Walking through the orchards the past few days we have seen some great looking varieties that are harvesting. Growers are excited to talk about the latest research findings on California plums. Last year Texas A&M published a 3 year long project that proved plums have just as much or more antioxidants than blueberries Click HERE to see the research. This year the preliminary research has shown that peach and plum extracts kill breast cancer cells! That’s huge! Click HERE to see the full report.

Take a look below and learn more about  the varieties that are being harvested in July!

Tags: antioxidants, july plum varieties, july plums, plum antioxidant, Plum Varieties

Posted in Plum Varieties

There are literally hundreds of different varieties of plums that are all unique. There are two basic groups of plums, the European varieties (Prunus Domestica)and the Japanese varieties (Prunus Salicina). They are both part of the stone fruit or drupe genus along with peaches, cherries and nectarines.  

The European varieties are oval or teardrop-shaped and have purple to blue skin. Most varieties are smaller than the Japanese plums we usually see.

The Japanese varieties are most common in the U.S. They are round in shape, with some having a pointed tip and come in shades of red, black, green, purple or yellow.

Then within those families there are hundreds of different varieties, each with their own specific color shape and flavor. When you go to the supermarket during the summer there will be new varieties of plums about every 1.5 to 2 weeks. Each variety has its own harvest window that is the same every year. A variety that is ready for harvest the first week of June will always have fruit ready to be picked the first week of June year after year. Growers have timed varieties so that they have fruit ready to pick all through the summer. Not all growers grow the same varieties, each grower has their favorite varieties they like to grow and some growers even have naturally cross bred certain varieties for flavor, nutrition and color.

Tags: Plum Varieties

Posted in Plum Varieties