[Greenerlife]

My Victoria plum tree in my garden is absolutely laden with fruit this year (huzzah) but should I thin them out? Have a feeling that it will break the boughs if i leave them.

[Possum]

Often, plums trees will do a natural drop once the plums are about 50% of full size. If this doesn't happen, remove about half of them from the ends of branches that are likely to be weighed down by the ripe fruit. The plums on the inside of the tree can usually be left as they won't do any damage.

[HesterF]

No, for plums you should prune in late spring. Then the sap is rising and they are less likely to get silver leaf (the infection you're thinking of) than if you prune them during the winter. Stone fruit in the late spring once the leaves have come out, apples and pears in winter during dormancy.

Anyhow, this is not about pruning (unless they need a prune as well but I think you're a bit late for that now), just about the weight of crop. If they're mature trees, Possum's advice sounds brilliant. I've got baby trees and have removed most of the fruit already because I want them to be getting their feet down, not maturing fruit.

H

[Greenerlife]

Thanks for the replies.  Will see howmany drop, but feel that I will have to thin it out.  The plums look like large bunches of grapes - have never seen so many on a tree.  i think there are probably about 50 or 60 on each branch, and the tree is in its third or fourth season.

[Ina]

Envy! 

Not a single blossom even on my plum tree... I think my friend had the same problem, so it's not just me.

[ellied]

After a hopeless year last year, my 2 plum trees are back to their usual prolific fruiting and the branches are weighing down again too.  Couple of days ago I had 2 committee members from the local Orchard Group round and was advised to remove some of the smaller ones now so the rest get the best space and nutrition to develop.  I've been told the same about my apples, leaving just the leader and maybe one other, but I admit I find it hard to knock off potential fruit even though I know they'd be smaller.  I'm doing it though, no point joining an Orchard Group to get advice and then ignore it all     Well, I'm doing it within reach obviously, higher up they're on their own 

One of my trees has either silver leaf or a damp related condition that looks like it     Nowhere near the second tree though so shouldn't pass on, and they suggested I will need to take the tree down eventually but might aswell enjoy the fruit meantime and maybe even last year or two longer.  I thought the fruit might be affected with blotchy skin or something but I'll let things go til I see what the fruit is like and take it down when I have to. 

Presume any replacement needs to be a different kind of tree, not another plum?  Just not sure if one plum tree would be enough, I've 4 apples and a damson, planning on a pear or two in the available spaces but need another plum size space to come along now..

[Bodger]

You can usually prop up heavily laden boughs. I've certainly done it with apples and pears. Take what you can this year, because you might not have any next year.

[plumseverywhere]

we don't tend to thin out and yes, we prune in spring.

so far the orchard is looking really promising this year  last year was rotten!!

[Lesley Silvester]

My plum trees look pretty pathetic this year. One is only a young tree so it may be another year before I can expect anything but the other gave a lot of fruit last year but hardly anything this. My neighbour is also complaining that one of his which was a mass of fruit last year has very little this year. Strange.

[Bodger]

Quite a few varieties of fruit trees are known to be bi-annual, as in a year on and a year off when it comes to producing good crops of fruit.