Plums in North Texas

General Fruit Growing
1

I am located about 30 miles North of Dallas in zone either 7 or 8 depending on where you look. I have a single plum, Methley, and am looking on adding 2 more. We definitely have issue with spring freezes (85 for a week then down to 30 for 3 days is not uncommon in the month of March.)

According to Texas A&M the varieties that work well in my area are:
Methley, Ozark Premier, Morris, Bruce, and Santa Rosa.
And also according to Texas A&M pluots are not recommended in Texas. Here is a quote from their document:
"Prunus Hybrids
Many Prunus hybrids are available,namely plum by apricot and vice versa;
commonly known as “plumcots,” “pluots,”or “apriums,” depending on the breeding
program that released them (Fig. 12).In Texas they have been disappointing.
So far none are winter hardy, all suffer from bacterial canker infestation, and few
have produced adequately. More breeding and development are needed before
they can be recommended for cultivation in Texas."

I am not a big fan of tart skin and I have heard the Santa Rosa has that. Anyone tried any of the others on the list, or have any other suggestions?

2

I can tell you that a well-ripened Santa Rosa is among the finest tasting plums I’ve ever had the good fortune to eat. Minimal if any tartness in the skin.

3

A&Ms recommendations are conservative if not down right ancient for most fruits other than peach. That said my only experience was Methley in Amarillo. Not a favorite. I’ve heard Bruce is mediocre. My suggestions would be Satsuma plum and Flavor Grenade pluot. They are working fairly well in more humid climates.

1 Like
4

So glad to hear someone say Flavor Grenade. I have been eyeballing that particular pluot for a while now.

My only experiences with pluots are my local grocery stores and to be honest they have absolutely zero flavor…same with the plums…not sure what is wrong with them, but they just don’t have any flavor. Like eating a piece of juicy paper. Grocery store peaches have at least some flavor, but the plums and pluots have none.

5

I’m in McKinney and planted a 3x1 pluot 5 years ago from Bay Laurel. The tree grows very quickly but it blossoms too early, late frosts always wipe out the fruit.