Prunus mume

Discussion in 'Ornamental Cherries' started by OakenRose, Jun 21, 2015.

  1. OakenRose

    OakenRose New Member

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    Do any of you grow Prunus Mume, and if so which cultivars? Will you post pics? I hope this is an appropriate forum for this question. Close enough, right?
     
  2. wcutler

    wcutler Paragon of Plants Forums Moderator VCBF Cherry Scout 10 Years

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    I'm sorry there is no response to your query, but this particular forum is about cherries, and while I don't mind having some plum/apricot threads here, there is not so much interest in ornamental Japanese apricots. I don't know if that's because we don't have them here (I did see a thread mentioning that there could be a problem importing them to Canada). The only place I know I've seen one is in a botanical garden.

    We do locally have quite a few Prunus x blireiana, which is a hybrid between a purple leaf plum and Japanese apricot (Prunus mume) and has beautiful double blossoms. You can search for blireiana in the Plums thread. Most are named in the posting or the posting that precedes it in the display (since the postings are listed latest-first), but posting 72 has three nice unnamed photos of the blossoms at the end of the posting.

    I thought my spelling of blireiana was correct (I know I checked it in the past), but there's lots on the internet with the spelling blireana as well, including Wikipedia's article (which was "corrected" from blireiana to blireana on May 15, 2015), and google wants that spelling. I wonder if the spelling has changed.
     
  3. TheScarletPrince

    TheScarletPrince Member

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    I really do love plums (and apricot trees, especially JP varieties) and there is actually a huge interest in them, both horticulturally and botanically. People love to make bonzai and they are heavily desired for landscaping.
    Perhaps not on these forums, but these trees are very appreciated. I wouldn't mind if I had a few in my yard! Most people mistake these for cherries (since they are referred to as "cherry trees/cherry blossoms, incorrectly), which is why this person posted here.
     
  4. OakenRose

    OakenRose New Member

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    Hey Scarlet Prince,
    I'm glad to hear from someone else who loves Ume. One of my (many) horticulture projects is creating a movable bonsai ume festival. I occasionally work at one of the best prunus mume nurseries I know of, and he has given me many of his overstock for my project. I'm mainly hoping to discover cultivars that he doesn't carry to round out the show.
     
  5. OakenRose

    OakenRose New Member

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    I'll try to post some pics of a few that I am currently growing
     
  6. OakenRose

    OakenRose New Member

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    Maybe they attached now?
     

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  7. OakenRose

    OakenRose New Member

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    Ok so the first image is of cultivars 'Mokel' in pink and 'Hokkai Bungo' in red
    The second image is 'Usuiro Chirimen'
    The third is 'Nicholas'
     
    Last edited: Jul 22, 2015
  8. OakenRose

    OakenRose New Member

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    Here are cultivars 'Kobai', 'Kanko Bai', and 'Whiskers'
     

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  9. TheScarletPrince

    TheScarletPrince Member

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    Awesome, good stuff. Very beautiful blooms.
    I see snow, are you in cold climes? I'm wondering if some of that overstock can survive down here in zone 7b, TX! :)
    If you're willing to help me source some (I assume this awesome nurser of yours does not systemically treat the trees, right?) I am willing to pay for shipping/buy!
     
  10. Sundrop

    Sundrop Well-Known Member

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    The blossoms are fascinating. I especially like 'Hokkai Bungo' .
     
  11. OakenRose

    OakenRose New Member

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    'Hokkai Bungo' is a definitely a best seller, strong grower too.

    Scarlet Prince, I'm in around the margin of 7b and 8a in NC, so no problems there. I think they are hardy to zone 6 at least, maybe 5. The Nursery only ships these in dormancy, so you'll have to wait till next season to pick some up. For some reason David has removed the pictures from the website now, maybe to discourage summer orders, who knows, but the Nursery is Camellia Forest www.camforest.com. Maybe check in from time to time and see if they are back up. No systematic treatment unless shipping to Cali or Oregon per regulation.

    Some of the cultivars I can remember off the top of my head:
    'Fragrant Snow'
    'Pink Panther'
    'Contorta'
    'Big Joe'
    'Bridal Veil'
    'Omoi no Mama'
    'Tama'
    'Peggy Clarke'
    'Bonita'
    'Mitsubara Red'
    'Double Pink Fruiting'

    There are many more. They are not the easiest trees to keep, but the show is really spectacular and the buds are amazing in that they are really tough. They will stay in bud through long cold snaps and bloom beautifully on a warm day, even staying in bloom during snows. Also deserving of a prominent position as they are one of the only things in bloom so early. Dec-March.
     
  12. Ron B

    Ron B Paragon of Plants 10 Years

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    It being a large double red your "Hokkai Bungo" generally resembles 'Matsubara Red' (note spelling) - although examples of the latter produce purple shoots. At any rate bungo is a common name for hybrids between apricot and Japanese apricot grown as orchard fruits in Japan, an apparent clone of which has recently been in North American commerce under the silly name P. mume 'Bongo'. So if your bungo is one such hybrid it came out with a quite substantial P. mume dominance in its appearance.

    Another mistake I have seen in nurseries (and reproduced in your post) is P. mume 'Kanko bai', this is correctly fashioned P. mume 'Kan-kobai' - and is a comparison to P. mume 'Kobai'.

    A curious thing that may perhaps pertain to identification questions involving other cultivars is that when 'Matsubara Red' is grown in my area it displays small comparatively mediocre flowers unlike those seen in the South. I had assumed plants producing the inferior blooms here were misidentified until a local nurseryman told me that recently arrived stock (the main traditional wholesale source for outlets here is in California - see link below) bears the correct flowers at first - and then slips into making the small ones subsequently.

    It must be differences in summer conditions or some other factor that is present in the South but not up here, with flower buds set in California opening true-to-type and those formed here not doing so.

    There is a park in Japan devoted to P. mume that is said to have blocks of multiple examples each of hundreds of cultivars. As with other named forms of ornamental plants imported to the West from Japan it is probably safe to assume that a percentage of the Japanese apricot cultivar names in use here have problems, with perhaps both Japanese and western dealers changing original Japanese names for sales to westerners, as well as there being misunderstandings of Japanese names and naming customs (including common, group or type names being adopted as clonal cultivar names).

    http://www.lecooke.com/cms/flowering-fruit-trees/flowering-apricot-trees.html
     
    Last edited: Jul 26, 2015
  13. OakenRose

    OakenRose New Member

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    Thanks for all the great info! Yes, I had encountered the 'Matsubara Red' spelling in internet searches, and 'Mitsubara Red' only seems to appear in the Camellia Forest Nursery catalog. I'll have to inquire as to where he got that spelling and inform him of 'Kan-Kobai' too. Is it truly hyphenated? I have been led to believe it is common to see Japanese Cultivar names gratuitously hyphenated.

    As for the comparison of 'Hokkai Bungo' to 'Matsubara Red', the former is decidedly darker as well, with no hint of the fuchsia present in 'Matsubara Red'.'Hokkai Bungo' also has perhaps the strongest cinnamon-almond fragrance of all the cultivars I've encountered. I'll find out what I can about its origin, I am surprised to learn that it may have fruit cross lineage as it is so spectacular.

    I wonder what would cause underwhelming blooms? Is it only with Matsubara?

    Your tempting tale of a park full of Ume cultivars is only deepening my desire to go. Sometimes I wonder if I should't just move there.
     
  14. ichoudhury

    ichoudhury Active Member

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    I have seen some conflicting information regarding the Hokkai Bungo and pictures aren't often consistent. For example, if you go to OneGreenWorld's site, they are selling Bungo Mume and describing it as light pink color while yours obviously darker pink to redish almost (Correct me if I'm wrong). I have a Kobai and Matsubara Red that I purchased from Whitman Nursery and they insisted that Kobai would be darker but as I see the result, my Matsubara Red shows darker color without a shred of doubts. :) ...

    What is your source for Hokkai Bungo? I would love to get hold of a proven darker color ones. I much rather not waste time on mislabeled or named 'Hokkai Bungo' out there :D
     
  15. Ron B

    Ron B Paragon of Plants 10 Years

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    Presumably their light pink bungo is the same "Bongo" I mentioned above. Probably there is a single grafted or perhaps sometimes cutting raised clonal example of the hybrid being circulated in North America at this time. If you look at the web site of the forest-farm nursery in Oregon you can see photos of both the flowers and fruits in which the hybrid nature of this offering is visible.
     
  16. SoCal2warm

    SoCal2warm Active Member

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    In Japan they also have an edible group of Mume cultivars, with edible fruit. They were bred for their fruit rather than flowers.
    These are very closely related to regular apricots. The fruits are mostly used for culinary uses since they are a little sour, but I have heard at least one account of them being picked directly off the tree, put into a basket and eaten out of hand.

    I've only had the pickled version of this (great to add flavor in onigiri), and another whole fruit that was preserved in alcohol at the bottom of plum wine.
    The fruits are still a bit smaller than a regular apricot, in taste like a more sour underripe apricot, but some might say with a little bit more flavor.

    (note Mume often translates into "plum" in English, even though they are actually much more closely related to apricot)
     
  17. Laura G

    Laura G New Member

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    I too love mumes and have couple of them in my Niagara garden. Peggy Clarke and (what was labeled) Kan kobai. Kan kobai had lots of fruit this summer (3rd year from graft) and it was pleasant to eat with slightly peppery finish. Peggy Clarke is still young and I expect flowers and fruit next year. The fact they survive in Niagara speaks of their hardiness. My plants are out in the open and not very sheltered spot.
    Would love to get very dark red and would appreciate any recommendation on variety and nursery that sells it.
    Laura G.
     
  18. AlainK

    AlainK Renowned Contributor Forums Moderator Maple Society 10 Years

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    The one I have is white, with simple flowers. I was a bit disappointed because I thought the flowers would be pink.
    They began to open as early as the beginning of January, and kept its flowers after several days of snow and temps that went down as low as -12.2°C. Today, some of the buds are still waiting. Photos Jan-04, Feb-05, Feb-21 (after the cold spell) and today Feb-26.

    ume03_210104a.jpg ume03_210205a.jpg ume03_210221a.jpg ume03_210226a.jpg

    Two fruit formed last year, but they fell long before getting ripe.
     
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  19. AlainK

    AlainK Renowned Contributor Forums Moderator Maple Society 10 Years

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    First flower to open on mine :

    ume03_220204a.jpg

    It's a pity cultivars can't be found here. I saw very nice ones, of different colours, some even bearing both pink and white flowers on the same tree, some with double flowers, as bonsai (US and Asia).
     
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  20. Acerholic

    Acerholic Paragon of Plants Forums Moderator VCBF Cherry Scout Maple Society

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    Is this early to open for you Alain ? I was reading yesterday about Spring happening more and more in February due to climate change.

    D
     
  21. AlainK

    AlainK Renowned Contributor Forums Moderator Maple Society 10 Years

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    Not really, it was about the same last year, the beginning of February was even warmer. With the consequences due to a very cold spell around February 12th...
     

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