Fruiting Plums for Whidbey Island 2023

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*All of these plum trees are grown on semi-dwarf rootstock in order to accommodate most home orchards.*

European Plums:

Green Gage

This is a historic plum variety dating back to France in the 1600s.  In France, this plum is called “Reine Claude”.   The small rounded yellow-green fruits are not pretty, but many say they have the best flavor of any plum. Juicy and firm, with a sweet, melt in your mouth flavor. Excellent fresh, or for baking, preserves and canning. Self-fertile but may produce better with a different European plum nearby. Ripens in late August.

Imperial Epineuse

Considered one of the most delicious plums you can grow, this plum has grown famous for its sweet, flavorful fruit. This French variety has a reddish-purple skin and yellow flesh. The large fruit is excellent for either fresh eating or drying. Once mature, the tree is a heavy producer, often yielding over 50lbs of fruit in a season. Considered self-fertile, but will produce better with a pollinizer. A WSU Mt. Vernon recommended variety.

Italian Prune

Perhaps the most widely planted and beloved fruit tree in history. Deep purple oblong freestone fruits with tasty yellow flesh. Great fresh off the tree, or for drying, canning and cooking. Flesh turns a nice red color when cooked. Ripens in August. Self-fertile but better with another European plum nearby. Can take a few years to start producing.  A WSU Mt Vernon recommended variety.

Yellow Egg

Also known as ‘Pershore’, this a large egg-shaped European plum. A heavy yielder.  Its skin is bright yellow in color and its flesh is soft and sweet. This heavy producer is mostly used for baking or making jams and jellies but can be eaten fresh if properly ripened. It blooms in late March and ripens in August.

Japanese Plums:

Beauty

A Santa Rosa type plum well suited to Western Washington. Red and yellow skin with amber-red flesh. Sweet and juicy with a delicious flavor that melts in your mouth. Some say the most flavorful Japanese plum. Excellent for fresh eating. Vigorous and productive. Ripens in early August.  Said to be self-fertile but would produce heavier with Methley plums nearby. A WSU Mt. Vernon recommended variety.

Methley

A hybrid plum generally listed with Japanese varieties. Beautiful purplish-red plums have amber red flesh and are sweet and juicy. A heavy producer and vigorous grower. Early blooming white flowers are sweetly fragrant. Ripens in July. Best eaten fresh or makes a good jelly. Commonly found in stores and farmers markets during plum season. Well suited to Whidbey Island gardens. Great pollinator for Beauty plums. Said to be self-fertile but would produce heavier with a Shiro or Beauty around. A WSU Mt. Vernon recommended variety.

Shiro

These plums are quite popular with American gardeners and the trees are long lived and very prolific.  Its large round yellow fruit is mild, sweet, and wonderfully juicy! With its fast production you’ll have plenty of fruit for eating, cooking, canning, baking desserts. Ripens in early August.

Need to know which trees pollinize which? Check out these Pollination Charts from Biringer Nursery.

Fruiting Cherries for Whidbey Island

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**All our fruiting cherries are grown on dwarf rootstock to make them easier for bird netting and access to the fruit. Sour cherries (Prunus cerasus) are said to be self-fertile, but sweet cherries (Prunus avium) need a second sweet variety as a pollinator. Since sour and sweet are different species they do not pollinate each other.**

Sweet Cherries:

Angela

Has large, sweet, black fruit that resists cracking and disease. Angela ripens like Bing in mid-season. A self-pollinating tree but will perform better with another pollinator.

Bing

The most popular sweet cherry on the American market, Bing cherries produce large, dark smooth skinned fruit in mid-June to early July. The fruit is firm and extremely juicy and very sweet. Great for fresh eating, baking or preserves. One tree can be a heavy producer, with mature specimens producing 50-100 lbs of fruit in one year. The Bing Cherry will need a pollinator, such as Lapin or Sam, to produce fruit. A WSU Mt. Vernon recommended variety.

Lapin

An outstanding sweet dark cherry for Northwest gardens. The cherries are very large and crack resistant. The fruit is sweet and juicy, making it perfect for fresh eating or baking. The tree is disease resistant and very productive. An excellent substitute for Bing, which can crack in Western Washington. Self-fertile. Ripens in summer.  A WSU Mt. Vernon recommended variety.

Rainier

An outstanding sweet cherry tree that produces delicious, large, fruit that are yellow with pink blush. Ripens before Bing, and larger than Royal Ann. This tree is a good pollinizer and is an easy to grow, low maintenance variety.

Sam

Considered a ‘black sweet’ cherry the fruit is dark red in color. Its flavor is similar to ‘Bing’ but a little tarter. Heavy producer and hardy to negative 20 degrees, it makes a great choice for home orchards. An excellent choice for the Pacific Northwest because of its resistance to cracking. Bing is a recommended pollinizer.

Vandalay

A large, sweet black cherry well suited to Northwest gardens. Very deep, wine-colored black cherries have firm red flesh and excellent flavor. Great eaten fresh. The cherries are crack-resistant and the tree is very productive. A disease resistant variety. Ripens in summer. Self-fertile. A WSU Mt. Vernon recommended variety.

Sweet Cherry 4-way Dwarf Combo

(4 of these 5 varieties grafted together) Bing, Rainier, Lapin, Glacier, Van, Royal Ann

Sour/Pie Cherries:

Montmorency

This variety has been cultivated in this country since the early 20th century. It is the most popular sour cherry in America. It produces a large, light red fruit for baking, drying and juicing.

Morello

This old variant fruit has deep crimson flesh that is tart and aromatic. The fruit’s wine-red juice is abundant and perfect for cooking and pie making. Ripens in August.

Surefire

Is so highly regarded it is considered the “first sour cherry.” This bright red fruit has high sugar content making it perfect for eating fresh or for making pies. Late blooming, late-flowering, crack resistant.

Need to know which trees pollinize which? Check out these Pollination Charts from Biringer Nursery.