The Plum Tree
It is a fruit tree of the Rosaceae family. It is cultivated for its fruit, the plum, which is consumed fresh or dried (prune). This hardy tree adapts to many climates and soil types. There are two groups of plum trees. The first is slow growing and includes the following species: Prunus domestica (the plum tree, greengage) and Prunus insititia (mirabel plum).
The second is fast-growing and includes the following species: Prunus salicica (called Japanese plum, Golden Japan and Methely) and Prunus cerasfera (myrobalan used mainly as rootstock). The plum tree fears spring frosts – the earliest Japanese plum tree is very sensitive to it – as well as winds and drought when the fruits are swelling. Propagation is carried out by grafting, most often in a slit or incrustation with a sleeping eye.
Planting is done according to the vigor of the rootstock and the variety. For self-sterile varieties, a pollinator tree must be planted every eight rows. Alternation is very common in the plum tree. Appreciated for its fruits, the plum tree occupies an area of 7,160 ha across all the wilayas of Algeria, mainly in Tlemcen, Médéa, Tipaza, Tizi Ouzou, Boumerdès, Béjaïa and Batna.
The second is fast-growing and includes the following species: Prunus salicica (called Japanese plum, Golden Japan and Methely) and Prunus cerasfera (myrobalan used mainly as rootstock). The plum tree fears spring frosts – the earliest Japanese plum tree is very sensitive to it – as well as winds and drought when the fruits are swelling. Propagation is carried out by grafting, most often in a slit or incrustation with a sleeping eye.
Planting is done according to the vigor of the rootstock and the variety. For self-sterile varieties, a pollinator tree must be planted every eight rows. Alternation is very common in the plum tree. Appreciated for its fruits, the plum tree occupies an area of 7,160 ha across all the wilayas of Algeria, mainly in Tlemcen, Médéa, Tipaza, Tizi Ouzou, Boumerdès, Béjaïa and Batna.