Buy Our Bare Root Plum Trees Because......
- All Bare Root Plum fruit trees certified virus free, Free UK Mainland Delivery with a FREE FRUIT TREE WARRANTY.
- Plum Maiden trees are 1 - 1.5 years old when sold, with 3 - 3.5 year old roots grafted on, all other Plum bare root are 2 - 2.5 year old trees with 4 year old roots (arguably a 4 year old tree).
- 1-3 years on average to produce fruit (depending on root stock).
- All basic pruning requirements completed before delivery.
- Tree consultant available to answer questions pre and post purchase.
- WHOLESALE PRICES AVAILABLE FOR ORDERS OVER £150 Call 0800 043 1057
Mature Bare Root Trees, click here mature bare root trees 180-600cm tall.
Victoria Plum Tree (BARE ROOT)
Victoria plum trees provide large freestone plums (freestone means you can pull the stone away easily from the flesh, not free of charge!). Expect recently picked Victoria plums to last about a week.
Victoria plums are ideal for eating, bottling or canning and are the most popular plum tree sold. This maybe due to the large amount of fruit that it provides or that it is a bit of a self fulfilling seller in that most kids visiting granny and grandad had Victoria plums and people tend to buy what they know. Even as far back as Victorian times, it was very popular and has maintained it's sales leading position since.
Sometimes, they can bear so much fruit that the branches break under their own weight. Removing some of the very young fruit or blossoms can prevent this problem and if you are going to do this, remove the ones that look smaller, diseased, not as well formed or closer to the trunk. The fruit on the edges of the branches receive most light and air making them generally healthier.
Some people may consider shop purchased Victoria plums to be of an inferior taste compared to other plums on the shelf. This could be down to them being picked far too early for commercial reasons. Less than ripe fruits, especially plums are firmer so travel better and last longer on the shelves, ripening at home. For a fairer comparison pick a Victoria plum when the skin is more red and less flushed with orange and you will notice a difference.
Of course we want to sell you our Victoria plum trees however you should know that these take a bit more looking after. They are a bit like your forgetful neighbour, they don't need oodles of care but popping in from time to time to make sure they are ok is a good idea. In more technical gardening terms, these are a little more susceptible to plum tree pests and diseases. On the upside, Victoria plum trees are suitable for planting right across the UK and this can include North West Scotland providing you don't live in a place where small children have to walk around with lead weights in their wellies to stop them becoming airborne and deep sea trawlers are regularly found washed up miles inland. The very large plum harvests also make it worth while having.
Silver Leaf And Plum Trees
Silver Leaf is a fungal disease caused by Chondrostereum purpureum and plum trees in general are susceptible to it and can be fatal if left un-treated for a long time (some trees may fight it off). The fungus gets into the tree through bad pruning, open wounds, frost cracks etc. enters the wound and travels upwards. this is why pruning is done in the summer when the fungus spores are not around (bear in mind that tree wounds take about a month to heal enough to protect against fungal attack if you don't paint them yourself). The spores are produced between September and May and particularly prevalent when wet. Best to prune Plum trees between June and August because the tree produces a gum which makes it much harder for the spores to spread.
If you must prune plum trees outside of the suggested time frame e.g. wind damage, immediately paint with a pruning sealant such as Arbrex or household emulsion.
Bad plum tree pruning days are those that are wet and moist e.g. rainfall in the last 24 hours, mist, fog, high humidity and no wind or sun. Good plum tree pruning days are those good for drying washing on the line e.g. sun, dry (less than 70% humidity)and high winds. The reason for this is spore production happens when the fruit (the ugly fungus you see on the tree) increases its water content to 75% (nearby bogs or other wet micro-climates still allow the production of spores even though it has been recently sunny). Frost does not kill the fungus fruits but temperatures over 20 degree centigrade reduce spore production significantly and less spores are around in the day.
You will know you have Silver Leaf on your plum tree when either the foliage turns silver and/or the branches start to go brown/purple and die off. Branches over 2.5 cm will have a brown tint/stain when cut especially when wet and this will tell you the difference between Silver Leaf and False Silver Leaf.
Silvering of plum tree leaves is not always obviously noticeable and is caused by a toxin produced by the fungus entering the leaves causing the upper layer to separate from the lower changing the light reflective properties of the leaf. No actual fungus is in the leaf.
You may notice a flat bracket shaped fungus on the tree 2-10cm across and overlap like tiles. They vary in appearance but will be fleshy when wet and shrivel in dry weather and of a brown or purple colour.
False Silver Leaf
False Silver Leaf makes the leaves look exactly the same as Silver Leaf as the two membranes of the leaf still part. This can be caused by tree stress such as other pest attack, hot or cold weather at the wrong time of year, lack of water and lack of nutrients, this is summarised as general tree stress which is obviously worse than "Captain Tree Stress". If you suspect Silver leaf, find a branch at least 2.5cm wide. Cut into it and wet the end, if it goes or appears brown you have Silver leaf. If the cut you make is very close to the trunk, the trunk most likely is infected and you should dig the tree out and burn it.
Treating Silver Leaf
The only effective treatment is removal of the infected material. Cut it out plus 10cm of good wood and burn immediately. Sterilise all instruments with household disinfectant between each cut. If the tree is diseased to the trunk it will most likely die and leaving it may infect other trees and plants too. It is possible that the plum tree may recover but you need to consider other trees and plants nearby in that they could become infected too.
Keeping your plum trees well watered, fed and mulched will reduce the chances of it catching Silver Leaf and buying the Pixy root stock will also help.
Summary
- Keeping your tree healthy with feeding and watering increases the plum trees resistance to Silver Leaf.
- Only prune in the summer when it has been dry for at least a day and during the day
- If you find diseased wood, cut it out plus 10cm of good wood and burn asap (disinfectant between each cut)
- Treat ALL open plum tree wounds on the same day
Most important information
Month Of Fruiting: Late August to Early September
Type Of Plum: Eating and Cooking
Fertility: (C3) SELF FERTILE
See What Our Customers Are Saying About Our Bareroot Victoria Plum Trees
Hello, Just to let you know, the tree has arrived and looks great. Thank you Hester 0221
Do I Need To Stake My Bare Root Tree?
9 out of 10 times the answer will be no, especially if under 200cm tall. However our article on Tree Staking should help guide you.
Planting In The Corner Of A Garden
Air and light is reduced in this location which could promote fungus and bacterial issues. If the corner is of the house and a fence then you also have leeching issues to contend with from cement and wood preservatives. Also when it rains, that area would experience higher water levels so we advise against it unless the plant is very hardy.
1 Year Maiden Bare Root Trees
If you plant a 1 Year maiden tree and do not prune it at all, it will grow a little more upright and have more clear stem.
Bareroot Plum Supplied Height
We apologise for the broad supplied height of 1-2m in the Plum bare root product titles. This is because the height of your supplied Plum tree depends on your choice of root stock and the previous growing conditions e.g. weather we have had. As a general rule of thumb the Plum maiden root stock is younger and therefore shorter.
Plum Bare Root Stocks Explained
The type of root stock you buy dictates the age, shape and several other characteristics of your plum tree.
Brompton : Final height of around 4.0+ metres.
Half Standard St Julien A : Final height of around 3.6 metres with the branches starting higher up than the Bush (more conventional tree shape. 2+ years old.
Bush St Julien A : Final height of around 3.6 metres but the branches start lower down the tree (easier picking). 2+ years old.
Maiden St Julien A : Final height of around 3.6 metres. 1+ years old (ideal for Fan/Espalier Training or other shaping)
Maiden Pixy : Final height of around 3.0 metres. 1+ years old (ideal for Fan/Espalier Training or other shaping) Will provide plums a little earlier than St Julien A rootstock.
Bush : This indicates the shape of the plum tree. A bush will have the branches starting lower down the tree to give a bush shape.
All bare root plants need to be planted between November and March whereas our containerised plum trees can be planted all year round. Select the root stock you desire from the drop down menu below or if you are unsure, telephone us on 0800 043 1057 or use the enquiry page.
All bare root plants need to be planted between November and March whereas our containerised plum trees can be planted all year round. Select the root stock you desire from the drop down menu below or if you are unsure, telephone us on 0800 043 1057 or use the enquiry page.
Basic Pollination Explanation
If a plum tree is listed as SELF FERTILE then it produces fruit if planted by itself. If not, then it will belong to 1 of 5 pollination groups (C1,C2,C3,C4 or C5), each group being a 1-2 week block of time in April-May when the plum tree blossoms. When in blossom (or flowers) this is when a non self-fertile plum tree requires a pollination partner from the same group or one up or one down. For example a C3 non self-fertile plum tree requires another C2,C3 or C4 plum nearby.
Partially self-fertile plum trees provide fruit by themselves but give more plums if a pollination partner is close by. A typical housing estate is likely to have other plum trees close enough.
Plum Bare Root Season
The Plum bare root season is from November to March/early April depending on weather. If you order outside of these times, your order will be held until bare root trees are back in season. If you order before the season starts, you will get "pick of the bunch" as first come first served and the best trees are sent out first.
MAKE SURE YOU SELECT THE ROOT STOCK YOU WANT AS SOME ARE CHARGED EXTRA FOR
Fruit Tree Heights
Taller does not mean more value for money. A 1 year old fruit tree can easily be substantially higher than a 2 year old, this is because they are hard pruned at 1 year old to create the desired shape. Some trees have over 100cm of height removed. They can then have another pruning at 2 years old to increase fruit growing real estate. Most fruit trees will benefit from having a third to half of the seasons new growth cut back in the Autumn to prevent long whippy branches which break easily. Age and pruning completed determine real value.
