Does anyone know where I could procure greengage plums in the midwest? Preferably the Chicago area. I’m having trouble finding a farmer’s market that sells them. I would be ecstatic if I had a chance to germinate greengage seeds. I hear several famous varieties emerged from volunteer trees and accidental crosses.
Hello,
Are you looking for a greengage tree, or a location that sells the plums?
I’m looking for a location that sells the plums.
Gage is not in season here, can’t tell who might carry it this year. I bought some once at Jewel many years ago, also saw at Eurofresh at some point. You might want to check garden fresh, Vallie etc. smaller, ethnic specialty grocery stores as well as the farmers market. The Covid changed things a lot and Gage plum is not a mainstream plum that everyone buys. Itis harder to find the source. Good luck with your search
depending on climate i’d expect gages from august on. Maybey end of july.
Green gage is not a good self pollinator though. So even if youd find them to sow yourself. it would likely be gage/plum hybrids. Which can be verry good.
If you want more of a pure gage, you’d probably be better of crossing it yourself and sourching a scion of green gage (Reine Claude Verte)
This page (use google translate) is a verry extensive source on Reine Claude’s (greengages)
https://www.vriendenvanhetoudefruit.nl/wp-content/pruimen/reine_claudes.htm
U. P. Hedrick, “The Plums of New York”:
William Prince, third proprietor of the nursery founded by his grandfather says in his Treatise of Horticulture, “that his father, about the year 1790 planted the pits of twenty-five quarts of Green Gage plums; these produced trees yielding fruit of every color; and the White Gage [Prince’s Imperial Gage], Red Gage and Prince’s Gage, now so well known, form part of the progeny of these plums, and there seems strong presumptive evidence to suppose that the Washington Plum was one of the same collection.” In 1828 the Prince nursery was offering for sale one hundred and forty varieties of plums which William Prince states “are a selection only of the choicest kinds, in making which, the commoner fruits have been altogether rejected.” Of the kinds grown, there were over twenty thousand trees. To this nursery, to William Prince and to William Robert Prince, the fourth proprietor in particular, belong the credit of having given plum-growing its greatest impetus in America.
They dont grow particularly well for me in the midwest but should you want scion wood ask me next year and i will send some from my old tree. The wood is old wood so its not ideal for grafting.
You might check with Brady Busch (@ Bradybb ) to see if he has it. I got some green gage scions last year from him. I think he got it from the Bay Area scion trade meetups.
2 Likes
The green gage I got from a friend @galina, has grown vigorously For the past 4 years, it has flowered some but set one fruit so far. I should have listened to Galina. It is a stingy producer.
It is possible that Green Gage is picky about cross pollinating partners. I have had about 10 Euro plums including Bavay and Cambridge Gage grafted next to one another.
1 Like
I have two green gage and no other European plums and my two 5th leaf trees have their first crop of about 5 plums each this year
1 Like
I thought he is looking for a place to buy plum ,the fruits
2 Likes
I should have paid better attention 
1 Like
He’s looking for the plums to sow the seeds. So i assume he wants a tree. And likely grafting or producing your own seeds so you have a choice in both parants is the best way to go.
1 Like
Today I re-learned that there are European plums and Asian plums. I have a Green Gage tree and for a minute I was concerned about not having a pollinator. Further research (face palm) reminded me that all of my three other plum trees are European; a Brooks, Italian Prune and I think a Santa Rosa. The Green Gage appears to be setting fruit, so I guess one or more of those did the trick.
1 Like
FYI: Santa Rosa is Japanese, not European.
1 Like
On the top right corner of a page, there is a symbol of a looking glass, that is the forum’s search engine. If you type in “European plum types”, Favorite European plums”, etc. You will find a lot of info about Euro plums including Green Gage plum.
Keep in mind, there are a lot of “green gage plums” out there. Sometimes, people don’t know they get the mislabeled plums until someone with knowledge let them know.
We have several knowledgeable growers here. When your plums mature, you can post pics here to verify.
1 Like
Today I learned that I have Japanese and European plums! 
1 Like
I have plum trees here that my Mother said are Greengage .
I live in the burbs outside Seattle Washington and have plumb , black cherry and apple trees that were a foot or more in diameter when I moved here in 1983
The plums are like a weed here and spread by root and fallen seed, the fruit is quite green until August - early September then turns an amber yellow and the fructose content is so high the fruit will start to ferment even before it falls when the conditions are just right . These plums also have a family high pectin , they make jam without added pectin and are an excellent sweetener with blackberries.
As I said they are ferile and I have never tried to cultivate them , some years they have scale on the fruit , little spots , and maybe fruit maggot,? This year they are loaded with fruit and I will have to deal with the drunken Raccoons partying out at the cement pond again LOL.