Plum is one of the crops that man has been cultivating for centuries. The whole thing is in its fruits, which have excellent taste and most beneficial effect on the human body. In the article we will tell about plum varieties, descriptions of varieties.
What is a plum, and what does it look like
Plum is a fruit crop that every gardener loves. It has a wide range of distribution and growth. As a rule, this is a tree or shrub reaching up to 12 meters, however, care and timely pruning can keep the tree from uncontrolled growth.
Plum fruits are very juicy, their size varies from medium to large, and weight - from a few grams to hundreds. A distinctive feature of plum varieties is its size, which is one to three centimeters in diameter and has a length one and a half times. The stone is flat and long. The taste of plum, depending on the variety, may be sweet or sour, but it will always be juicy. Today, more than 250 varieties of plums are known.
Top 7 best varieties
Among the huge variety of varieties, some varieties of plums are most popular . Description of varieties of this group:
- Plum, known as "Skoroplodnaya." Its peculiarity lies in the fact that it tolerates low temperatures, low moisture content and has high resistance to many diseases. Also, it is not susceptible to fruit rot.
- Plum "Yakhontovaya" is interesting in that it is resistant to both low and high temperatures, as well as to diseases and pests. Moreover, the tree bears fruit already in the third year after planting.
- Less resistant to temperatures, but also interesting is the plum - “Tula Black”. This variety is immune resistant, suitable for various kinds of blanks.
- Grade "Chinese woman". The reason for the popularity are good indicators of frost resistance and resistance to pests, while the fruits reach sizes of 70 g.
- Plum “Blue Gift” can also be noted as a very persistent tree, although its fruits are smaller, more likely even less than average, but the late ripening period makes the fruit in demand.
- Grade "Giant". Due to its excellent appearance and taste, it can also be attributed to the popular varieties, despite the poor tolerance of extreme conditions, pests and diseases.
- Overseas grade "Stanley". Reviews and description of the plum variety indicate that it has been known for a long time and still remains a very popular species, and all thanks to its large fruits and taste characteristics. Plum is suitable not only for raw consumption, but also for various workpieces. Gardeners note the special taste and the possibility of widespread use: drying and preparation of blanks.
The best varieties of plums, according to gardeners, have earned their title due to their special properties and taste. It is these varieties of fruits that gardeners often choose for planting.
Early grades
Among the whole variety of plum varieties, there are those that ripen in the period from July to the first half of August. These varieties bring the largest yield, and distinguish them in early ripening and early ripening varieties. Among the early varieties can be distinguished:
- A plum with excellent taste characteristics, resembling a peach, the fruits of which ripen in groups, and very impressive sizes with a characteristic yellow color. This plum variety is called the "Golden Ball" - it is not difficult to guess the reason for this choice of name. The tree bears fruit already in the third year after planting.
- "Red ball." In this variety, the trees reach small sizes, and the fruits have a pronounced reddish-amber hue. The tree reaches 2.5 meters in height. Ripening occurs at the end of June.
- One of the best varieties, especially for home growing, is the "Record". This tree variety is characterized by high resistance to low temperatures and high quality fruits of blue or violet color, as well as high productivity.
Mid-season plum varieties
Trees whose harvest belongs to the second half of the last month of summer and to the group of the average ripening period. Such fruits have a pronounced taste and aroma. These include:
- "Masha." It is resistant to cold temperatures, unpretentious and very productive. The fruits are quite large, have a purple color, as for the taste - it is juicy and sweet.
- "Souvenir of the East." A variety that came from the East, whose tree has a low growth and good yield. The disadvantage of the variety is its instability to low temperatures, which does not make it possible for its wide distribution. But the taste characteristics, the size of the fetus and its appearance can partially compensate for other shortcomings.
Late grades
The last group is late varieties and very late ones. The fruits of these trees ripen from late August to mid September. Such fruits tolerate low temperatures and are most often suitable for winter harvesting. What are the varieties of plums called? The main ones from this group include:
- Variety "Bogatyr Plum" is a very unpretentious tree, resistant to cold and diseases of various kinds, as well as high-yielding. The fruits of this variety are often used for harvesting prunes, as they have a pronounced sour taste.
- Variety "President" is called a universal variety. The reason for this is the characteristics of both the tree itself and its fruits. Like any late variety, it is resistant to cold, and the fruits have such properties that they can be used not only for drying, but also for other types of blanks.
Yellow plum
Among the different varieties of plums, plums of yellow color can be distinguished separately. As a rule, they have a special aroma and taste. Below we consider the varieties of plums with a photo and description:
- Yellow Honey. From the name it is already clear that it has a unique taste and aroma. Due to its unpretentiousness, it can be planted everywhere, although its drawback is a strong spreading. Fruits are sweet with sourness. Ripening occurs in July.
- "Golden large" refers to late-ripening varieties. It tolerates low temperatures, regularly bears fruit, and has an attractive appearance, along with the highest taste characteristics.
Whatever the variety, all yellow plums have one characteristic. It is that they were obtained as a result of breeding, and for their effective fruiting it is necessary to select another variety for planting next to the pollination purpose. Otherwise, the harvest can not wait.
Chinese plum
Representatives of plums with Chinese roots can be distinguished into a separate group. They all come from Chinese culture that existed in the Yangtze Valley. All plum varieties (photo below) of this group differ:
- high resistance to cold;
- rapid growth;
- rapid flowering at a very early date.
Moreover, the yield of the variety is only increasing from year to year. The fruits of Chinese varieties can reach very large sizes, while the varieties intended for sale tolerate transportation very well, without losing either their presentation or taste.
Examples of varieties: "Jubilee", "Krasnomyasay", "Shiro Seedling" and others.
Other plum varieties
There are also other varieties that are not included in the described groups. Some of them:
- "Top hit." It is a mid-season variety with large fruits. Differs in tasty juicy pulp with sourness.
- "General" discharge refers to frost-resistant. It has a technical purpose. A feature is the presence of very tender pulp, which makes the variety non-transportable.
- Alyonushka is a descendant of Chinese plum. The fruits have a sweet taste, their color is dark pink, and the stone is poorly detachable.
- Blue Gift is one of the most multi-yielding varieties. Belongs to the group of mid-season. Juicy dark purple fruits are great for conservation.
- "Masha." This variety belongs to the early maturing. The trees are medium-sized. And the fruits are dark pink with yellow flesh and have a dessert flavor.
- "Angelica". This variety is similar to cherry plum, taste with sourness. Fruiting begins 3 years after planting.
- "Kabardinka". This variety ripen by mid-August. The pulp has a sweet taste, and the fruits are of medium weight and round in shape.
- "Burbank Giant." A frost-resistant plum variety that is not afraid of the disease - moniliosis. Its berries are large and sweet, have a red-yellow color.
- Damascene. This variety is distinguished by fruits of different colors: they can be red, blue, black and white.
Reviews of plum varieties say that each of them is suitable for a particular soil, weather conditions. If a summer resident chooses a plum for planting, then first you need to determine the color: blue, white, red, yellow. Each variety is distinguished by taste, ripening time of the fruit and the number of crops.
Summary
The benefits of plums have been proven over many years of observation. First of all, it improves digestion, normalizing it and, as a result, healing the body as a whole, since all harmful substances from the body are excreted by the functioning of the intestines. And the content in the plum in a sufficient amount of carbohydrates, pectin and other vitamins and minerals can make it an assistant when following a diet. Even when dried, it remains a valuable product, as it retains most of the nutrients.