Stand Alone Pages

Sunday, May 17, 2020

My Santa Rosa Pollinator Died and I Have Pluots

Q. I have a 2-year old Flavor Supreme pluot and a four-year old Flavor King pluot. Recently my Santa Rosa plum (their pollinator) died from borers. The Flavor Supreme had only a few fruit while the Flavor King was loaded. Do I need to plant a plum tree to pollinate the Flavor Supreme? Or does it have a small number of fruit because it is only 2 years old? 
Ripe Santa Rosa plum ready for picking.

A. Flavor Supreme pluot has wonderful fruit but its production is sketchy because of spring freezes. So most likely the tree was thinned of some fruit by some late spring freezes. Plus, its only two years old! Some years Flavor Supreme may get no fruit even though it flowers because of a freeze. This is less likely to happen with Flavor King.

Flavor King pluot. Has a lot of plum in its genetics.

            Santa Rosa plum produces good soft fruit in our climate and is a good pollinator for most pluots. Flavor Supreme is a pollinator for Flavor King pluot as well. Throw Dapple Dandy pluot in that group as well. But pluots will still produce fruit without a Santa Rosa plum or pluot in your yard. Just possibly a lighter crop. If a neighbor has a Santa Rosa plum or Dapple Dandy pluot then it is to your benefit.
Flavor Supreme pluot


3 comments:

  1. A Sweet Treat Pluerry can be pollinated by a Flavor King Pluot, but is the reverse true?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes. We usually mention the tree that we want to see succeed first. But both will succeed in setting fruit.

      Delete
    2. Really disappointed with all my cherry plum varieties. Cut one down and made a multiple varieties apricot trees out of it . I'm in zone 5B

      Delete