What is the Prostitutes Plum?
The Prostitutes Plum is a specific variety of Japanese plum (Prunus salicina) known for its reliable productivity, good disease resistance, and attractive, flavorful fruit. It’s primarily grown commercially but is also suitable for dedicated home gardeners. While the name’s origin is debated, it refers to a distinct cultivar valued for its agricultural qualities rather than any specific historical or cultural reference tied to the term.
This plum variety typically produces medium to large-sized fruit with a characteristic deep reddish-purple skin, often covered in a light bloom. The flesh is usually firm, juicy, and ranges from golden yellow to amber in color. It ripens mid-season, typically after popular varieties like Santa Rosa but before later types like Friar. Like other Japanese plums, it requires a pollinator variety planted nearby to set fruit effectively. Growers appreciate its consistent yields and relatively vigorous growth habit.
Where did the name “Prostitutes Plum” come from?
The exact origin of the name “Prostitutes Plum” remains unclear and is likely rooted in local folklore or historical marketing rather than any documented scandal. Some theories suggest it might be a rough translation or misinterpretation of a name from its region of origin, while others propose it was a provocative name used by a nursery to garner attention. There’s no substantive historical evidence linking the name directly to any specific event involving prostitution.
It’s important to focus on the fruit’s horticultural merits rather than the potentially misleading name. Plum varieties often acquire colorful or unusual names based on appearance, origin, or the grower who cultivated them. In agricultural contexts, the name simply serves as a unique identifier for this particular cultivar.
What are the characteristics and taste of Prostitutes Plum fruit?
Prostitutes Plum fruit is prized for its attractive appearance and balanced, sweet-tart flavor profile with rich plum notes. The fruit is generally round to slightly heart-shaped, featuring smooth, deep purple skin that may have a distinctive waxy bloom. The flesh inside is firm yet juicy, typically golden-yellow, offering a satisfying texture.
The flavor is a hallmark characteristic. It strikes a pleasant balance between sweetness and acidity, resulting in a classic, well-rounded plum taste that’s neither cloyingly sweet nor overly sharp. The skin contributes a slight tanginess that complements the sweeter flesh. This balance makes it excellent for fresh eating straight off the tree. Its firmness also contributes to relatively good shelf life and handling characteristics compared to softer-fleshed varieties.
How does the taste compare to Santa Rosa or Satsuma plums?
Compared to Santa Rosa plums, Prostitutes Plum generally offers a less intense tartness and a slightly richer, more honeyed sweetness at peak ripeness. Santa Rosas are famous for their vibrant, almost spicy tartness when first picked, mellowing to sweetness. Prostitutes Plum tends to have a more immediately approachable sweetness balanced by moderate acidity. Against Satsuma plums, known for their deep red flesh and intense sweetness (often used for drying into prunes), Prostitutes Plum typically has lighter-colored flesh and a more complex flavor profile featuring both sweet and tart elements, rather than Satsuma’s predominantly sugary profile. Its texture is often firmer than both Santa Rosa and Satsuma when properly ripe.
How do you grow Prostitutes Plum trees?
Growing Prostitutes Plum trees successfully requires full sun exposure (at least 6-8 hours daily), well-drained soil, adequate winter chill hours (typically 400-600 hours below 45°F), and a compatible pollinator variety planted nearby. Like most Japanese plums, they are not self-fertile. Excellent pollinator partners include Santa Rosa, Burgundy, or Methley plums.
Plant trees during dormancy (late winter/early spring) in a hole twice as wide but no deeper than the root ball. Amend heavy clay soils with compost to improve drainage. Water deeply and regularly, especially during the first few years and fruit development periods. Annual pruning during dormancy is crucial to maintain an open vase shape, improve air circulation, manage size, and encourage new fruiting wood. Fertilize in early spring with a balanced fruit tree fertilizer before new growth starts. Monitor for common plum pests like aphids, scale, and plum curculio, and diseases such as brown rot and bacterial canker, implementing appropriate organic or conventional controls as needed.
What are common pests and diseases affecting Prostitutes Plum?
Prostitutes Plum, while having decent resistance, can still be affected by common stone fruit pests like aphids, scale insects, plum curculio, and peach twig borer, and diseases such as brown rot, bacterial canker, and shot hole fungus. Aphids and scale suck sap, weakening the tree and promoting sooty mold. Plum curculio causes crescent-shaped scars on young fruit leading to drop or internal damage. Brown rot is a devastating fungal disease causing fruit to rot on the tree, especially in humid conditions. Bacterial canker causes oozing sores on branches and trunk, potentially girdling limbs.
Prevention is key: choose a sunny, well-ventilated site; prune annually for openness; clean up fallen fruit and leaves; apply dormant oil sprays in late winter. For active issues, targeted insecticides (like spinosad for curculio) or fungicides (like copper spray for bacterial/fungal issues) may be necessary, always following label instructions. Selecting disease-resistant rootstocks when purchasing the tree also provides significant protection.
Where can you buy Prostitutes Plum trees or fruit?
Prostitutes Plum trees are primarily available from specialized online fruit tree nurseries and occasionally at well-stocked local garden centers in suitable growing regions (USDA zones 5-9). Finding the fresh fruit commercially can be challenging outside of local farmers’ markets near orchards that grow it, as it’s not a major supermarket variety.
Reputable online nurseries like Dave Wilson Nursery (who often wholesale to retailers), Bay Laurel Nursery, Trees of Antiquity, and Stark Bro’s are reliable sources for purchasing the trees. Availability varies seasonally, so pre-ordering during winter is often recommended. When buying a tree, specify you want the variety known as “Prostitutes Plum” to ensure you get the correct cultivar. Look for healthy, dormant bare-root trees (winter/early spring) or vigorous potted trees. Fresh fruit is rarely shipped commercially due to its perishability; seeking out local orchards known for diverse plum varieties or U-Pick farms in plum-growing regions (like California, Oregon, parts of the Midwest and East Coast) is your best bet during mid-summer harvest season.
Is Prostitutes Plum suitable for home gardens?
Yes, Prostitutes Plum is well-suited for home gardens, provided the climate offers sufficient winter chill (400-600 hours) and space allows for a standard or semi-dwarf tree plus a pollinator. Its reliable bearing, good disease resistance, and delicious fruit make it an attractive choice for dedicated fruit growers. A standard tree can reach 15-20 feet, requiring significant space, while semi-dwarf rootstocks (like St. Julian A) keep trees in the 10-15 foot range, more manageable for suburban yards. Dwarf options are less common for this variety.
Considerations include the need for annual pruning, consistent watering (especially during fruit set and development), pest/disease monitoring, and the essential requirement to plant a compatible pollinator variety nearby (within 50 feet is ideal). If space allows for two plum trees and the gardener is willing to provide necessary care, Prostitutes Plum offers rewarding harvests of high-quality fruit. For very small spaces, other stone fruits on dwarfing rootstocks or self-fertile plum varieties might be more practical.
What are the best uses for Prostitutes Plums?
Prostitutes Plums excel as fresh eating fruit due to their balanced flavor and firm, juicy texture, but they are also versatile for cooking, baking, preserves (jams, jellies, chutneys), drying, and even making plum wine or brandy. Their good sugar content and moderate acidity translate well into various culinary applications.
When cooked, they hold their shape reasonably well, making them excellent for tarts, galettes, and clafoutis. Their rich flavor and natural pectin content produce outstanding jams and preserves with a beautiful deep color. For drying, halved and pitted Prostitutes Plums make flavorful “prunes” (dried plums). They can also be fermented into rustic wines or distilled into brandy. Freezing pitted halves or slices is a simple way to preserve them for later use in smoothies or baked goods. Their versatility is a significant asset for home growers with a bountiful harvest.
Can you make jam or wine with Prostitutes Plums?
Absolutely. Prostitutes Plums are exceptionally well-suited for making jam, jelly, and wine due to their balanced flavor profile, good sugar levels, and natural acidity. For jam, the fruit’s flesh breaks down nicely while the skin provides color and pectin, often requiring minimal added pectin for a perfect set. The resulting jam has a deep purple-red hue and a classic, rich plum flavor that’s both sweet and tangy.
For wine, the sugar content provides the necessary fermentable sugars, while the acidity contributes to the wine’s structure and balance, preventing it from being cloying. Winemakers often appreciate varieties like Prostitutes Plum for producing a medium-bodied, aromatic plum wine with characteristic stone fruit notes. Recipes typically involve crushing the fruit, fermenting the juice (sometimes with skins for color/tannin), and careful aging. Both jam-making and winemaking are excellent ways to utilize a large harvest.
How does Prostitutes Plum compare to other popular plum varieties?
Prostitutes Plum occupies a distinct niche among Japanese plums, offering a reliable harvest, good disease resistance, and a balanced flavor profile, often positioned between the tartness of Santa Rosa and the intense sweetness of varieties like Elephant Heart or Satsuma. Here’s a comparison of key characteristics:
| Variety | Ripening Time | Skin Color | Flesh Color | Flavor Profile | Key Strengths |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prostitutes Plum | Mid-season | Deep Purple/Red | Yellow/Amber | Balanced Sweet-Tart | Reliable yield, good disease resistance, versatile use |
| Santa Rosa | Early-Mid Season | Red-Purple | Amber | Tart when firm, Sweet-Tart when ripe | Classic flavor, widely adaptable, good pollinator |
| Satsuma | Mid-Late Season | Dark Red | Blood Red | Very Sweet, Low Acid | Excellent for fresh eating & drying, striking color |
| Elephant Heart | Late Season | Mottled Red-Purple | Blood Red | Extremely Sweet, Rich | Large size, exceptional sweetness, late harvest |
| Methley | Early Season | Dark Red-Purple | Red | Sweet, Mild | Self-fertile (mostly), early fruit, productive |
Prostitutes Plum is valued for its consistency and good all-around performance. While Santa Rosa might be more widely known, Prostitutes often offers comparable or better disease resistance. Satsuma and Elephant Heart are prized for intense sweetness and color, but Prostitutes provides a more complex, balanced flavor. Methley offers early fruit and self-fertility, but Prostitutes typically has larger fruit and a more robust traditional plum taste. Choosing between them depends on desired harvest time, flavor preference, space (pollinator needs), and specific growing conditions.
Is Prostitutes Plum more disease-resistant than Santa Rosa?
Generally, yes. Prostitutes Plum is often noted by growers and nurseries as having better inherent resistance to common plum diseases like brown rot and bacterial canker compared to the widely planted Santa Rosa variety. While no plum is immune, Prostitutes Plum’s reputation for hardiness is a key reason for its cultivation, especially in regions prone to humid summers that foster fungal diseases or areas with a history of bacterial canker issues.
Santa Rosa, while an excellent and flavorful variety, is considered somewhat more susceptible to brown rot and canker. This doesn’t mean Santa Rosa can’t be grown successfully – diligent sanitation, pruning, and preventive sprays are effective. However, if minimizing disease pressure is a primary concern, especially for organic growers or those in challenging climates, Prostitutes Plum’s enhanced resistance makes it a strategically advantageous choice. Its reliable productivity is partly attributed to this resilience.
What are the challenges of cultivating Prostitutes Plum?
The main challenges in cultivating Prostitutes Plum include its pollination requirement (needs a compatible partner), susceptibility to standard plum pests/diseases despite relative resistance, potential for fruit drop if stressed, and managing tree size/vigor in smaller spaces. Like all fruit trees, it demands consistent care for optimal results.
The absolute necessity for a pollinator (like Santa Rosa, Burgundy, or Methley) is a primary consideration, requiring space and planning for at least two plum trees. While more resistant than some varieties, it still needs proactive management against brown rot (especially in wet weather), aphids, and borers. Insufficient or irregular watering, particularly during fruit development and hot spells, can lead to fruit drop or smaller, lower-quality fruit. Standard trees are vigorous and require annual pruning to control size, maintain shape, and ensure good light penetration and air flow within the canopy. Thinning young fruit is often necessary to prevent limb breakage and promote larger, healthier plums. Frost damage to blossoms in early spring is also a risk shared with all plum varieties.
How can you prevent fruit drop in Prostitutes Plum?
Preventing excessive fruit drop in Prostitutes Plum involves ensuring consistent soil moisture (deep watering during dry periods), providing adequate nutrition (balanced spring fertilizer), practicing proper fruit thinning, and protecting blossoms from late spring frosts. Fruit drop can occur naturally (“June drop”) as the tree self-thins, but excessive loss signals stress.
Water stress is a major trigger. Maintain even soil moisture, especially from bloom through fruit ripening; deep watering is better than frequent light sprinkling. Mulching helps retain moisture. While needing nutrients, avoid excessive nitrogen fertilizer which promotes leafy growth at the expense of fruit. Thinning the young fruit clusters when they are marble-sized (leaving 4-6 inches between fruits) reduces competition for resources, allowing the remaining fruit to develop fully and stay on the tree. If late frost threatens after blossoms open, covering smaller trees with frost cloth overnight can offer protection. Good overall tree health through proper pruning and pest/disease management also minimizes stress-related drop.
