and the lower part. It is still the heaviest bloom of the new Euro plums.
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Right now…out of all my plums, pluots, apricots…my Prunus Americana seedling rootstock tree (that has a ton of branches covered in blooms) has yet to open a flower. Everything else is in full bloom or past full bloom (apricots).
My Stanley is in bloom now, before the Gala apple. Brooks says it’s too young to flower. Everything else is past.
I forgot to mention Krymsk 86 which has a bunch of flowers…has still not bloomed. Very late. I have no idea if this thing sets fruit or not (K1 never did last year). K1 flowers very early.
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I have the same observation. Both of my hybrid Japanese X American plums were done by the end of the weekend, and I would say that Monday looked to be about peak bloom on the roadside P. americana around here.
Strange, compressed blooming this year for me. Some of my peaches are still blooming, plums are (almost) all blooming or past, along with pears and cherries, apple blossoms are opening, and even lilacs are blooming now. Probably had to do with our balmy February, freezing March and warm April. Looking to be a good fruit year here!
Additionally, currants (red, white and black) and honeyberries (late-blooming) are also concurrently blooming with the above. I haven’t seen blossom overlap of peaches, plums, currants, lilacs before.
Mine are all blooming too, but not exactly at the same time, close though.I would add my wild strawberries started blooming too, but the hybrids, not yet. Elderberries are forming flower heads. as are my lilacs, not blooming yet.
My raspberries have not formed flowers yet. Although I have a new cultivar that is ahead on getting there.
Did you get any fruit off of them?
Some of them set fruit, but I didn’t get any- I had enough trouble getting any fruit when there was a whole tree full of it.
Hey @Auburn, how long did it take your Methley to bloom? I’m on 3rd year in ground, and still no blooms, while santa rosa, and greengage right next to it have bloomed and produced now for the 2nd year…
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My third year and finally some blooms and fruit-set with my methley. Middle TN.
I had just a few blooms the 2nd year and more the 3rd year. Late cold weather wiped out the bloom for both years so I didn’t get any fruit. I have grafted to other varieties since then and have only a small section of Methley remaining.
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