Victoria plum

Sun

Full sun, preferably in a sheltered position away from frost pockets.

Water

Keep the root zone evenly moist during establishment and fruit development; avoid waterlogged soil.

Soil

Deep, fertile, well-drained loam is ideal; tolerates heavier soil if drainage is good. Slightly acidic to neutral soil suits it best.

Height

10-20 ft (3-6 m) on common garden rootstocks; vigorous rootstocks can produce larger trees.

Spread

10-20 ft (3-6 m), depending on rootstock and training.

Flowers

White flowers in early to mid-spring, usually before or as the leaves open.

Foliage

Oval, toothed, mid-green leaves, turning yellow in autumn before falling.

Growth

Moderate.

Care needed

Medium

• Pollinators
• Wildlife
• Low allergen
• Edible

Northern hemisphere months. In Australia, shift them by six.

Difficulty

Moderate

Toughness

Fairly tough

Pick your zone, country, light and whether you have pets.

1. Planting day

   7 ft (2 m)

2. After 1 year

   7 ft (2.1 m)

3. After 2 years

   7 ft (2.3 m)

4. After 3 years

   8 ft (2.4 m)

5. After 5 years

   9 ft (2.6 m)

About 20 years to full size.

From a typical nursery size, at an average rate for this kind of plant. A rule of thumb, not a forecast.

Cats and dogs

Toxic

Growth rate

Moderate

• Choose a rootstock suited to your available space, soil and climate; keep the graft union above soil level.
• Water deeply during dry spells, especially for the first two growing seasons and while fruit is swelling.
• Apply compost and a balanced fruit-tree fertiliser in early spring according to label rates; avoid excessive nitrogen.
• Mulch over the root zone, leaving a clear gap around the trunk.
• Thin crowded fruit in early summer to roughly 2-3 in (5-8 cm) apart, and support heavily loaded branches.
• Stake young trees as needed until firmly rooted, and remove shoots arising below the graft.

Pruning. Train young trees in spring after growth begins, then prune established trees lightly in summer, preferably in dry weather, to remove crossing growth and maintain an open crown. Avoid autumn and winter pruning because wounds are more vulnerable to silver leaf and bacterial canker.

Pick in late summer to early autumn, typically August-September in the Northern Hemisphere and February-March in the Southern Hemisphere, allowing for local conditions. Ripe fruit has a red-purple blush over yellow skin, yields slightly to gentle pressure and comes away with a light twist; leave eating fruit to sweeten fully on the tree.

Late autumn to late winter

Plant bare-root trees while dormant, provided the ground is neither frozen nor waterlogged; install a stake if needed.

Early spring

Feed, renew mulch and check ties; protect blossom with horticultural fleece during forecast frosts, removing it by day for pollinators.

Late spring

Check developing fruit and leaves for pest damage, and water during dry weather.

Early summer

Thin crowded fruit and support branches carrying heavy crops.

Summer

Prune in dry weather and remove damaged or rotting fruit promptly.

Late summer to early autumn

Harvest in several passes as fruit ripens; collect fallen fruit and remove any shrivelled fruit left on the tree.

• Use as a productive focal tree in a sunny lawn, keeping grass clear of the trunk.
• Train as a fan against a sunny wall or fence where space is limited.
• Plant in a mixed orchard with apples, pears and other plums, allowing room for mature crowns.
• Include in an edible border with low herbs and flowering plants outside the mulched root zone.

Garden styles it suits: Backyard orchard, Edible landscape, Cottage garden, Potager (kitchen garden), Homestead and English country.

Plant it with: Chives, Thyme, Marigolds, Nasturtiums, Yarrow and Lavender.

Wildlife: Spring flowers provide pollen and nectar for bees and other insects. Birds and mammals eat ripe fruit; netting, if needed, should be taut, secured and wildlife-safe.

• Brown rot: fruit develops soft brown patches and pale fungal cushions. Remove affected and mummified fruit, thin crowded crops and improve airflow.
• Silver leaf: leaves develop a persistent silvery sheen and branches may die back. Prune affected wood back to healthy wood in dry summer weather; remove severely infected trees.
• Bacterial canker: sunken bark, gum and dead shoots develop. Cut affected branches back to healthy wood during dry summer weather and avoid unnecessary wounds.
• Plum moth, particularly in the UK and parts of Europe: caterpillars feed inside fruit, often leaving brown frass near the stone. Remove infested and fallen fruit; use pheromone traps to monitor activity and follow local advice on control timing.

Ripe fruit flesh is edible. Leaves, stems and especially kernels inside the stones contain cyanogenic compounds and can cause serious poisoning in people, cats, dogs and horses if enough is eaten; wilted leaves are a particular livestock hazard. Stones also pose choking and intestinal-blockage risks, so keep pruning waste and fallen fruit away from animals.

• Opal plum (Prunus domestica 'Opal')

  Usually ripens earlier than Victoria and has smaller, rounder red-purple fruit. Fruit appearance overlaps, so a reliable label is the best confirmation.

• Greengage (Prunus domestica, Greengage Group)

  Typically has rounder fruit that remains green or yellow-green when ripe, rather than Victoria's oval, red-flushed fruit.

• Cherry plum (Prunus cerasifera)

  Usually has smaller, rounder yellow or red fruit and flowers earlier. Some ornamental forms have purple foliage, unlike Victoria.

The cultivar name honours Queen Victoria, while Prunus is the Latin name for plum and domestica refers to its cultivated status.

Propagation. Propagate by budding or grafting onto a compatible plum rootstock. Seedlings will not come true to Victoria, and root suckers from grafted trees belong to the rootstock rather than the cultivar.

Accepted botanical name

Prunus domestica

In the US and Canada

Introduced in Canada and the lower 48 states.

Measured

Soil pH 5 to 8.2. Average height 800 cm.

Sources: GBIF (CC BY 4.0), USDA PLANTS and Trefle (CC BY 4.0). The care and design notes are LandscapeGPT's own.