Methley plums ( Prunus salicina’Methley ' ) , a Nipponese potpourri , yield sweet , reddish - royal plums in U.S. Department of Agriculture works hardiness zones5 through 9 . They grow from 15 to 20 feet marvelous and just as wide-cut , and should be space at least 20 feet apart . Methley plum have achilling requirementof 400 hoursin order to concede yield ; hours of wintertime temperatures below 45 degrees Fahrenheit are chilling minute . If you dwell in an expanse that does n’t meet that requirement , a Methley tree may not maturate plums . They call for no chores that are unusual for plums .
Watering Requirements
Methley plums require moist grunge but will raise well in area with low humidness andminimal rainfall . They need more water during the spring to fall grow time of year and less water in the winter when they ’re dormant . When they ’re actively growing , they take enough pee to keep the soil moist around the root zone . There is no recipe for watering a Methley plum since sandlike territory drains faster and dry out quicker than clay that retain water and remains moist longer . Hot weather will increase lachrymation motivation . As a home agriculturalist , the best you may do is watch the top of the soil . If it attend dry , cut into down to check the wet . As a rule of thumb , give young trees2 gal of watertwice a week . Give mature Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree up to 8 Imperial gallon of H2O twice a week .
Fertilizer Needs
Feeding Newly Planted Trees
Before leaves of fresh planted trees appear in leaping , spread 1 cup of 10 - 10 - 10 urine - soluble granularfertilizerover an area 3 feet encompassing at the base of the tree diagram and weewee well .
Apply 1/2 cup of calcium nitrate , 15.5 - 0 - 0 , or ammonium nitrate , 34 - 0 - 0 , over an area 2 pes wide in mid - outpouring and again in early summertime .
Ongoing Fertilization
Fertilize a Methley tree twice a class commence the second year :
Pruning the Plum
Methley plum tree yield fruit in two to four year after you implant a nursery sapling . They begin the springtime growing season by yielding flowers before leaves . lop the tree after it bloom but before it has leavesthe year after you plant the tree . Prune interior branchesand damaged , morbid or deadened wood . In plus , prunescaffolding branches — the main arm that grow outwards from the trunk — to keep the center of the Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree open to sunlight . blank thescaffolding branchesevenly around the trunk and leave 1/3 - inch stubs . This will serve keep plum yield and help control plant disease . Low , strong branch are typically select for scaffolding branches because they making harvest home plums easier without using ladders .
you could uphold the height of the tree to 8 to 9 feet by allowingscaffolding branchesto rise but cut the upright center , include shoots that grow unsloped . Methley plum tree trees grow more plums on older wood as they get aged , so snip unnecessary new woods will amend fruit
Possible Problem: Disease
Methley and Santa Rosa Nipponese plums are more susceptible tobacterial spotof plum ( Xanthomonas campestris pv . Pruni ) than are European plums . This bacteria multiplies in warm pelting with temperature above 65 degrees F , causing smear on the tips and edges of farewell . The interior of the spots call on sinister and drop off out , finally causing defoliation of yellowing leave . serious infections can cause smaller plums with gap on the airfoil . There isno chemical treatmentfor this disease . The serious way to avoid it is to keep your Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree healthy by making sure it has enough pee , fertilise it in good order and trim it when necessary .
Bruce & Methley Plum Trees
Like all plum tree trees , " Methley " plums belong to the Rose menage . They also require average wet but can stick out short dry turn during the grow time of year . The trees loosely grow about 15 to 20 inches each year until fledged and need an one-year springtime program program of balanced fertilizer , broadly speaking 8 ounce of a 10 - 10 - 10 formula for each year of old age A annual pruning to increase the nakedness of the tree and allow light to get through its center can help oneself the tree remain salubrious and fruitful , as can removal of weewee spout and dead , discredited or diseased ramification , as they appear . A Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree that can be 10 to 15 feet tall at due date , it blooms in early leap , produce mint of small , bright white flowers . A " Bruce " plum tree tree is standardized to most yield trees in that it does best when planted in full Dominicus . Given suitable growing conditions , a ripe tree can give rise as much as two to three bushels of plum each class . "
Tip
There are no insect that taint Methley plums beyond what may be a problem with any yield tree diagram .
