Hi - can anyone tell me what is/was wrong with our yellow plum tree? Five years ago we planted 2 3ft runners from a mother tree, near the shore of the southeast side of the Ottawa river in good soil, in nearly full sunlight. Outwardly it seems very happy. 2 years ago we had our first 3 or 4 plums. Last year the leaves had what appeared to be thick, green hair-like pieces (almost like thin worms but they weren't worms) hanging on the underside of many of the leaves & it had a few fruit - all but one shrivelled up & turned black. This year we have seen the same things on the underside of several of the leaves but attempted to remove the leaves whenever we noticed the funny things on the leaves (near the end of the flowering), but this year we have many fruit which look healthy and are ripening. We still haven't figured out what they are or if we are doing what we should be doing to help our tree...(the mother tree is 3 cottages over & does not have this problem) If anyone can help us it would be greatly appreciated. Our email is queenmoly@excite.com Thanks very much. Sharon B. in Quebec
Hi Sharon: You may have to show me some pictures of the "thick, green hair-like pieces (almost like thin worms but they weren't worms)". What would interest me more is seeing a picture of the "all but one shriveled up & turned black." Plums. < Five years ago we planted 2 3ft runners from a mother tree, near the shore of the southeast side of the Ottawa river in good soil, in nearly full sunlight. Outwardly it seems very happy. 2 years ago we had our first 3 or 4 plums. > When you say runners do you mean cuttings or air layerings from the mother tree? The answer above is rather important for me to know. Also, were the 3 or 4 Plums the same as the Plums on the Mother tree? How were these 3 or 4 Plums for quality? Do the tips or the sides of the leaves on these 2 trees ever curl under the rest of the leaf? You will probably have to join the forums in order to show me the pictures I will need to see to help you. I am not sure your insect problem is causing the fruit to shrivel up and turn black. You may want to tell me more of your growing conditions and your basic care for these trees such as how do you water, how often do you water, do you fertilize your trees and do you ever use a fungicide spray as a preventative for fruit diseases. Jim
Hi Jim < Five years ago we planted 2 3ft runners from a mother tree, near the shore of the southeast side of the Ottawa river in good soil, in nearly full sunlight. Outwardly it seems very happy. 2 years ago we had our first 3 or 4 plums. > (When you say runners do you mean cuttings or air layerings from the mother tree? The answer above is rather important for me to know. Also, were the 3 or 4 Plums the same as the Plums on the Mother tree? How were these 3 or 4 Plums for quality? Do the tips or the sides of the leaves on these 2 trees ever curl under the rest of the leaf?) They were new small trees growing from the mother & were dug up and transplanted. The first 3/4 Plums& the lone Plum last year looked like & were sweet tasting just as the Mother tree fruit, and this year's bumper crop looks the same(still not ripened yet).. I think there was a very slight curling on the leaves - will check with my husband this weekend at the cottage & reply again......The only change to the care/watering was that this year we started removing the leaves when we noticed the things on the underside of them, and put in a waterpump to the river last month and have been watering with the warmer river water rather than the cold well water - nothing else is different from previous years.... Thanks for your response. SharonB
Hi Again, Jim My husband & I both looked at the leaves & they do not curl - there are a few leaves with the things (the word scillia comes to mind when I look at them) on the undersides, but the fruit seems ok & is ripening. Thanks again for all your help. Sharon B. in Quebec
Hi Sharon: Sorry for the delay to get back to you but I really do not know what to tell you. I cannot ID the insect without seeing a picture of it. The aspect of the Plum turning black is what I would have the most concern with. That is a condition that if it happens again then you may want to start a fungicide spray regimen in the Spring with a Calcium or Copper based fungicide if you can locate one. It has been my experience with cutting grown Plums that the newly grown trees are much more susceptible to fungus diseases than the parent is. It does not always hold true for "wild" Plums or other Plum like fruit but it does seem to be quite true for sports from an old grafted variety of Plum on fruiting Plum rootstock and the old (60’s) cutting grown varieties of Plums also Jim
Hello again, Jim Thanks very much for your very valuable feedback. The plums seem fine and are almost ripe (it has been a very cold summer with not a great amount of sun). We will watch for fungus & follow your advice in spring if necessary. Our sincere thanks for sharing your knowledge with us. Sharon B. in Quebec
