The plums of New York

by U. P. Hedrick

A letter of inquiry sent to representative nurserymen in all parts of the United States as to the relative merits of the several stocks for the different species of plums shows that plum propagators in different regions use somewhat different stocks. In New England and the North Atlantic States, the Myrobalan seems to be almost the universal choice, the exception being a few propagators who claim that the Japanese sorts should be worked on the peach, especially for sandy soils, and a few others who are using Americana stocks for the American species.

In the Atlantic states south of Pennsylvania and in the Gulf states to the Mississippi the preferences are very diverse, with the majority of the nurserymen in this region favoring the peach, Myrobalan following as a close second choice. For light soils it would seem that the peach is always to be preferred for this great region. The opinions expressed by the veteran plum-grower, J. W. Kerr of Denton, Maryland, on this subject are worth printing in full. He says:

“In this locality for all varieties of the Domesticas that unite thoroughly with it, the peach is preferable as a stock. There are, however, a good many varieties of Domesticas that refuse to unite firmly with the peach. For these the Marianna or the Myrobalan gives best results. For all of the Japanese plums the peach has proved most satisfactory, when the trees are propagated by root-grafting on the whole-root plan. Nearly forty years of experimenting and testing stocks of various kinds gives me a decided preference for the peach as a stock for native plums; results doubtless would be different in colder climates and soils than this, but long and critical experience has conclusively demonstrated the superiority of this stock when used as indicated for the Japanese.”

In the interior region between the Atlantic and Gulf States and the Mississippi, the Myrobalan is used almost exclusively for the European plums and most largely for the other species. Several nurserymen from this region, however, state that the St. Julien is better than the Myrobalan for the Domesticas and Insititias but object to them because the stocks cannot be obtained as cheaply. The peach is generally recommended for the Triflora sorts and the statement is several times repeated that the Americanas would be preferred for the native species if stocks of this species could be obtained readily.

In the northern states of the Mississippi Valley, all nurserymen agree that plums must be worked on Americana stocks. In this region the hardy natives only are grown.

South of the northern tier in the states of the plains the Myrobalan is used almost exclusively for the European species, most largely for the Trifloras, with the peach second for this species, and Americana stocks for the native species. Stark Brothers of Louisiana, Missouri, large growers of nursery stock in this region, express the opinion that “the right stock for native plums is yet to be found.” In Oklahoma, Texas and New Mexico the Marianna is mentioned by several nurserymen as desirable, and is, from these statements, rather more commonly used for stocks in these states at present than in any other region.

On the Pacific Coast propagators use Myrobalan and peach in about equal quantities—the first named for heavy soils and the last for the lighter soils. The native plums are not grown in this region. The almond is mentioned as being desirable in California under some conditions. Some plum-growers in the states of the Pacific propagate their own trees from suckers.

The information given by nurserymen shows that by far the greatest number of plums in the country are grown on Myrobalan stocks. In New York this stock is used almost exclusively. In Europe the writer found that the nurserymen hold that this is a dwarfing stock, and that the trees on it are shorter-lived than on some other stocks. In the nurseries in New York, plums in general, but more especially the Europeans, are larger and finer trees at two years, the selling age, grown on Myrobalan roots than trees grown on other stocks. Nurserymen lodge but two complaints against it; these are that in the South it suckers badly and in the cold states of the Great Plains the roots are killed by the winters. Its advantages from the tree-growers’ standpoint are: Cheapness of the stock, which is usually imported from France, large handsome trees in the nursery, ease of budding and a good union with nearly all varieties. Some growers complain that certain varieties overgrow this stock making in the end a badly mal-formed trunk. The Myrobalan plums are very variable, a fact which finds record in nearly all the characters of tree and fruit and this is somewhat against it as a stock. It is for this reason that there are so many “true” and “false” Myrobalans among nurserymen. Many importers hold that this stock is grown in France from cuttings. Such it seems was the old practice but now, if information from France is correct, most of these stocks are grown from seed. Hansen reports that in South Dakota this stock is worthless because it winter-kills. He says[150] “in experiments at this Station a very small per cent. of Myrobalan stocks survived the first winter and these died the ensuing summer.” It is likely that this stock would suffer in the coldest parts of New York.

In this region the St. Julien is probably the next most common stock in plum orchards though trees on it are for most part old, as its use is on the decrease. There is a wide-spread opinion among plum-growers that this is a much better stock for Domestica and Insititia plums than any other. On St. Julien stocks varieties of these species, it is claimed, with much to substantiate the claim, produce trees that are longer-lived, thriftier, hardier, deeper feeders, sprout less and are less susceptible to changes in soils. The chief objections to this stock are: It is more expensive, sometimes scarcely obtainable in France; difficult to bud; the young trees do not make as good growth as on the Myrobalan stocks; and the yearlings are much more susceptible to fungi while in the nursery row, though the latter troubles can be remedied wholly or in part by spraying. Hansen, in the reference given above, says that “the St. Julien and European Sloe (Prunus spinosa) both winter-killed” in South Dakota when used as stocks. The St. Julien stock is propagated from layers when properly grown in France[151] but much undesirable stock is now raised from seed. There are fruiting trees of this stock about the nurseries in the neighborhood of this Station which show it to be an Insititia of the Damson type, a type likely to come fairly true to seed yet not sufficiently so as to make seed-grown trees desirable.