Types of Myrobalan Plum Rootstock

Myrobalan Plum

• The Myrobalan plum, Prunus cerasifera, is native to Asia but has been naturalized across Europe to Great Britain. It is a small tree or large bush that is variable in leaf and flower color and in growth habits. Prunus cerasifera cultivars with purple foliage are widely used landscaping plants, commonly referred to as purple-leaved plums. Trees have fragrant white to pink flowers, followed by small, cherry-sized red or yellow fruits that are used by wildlife as food. Another name for Prunus cerasifera is cherry plum. In its native habitat, fruits are used to make jams, sweets and stewed fruit drinks.

General Advantages

• Myrobalan plum rootstocks can tolerate poor growing and soil conditions such as root asphyxia, leaf yellowing caused by low iron levels, and unfavorable salinity levels. They also have resistance to pathogenic nematodes that harm roots and to pathogens such as fungi and bacteria that live in the soil. Myrobalan plums are also being interbred with crop stone fruit species to produce interspecies hybrids that can also be used as rootstocks, especially for fruits that are not very compatible with currently available myrobalan rootstock types.

Commercially Available Rootstocks

• Myrobalan rootstocks are selected from seed-grown plants. Seedlings are selected for their ease of vegetative propagation and their compatibility to crop stone fruits is tested. The most widely used commercial rootstock for orchards is clone Myrobalan 29-C. This rootstock type is immune to root knot nematodes, tolerates wet soils, and has less suckering than other rootstocks. Myrobalan B was developed in England about 1920 as a clone of a Myrobalan plum seedling. It is commonly used in Canada as rootstock for both European and Japanese plums.

Experimental Rootstocks

• Programs are underway to develop additional strains of Myobalan rootstocks. The Aula Dei Experimental Station in Zaragoza, Spain, has been working on rootstock selection since 1950. Two varieties selected for further work are "Ademir" or Myrobalan 599 AD and "Adara" or plum 2977 AD. "Ademir." Dr. D. Esmenjaud et al. worked with three types of Myrobalan rootstocks and resistance to root-knot nematode populations. The rootstock genotypes involved were P. 1079, P.2175 and P.2032. M. J. Rubio-Cabetas et al. investigated tolerance of myrobalan types P.2175 and P.2980 to flooded growing conditions.