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Exotic Damson Plum-Erakina

February 8, 2022 3 Mins Read
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A deep dive into this significant fruit plant-Erakina

When you read further about this plant, you, as a plant lover would not resist planting this exotic fruit plant in your backyard.

damson tree

Delicious Purple Damson Plum grew on the branch of the plant. 

Scientific Classification

Kingdom: Plantae

Clade:       Tracheophytes

Clade:       Angiosperms

Clade:       Eudicots

Clade:       Rosids

Order:       Rosales

Family:     Rosaceae

Genus:      Prunus

Species:   P. Domestica

About Damson Plum

This delicious-looking fruit plant is the Damson plum plant is also known as Prunus insititia, one of the plums but often used in cooking, jams, wine, etc. instead of eaten fresh because of their bitter taste. They are easy to grow in situations where other plums can’t be grown. They are dark purple-black outside and green and golden-yellow inside. Let’s know more about this plant, how one can grow it in their backyard? What are its various uses? Come and take a walk through this significant plant and have a quick guide. 

The mature trees can grow up to 20 feet (6 m) and the dwarf ones grow up to half of it. 

Characteristics of Damson Plum

  • It has dark green, shiny, oval-shaped leaves with jagged edges. 
  • The plant produces clusters of white flowers that have five petals. 
  • The fruit it produces is dark blue/black or purple with white bloom. 
  • The trunk of the tree is not very broad with the bark always wrapped up with moss, lichens, and scars.
  • These are easily grown plants, that can be found in mixed woodland, gardens, parks, hedgerows, and in one’s backyard.   
  • Possess a sour and bitter taste, can’t be eaten fresh but is perfect for jams, sauces, and wines.

Damson Plum Flower

Beautiful Five-Petal Flower of Damson Plum. 

How one can grow Damson Plum

One can choose either to plant a dwarf tree or a mature one. The fully grown plum tree can grow up to 20 feet tall and 20 feet wide while the dwarf grows exactly half that height. If you are thinking of planting these and have limited space, a dwarf one would be a good fit. 

Their growth rate is moderate, they grow about a foot to 2 feet every single year. They require 4 to 6 hours of full sunlight daily and well-draining soil is most preferable for them. That is why picking a perfect place to grow them is very necessary. 

Although they are not very picky about the soil, moist soil suits them the most. They are hardier than the other plums but can be grown in other situations as well. They are wind-resistant and can tolerate difficult circumstances. 

They do not require another tree to pollinate with, although growing two at a time can give abundant fruits but are unnecessary as they are self-fertile. 

Damson Plum with its Surprising Uses

After getting familiar with the uses and benefits of the Damson plum you will run to buy it to plant it in your backyard. 

It is considered one of the most useful ingredients when used in cooking. Being used as the topping for ice cream, it is also widely used with baking. People often use it to make jams and jellies and enjoy them throughout the year. 

Damson Plum is rich in Vitamin C and Vitamin D that help you to gain instant energy, boost your immune system and keep your hair and nails healthy.  

Not just great in the kitchen, they are very useful as they are food for many birds and animals too.

Damson Plums

Freshly Plucked Damson Plums. 

Blue Damson Plum tree gives beautiful white flowers in the late spring and plenty of plums in august and September. It’s a bad choice if you want to eat them fresh and raw but you can make great use of them in cooking. 

The biggest advantage of planting this tree is, they are very less maintenance trees and a benefit to those who use fruits to make varieties of jams, jellies, and wines. 

They are also not required to be pruned; you need to remove the dead or damaged leaves once in a while. 

This quick guide of the Damson Plum has surely made you decide to plant one in your backyard to have easy access to captivating flowers which by the way enhances the beauty of your garden and the plums which serve multipurpose. 

By-Vaidehee Bhawasr

20/01/2022

Erakina

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